Ilma Afroz Became IPS Officer After Losing Father, Washing Dishes

Report: Rajat Malhotra

Ilma Afroz, the daughter of Kundarki in Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad district, has become an example of what determination and hard work can achieve. From losing her father at the age of 14 to studying while facing severe financial hardship, and from washing dishes in England to becoming an IPS officer, her journey has been described as a story of struggle leading to success.

Ilma Afroz secured the 217th rank in the UPSC 2017 examination. With that result, she proved that no difficulty is too big when the resolve is strong. She later became an IPS officer of the 2018 batch and was allotted the Himachal Pradesh cadre.

Ilma was born in Kundarki, in Moradabad, in a small farmer family. Her father, a farmer, died when she was just 14 years old. The source also states that he died of cancer. After his death, the family’s financial condition became extremely weak.

Following her father’s death, her mother raised Ilma and her younger brother, who was 12 years old at the time, on her own. Relatives pressured the family to get Ilma married, but her mother and brother stood by her. Instead of saving money for dowry, her brother decided to spend every rupee on his sister’s education. Her mother also chose to invest money in her daughter’s education rather than collect money for dowry.

Ilma’s early education took place in Kundarki itself. She then went to Delhi and graduated in Philosophy from the prestigious St Stephen’s College of Delhi University. Her academic ability took her further, and she received a scholarship to study at Wolfson College, Oxford University.

Her journey did not stop at Oxford. After Oxford, she also studied at Sciences Po in Paris as an exchange student. She later took part in a voluntary service programme in Manhattan, United States. She has also worked with the United Nations in Indonesia.

During her studies abroad, Ilma had to deal with serious financial difficulties. To manage the cost of education, she did part-time jobs in England, including washing dishes. Her family said that because of financial hardship, she often could not even come home.

After studying and working abroad, Ilma had the option of a good job and a better life outside India. But her desire to serve the country brought her back to India. After returning, she began preparing for the civil services examination and succeeded in her very first attempt.

In 2017, Ilma Afroz secured 217th rank in the UPSC examination on her first attempt. In the 2018 batch, she became an IPS officer and was allotted the Himachal Pradesh cadre.

During her probation, she served as SDPO in Mandi and Una. She then became SP in the State Disaster Response Force. Her first posting as SP was in Baddi district.

Ilma Afroz also came into the spotlight for her work while serving as SP in Baddi. In her office, she started an evening school for poor children. The initiative began with 20 children and later reached more than 450 children.

Today, Ilma Afroz is known as an IPS officer from the Himachal Pradesh cadre and a source of inspiration for young people, especially girls. Her story brings together the struggles of a small farmer family in Kundarki, the support of a mother and brother who chose education over dowry, the discipline that took her from Moradabad to St Stephen’s College and Oxford University, and the decision to return to India for public service.