Life of An IFS Probationer... A Traveller Within

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Its been long since i wrote something. Let me get back to something which i love doing...Expressing Myself  and this time its about my IFS Training @ IGNFA!

IFS training encompasses a very exhaustive and elaborate 16.5 month long of Travel and Touring. When u visit more than 20+ states , 50+ Cities, Innumerable Places of Heritage, Forests, Forts, National Parks,Temples,Monasteries,Architectural Sites, Natural Wonders etc etc., all in a span of just One-Year Odd, it demands a book or two to be written to narrate the Stories of Touring, Travel and Fun. However, for the lack of space n time, i am writing this very brief blog post to Cover the Majority of Places and Appreciate the Uniqueness that this Diverse Nation has in Store at every place we set our foot on. This is more of a Tour Guide for Must Visit Places in India for a traveller within You.

Unlike the trainings of some other Civil Services which happen in Sandwich pattern, IFS training happens for a 16.5 month period at a stretch, after the 3.5 month Foundation Course in LBSNAA. However, it is unfortunate that there is very less information available online regarding the Tours and Trainings we receive as IFS Probationers at the National Forest Academy. Training at Academy is a fascinating Journey, and when i say Journey, I literally Mean it too.. :D...This post would give you insights into almost all the Tours i did till now as a Probationer.


I am leaving out the Visits to Zoos, National Parks, Botanical Gardens, Nurserys etc etc in general which are part and parcel of our tours and would like to Confine Myself to the "Uniqueness" of places as We travel across this Nation extensively.

So here we Gooooooo... on the Bharat Darshan.....

 Introductory Tour (1 Week)
Place : Sal Forest, Timli, Dehradun Outskirts

 West India Tour (22 Days)
States : UP, Rajasthan and Gujarat
Places : Agra, Fatehpur Sikri, Ranthambore, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Ajmer, Jaisalmer, Little Runn of Kutch, Ahmedabad, Dwarka, Somnath, Jamnagar, Gir , Diu

 Must Visit/Do :

  • The Taj
  • Forts of Fatehpur Sikri/ Buland Darwaja
  • Tiger Safari @ Ranthambore (Probably the Best in the Country), 
  • Forts of Jaipur/Jodhpur/Udaipur
  • Exploring the Deserts of Jaisalmer
  • Ajmer Dargah
  • Temples of Dwarka and Somnath
  • Lion Safari @ Gir
  • Marine National Park @ Jamnagar (Can Witness live Corals by walking barefoot during Low Tide)
  • Laser and Water Show @ Akshardham,Gandhinagar (Must say Spectacular and Breathtaking)

 Ministerial Attachment (1 Week)
Place : MoEF&CC, New Delhi

Parliamentary Attachment (1 Week)
Place : BPST, Indian Parliament, Delhi

n Yes... That Photo with the President.. :D

 Hill Tour (22 Days)
States : Himachal, J&K, Punjab
Places : Leh(ChangLa, KhardungLa, Pangong Tso), Kargil, Zozzila, Sonmargh, Patnitop, Bir-Billing, Srinagar,Gulmarg, Jammu, Manali (Rohtang Pass), Simla,Chandigarh


Must Visit/Do :
  • Visit Highest Motorable Road in the World @KhardunLa
  • Visit Pangong Tso Lake of 3Idiots Crossing ChangLa
  • Travelling in NH1-A, Crossing Jojila argueably one of the World's Most Dangerous Roads
  • Paragliding @Bir-Billing..Asia's no.1 Site for Paragliding (Paragliding World Cup 2015 is held here)
  • Trek to Vaishno Devi @Katra
  • 1999 War Memorial @Kargil (The Briefing here about the Kargil War simply stirs your Emotions and Feelings of Patriotism)
  • White Water Rafting in Beas @Kullu (Distinct and More challenging than in Rishikesh)

Forest Mensuration Excersie (1 Week)
Places : Kanaser, Chakrata
http://sathishsofaar.blogspot.in/2016/05/kanasarchakrata-forests-and-their.html
Must Visit/Do :
Limestone Caves near Kanaser
Trekking Expedition (1 Week)
Places : Valley of Flowers, Hemkund Saheb, Badrinath, Mana Village

 Must Visit/Do :
  • Arduous Trek to Hemkund Saheb and taking a Dip in that Exceptional Lake
  • Wonderful Trek to Valley of Flowers National Park
  • Coffee at India's Last Village @ Mana
  • Geyser Bath @ Badrinath

NPA Attachment (1 Week)
Place : National Police Academy, Hyderabad

Saaaaaavdhaaann!!!

