For Rajesh Yabaji, the weeks leading up to 10 April 2005 were tense. A young Yabaji, then 17, who dreamt of joining the armed forces, following in the footsteps of his father, had a tough choice to make—between appearing for the services selection board (SSB) interview and writing the joint entrance examination (JEE) for engineering. While SSB would be his gateway to the armed forces, a seat at a premier engineering college would lead to fat paychecks at a large company after four years.