8th October 2020, was the day I faced one of the biggest failures in my life, as I did not clear the NDA 2 2020 written examination. What are the probable chances that exactly one year later, on 8th October 2021, I get recommended for NDA – 147 Batch?
My name is Srikesh G Krishnan, and I am from Chennai. My SSB happened at 22 SSB Bhopal, one of the oldest Selection Boards, and this was my experience:
On the day of reporting, 58 candidates reported, out of which 5 were repeaters and the others were freshers. After the documentation check, we were allotted chest numbers, given breakfast and taken to the testing hall for the Stage – 1 testing. My OIR Test was pretty decent, and I made a practical story and provided a futuristic long-term solution in my PPDT. The narration part was really good, and during the GD, I had made sure to not just suggest points for the common story, but also to listen to others and to request everyone to give chance to the feeble candidates as well. We had our results in a while, and 24 of us had gotten in for the next round. We had to complete a lot of paperwork that evening.
On the second day, we had our Psychological Tests. I wrote all the TAT story with a practical plot, and again with long-term solutions. In the WAT, I made simple sentences for all the 60 words and in SRT, I only did 45 of them within the stipulated time given. But in SSB, it’s the quality that the assessors look for, rather than the quantity. And I had also pre-planned for my Self Description, and I was thus satisfied with my performance in the whole Psychological Assessment.
For the next two days, we had our complete GTO series. In all of my tasks, I made sure to be a team player and contribute to the team rather than consciously trying to do well as an individual. Both of our GDs went constructively good. Individual solutions were good with regards to GPE, but the solution that we came up with as a group was not viable. Our PGT and HGT went really well, and I came up with a lot of workable solutions during those tasks as well. All through the GOR, I kept cheering and motivating my group members and when the GTO told that our group had broken a rule, I volunteered to redo the obstacle for my team. But on the contrary, my Lecturette, Command Task and Individual Obstacles were not up to the mark. My lecturette was a bit disorganized, I did not get past the last obstacle in my Command Task and I only managed to complete 9 out of 10 when it came to Individual Obstacles. Nevertheless, I kept my spirits high and kept motivating my team throughout the two days, as the GTO does not decide about your recommendation just from one or two tasks, but from your complete holistic performance throughout the process.
My Interview too, happened on the third day after my GTO session. I had prepared well for the interview, and was pretty confident for it. I remained calm and composed throughout the one hour that my interview went for, and answered every question with a beaming smile across my face. The course of the interview thus, became a jovial one with most of the questions being the general ones with respect to the PIQ form. I was completely satisfied with my performance in the Interview.
The morning of the fifth and the final day welcomed all of us in the best of our formals, and with smiling faces full of hope. The Deputy President had briefed us about the conference proceedings, and then started calling the chest numbers one by one. When my chest number was called out, I entered the conference hall and faced a committee of about 12 officers seated in front of me. My Interviewing Officer asked me some general questions about the food, the stay, the friends I made and my performance across all the tasks. My conference lasted not more than 5 minutes, while for some of them, it went on for even half an hour.
Another hour later, we were asked to assemble for the results. Amidst the crossed fingers, accelerated heartbeats and silent prayers, I heard the Officer announce my chest number. I gave out a huge sigh of happiness and contentment, and joined the other three recommended candidates to meet the President of the Board. All that was running through my mind at that point of time was that, I had just crossed the biggest step that leads one to the path of becoming an Officer in the Indian Army.
If there is anything that one must remember while undergoing the process of SSB, it’s to never be disheartened or lose morale if one single task doesn’t go the way you wanted it to. SSB is all about your combined performance, and you can always make up for one task in the next one. I wish the best of luck for all the aspirants who are preparing for their SSB!