Wildlife Technique Tour (1 Week)
Places : Panna Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pardesh,
Tourism : Khajuraho

 Must Visit/Do :
  • Group of Temples of Khajuraho (Parsvanath, Vishvanath, Mahadeo)
  • Tiger Safari @ Panna

Working Plan Exercise (20 Days)
Places : Sal Forests of Timli

All India Forest Sports Meet (1 Week)
Places : Hyderabad (Keeps Changing Every year...IGNFA Contingent participates every year)

Management Attachment (1 Week)
Places : IIM Lucknow (IIMs can change based on Feedbacks from Probationers)

 Must Visit/Do :
  • Ambedkar Park 
  • Imambada  or Bhoolbullaya
  • Kabab's of Lucknow

NGO Attachment (1 Week)
Place : Amity University, Delhi ( Other groups are doing at various places like Ajmer, Delhi etc)


South India Tour (22 Days)
States : Telangana, Tamilnadu, Kerala and Karnataka
Places : Bangalore, Mysore, Bandipur, Mudumalai, Periyar, Ooty, Coonoor, Coimbatore, Madurai, Rameshwaram, Madras, Hyderabad, Bhopal

 Must Visit/Do :

  • Tiger Safari @ Bandipur
  • Elephant Camp @ Mudumalai
  • Mysore Palace, Zoo and Chamundi Temple
  • Boating in Mullaperiyar Dam Backwaters in Periyar
  • TANTEA tea gardens in Coonoor
  • Toy Train  ride in Nilgiri Railways
  • Madurai Meenakshi Temple
  • Rameshwaram Pamban Barrage
  • Visit to Sanchi Stupa @Bhopal
  • and Offcouse All Spicy Hyderabadi Biryani...mmmm...

East India Tour (22 Days)
States : Andamans, Arunachal, Assam, West Bengal, Meghalaya, Odisha
Places : Andamans ( Baratang Islands, Jolly Buoy Islands, Havelock Islands, Jarawa Tribal Reserve), Kolkata, Sundarbans, Guwahati, Tawang(BomdiLa, BumLa,Sangester Lake), Kaziranga, Shillong, Chirapunjee, Bhubaneswar, Puri, Konark.

Must Visit/Do :
  • Scuba Diving @Havelock
  • 2hrs Cruise Travel in Sea from Port Blair to Havelock
  • Snorkelling and Transparent Boat Ride to observe Marine Life @ Jollybuoy Island
  • Radhanagar Beach on Havelock (One of the best beaches of the World)
  • Cellular Jail of British India @ Port Blair
  • BumLa Indo-China Border @ Tawang ( U can actually put Couple of Steps into Chinese Territory)
  • Buddist Monastery @Tawang
  • 1962 Indo-China War Memorials @Tawang and Enroute
  • Elephant Safari to see Rhinos @ Khaziranga
  • Temples of Odisha... Puri, Konark, Bhubaneswar (Yes, those Nagara Architecture ones)

In Addition to this, We did Week Long Trainings in Horse-Riding, Arms and Ammunition, Swimming in Indian Military Academy (IMA), Dehradun. Bungee Jumping, Rafting , Treks, Visits of Local Places etc etc are also done. Sports Meets, Cultural Evenings, Festival Celebrations are inherent to the Traditions of this Academy. Various Clubs conduct events like Quizzes, Treasure Hunts, Talks, Culturals etc.,

uppphhh....As i come to the End of this exhaustive list, i wonder myself that "Did i really Go to Each of these places physically?"  Love for Travelling goes to the Next Level as we are all set to Travel out of this Country for a 2 Week Long Foreign Tour. I am Going to Russia, Finland and Estonia and the other Group to Spain and Italy. This is the Perfect End for this Awe-Inspiring Travelogue of Training @ IGNFA, Dehradun before we all go to our Cadre States "on Duty". Looking forward to..... :D :D :D



Comments

  1. Hariprasad5 March 2017 at 12:40

    Really inspiring sir

    ReplyDelete
  2. Shiva Shankar5 March 2017 at 14:03

    Thank you for the post sir it's inspiring during preparation, but one thing is bothering me during this crucial days is my both knees touch each other will that be a problem during physical test(I have no problem while walking and running) and I request you to be on Quora it would be a bigger platform and reaches wide aspirants

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unknown7 March 2017 at 13:40

      I would be in Quora ...
      Knock knees they check during medical.Sometimes they ignore.As a rule, knock knees are not allowed.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous7 March 2017 at 17:30

      What if it persists mildly?

      Delete
  3. Dirat Forester !5 March 2017 at 21:15

    You are right ! This is first such attempt to pen down the experience of IFoS training ! It must have been an enriching n beautiful experience. Thanks for sharing n I hope that other probationers will also follow :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Dirat Forester !5 March 2017 at 21:16

    Thanks for sharing. :) I was so eager to know what happens inside IGNFA :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous5 March 2017 at 21:27

    Great

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous6 March 2017 at 08:27

    This is absolutely amazing sir ! The blogpost took us on a virtual Bharat Darshan tour, how wonderful it would be to experience all of this in real :) Had my IFS interview a week ago, hope to see all of this and seniors like you soon :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. jsfagri6 March 2017 at 21:58

    Very nice da macha..beautifully written our experience

    ReplyDelete
  8. Himabindu7 March 2017 at 10:32

    Shivashankar.if you have a flat foot u r not eligible to become ifs officer.check that with a doctor.even if u undergo surgery u will have lot of side effects
    Regards

    ReplyDelete
  9. SHRIDHAR9 March 2017 at 18:21

    Sir pls provide your strategy for agriculture optional in IFos ...pls ....

    ReplyDelete
  10. chhavi25 July 2017 at 18:01

    Thank u sir...it has filled me with more energy than ever to prepare for it...

    ReplyDelete
  11. Manish Kumar25 November 2017 at 13:46

    Your posts are soo soothing. Feeling more focused.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Sawalkar_Devidas23 March 2018 at 14:35

    Thanks a lot Sir for sharing your experience..

    ReplyDelete
  13. StudyGrades8 May 2018 at 23:04

    A well-written.. Also check IFS Cut off article

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous11 November 2018 at 16:40

    Please tell me about holidays at IGNFA training.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Unknown13 April 2019 at 23:33

    Sir what is the required eye power extension for myopia

    ReplyDelete
  16. Unknown8 May 2019 at 17:31

    Thank you for this rare infirminfor, Sir.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Unknown26 June 2019 at 07:36

    What all platforms are you in ? Where to start from and what subject to choose , totally in confused. Currently in final year of BTech.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Unknown21 July 2019 at 17:16

    Sir one question ....is in ifs job u have ample of time for ur family or not???

    ReplyDelete
  19. Unknown21 July 2019 at 17:18

    Sir one question.... is in ifs job u have ample of time for ur family or not??

    ReplyDelete
  20. Unknown29 October 2019 at 21:16

    I need forestry and geology lectures pls help if possible

    ReplyDelete
  21. Unknown5 March 2020 at 14:20

    What should be the preferable optional should be taken with civil engineering?

    ReplyDelete
  22. Unknown7 March 2020 at 00:30

    thank you sir... i have been selected in ifos 2019....it was an excellent piece

    ReplyDelete
  23. Unknown13 April 2020 at 10:36

    Sir...I have read it somewhere that Indian Forest Officers also go for Foreign Tour ...please elaborate on it.

    ReplyDelete

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