Mains Paper

GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
How To Prepare UPSC Civil Services Mains

Paper-II (GS-1)
• http://mrunal.org/2015/12/download-upsc-mains-2015-gs1.html
“The questions are likely to test the candidate’s basic understanding of all relevant issues, and ability to
analyze, and take a view on conflicting socio‐ economic goals, objectives and demands. The candidates
must give relevant, meaningful and succinct answers.”
PAPER-II
General Studies- I: Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and Society.
. Indian Culture will cover the salient aspects of Art forms, Literature and Architecture from
ancient to modern times.
. Modern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present
. The Freedom Struggle – its various stages and important contributors /contributions from
different parts of the country.
. Post-independence consolidation and reorganization within the country.
. History of the world will include events from 18th century such as industrial revolution, world
wars, redrawal of national boundaries, colonization,decolonization, political philosophies like communism, capitalism, socialism etc.- their forms and
effect on the society.
. Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India.
. Role of women and women’s organization, population and associated issues, poverty
and developmental issues, urbanization, their problems and their remedies.
. Effects of Globalizationon Indian society
. Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism & secularism.
. Salient features of world’s physical geography.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
. Distribution of key natural resources across the world (including South Asia and the Indian
subcontinent); factors responsible for the location of primary, secondary, and tertiary sector industries in various parts of the world (including India)
. Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic activity, cyclone
etc., geographical features and their location- changes in critical geographical features (including waterbodies and ice-caps) and in flora and fauna and the
effects of such changes.
TOPIC-1
Indian Culture will cover the salient aspects of Art forms, Literature and Architecture from
ancient to modern times.
In this topic, the sub-topics are – Art forms, Literature, Architecture – from ancient to modern times.
Before jumping into Big Books, first go through these beautiful books by NCERT – to get a glimpse of
the sub-topics – they are
One indispensable source to read first and foremost before proceeding to any source is: Class XI NCERT
An Introduction to Indian Art.
Once done with this book, then read following books.
1. NCERT Class VI – History – Our Past

2. NCERT Class VII – Our Past -I
3. NCERT Class VIII – Our Past II and III
4. NCERT Class XII – Themes In Indian History I
5. NCERT Class-XII – Themes in Indian History – II
6. NCERT Class XII – Themes In Indian History III
Hold on. Four books for one topic? No. You have to read only a few chapters from each book that are
related to Sub-Topics. For ex, you have to read only Chapters 2 and 3 from Class-XII -Themes In Indian
History-II book.
Apart from these you should have a reference book for getting more information:
1. CCRT Website
2. Download Free Material – Complete Set
3. Graphic Book On Indian Art and Culture – Free Download
TOPIC-2
Modern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present–
significant events, personalities, issues
Read this book: Comprehensive History Of Modern India – Spectrum (It covers topics from the Advent
of British to India’s Independence – so covers this part of the syllabus completely.
Why this book? Why not Bipan Chandra?

GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Bipan Chandra is specifically for studying in depth the various dimensions and concepts of the Freedom
Struggle. But for the above topic where ‘events, personalities and issues’ have to be read that too between
1750s to 1950s, Spectrum book covers all the topics quite comprehensively.
It is bulky and factual, so it is recommended for beginners both for Prelims and Mains along with Bipan
Chandra’s book, but not for aspirants writing Mains this year who are running short of time.
TOPIC-3
[The Freedom Struggle – its various stages and important contributors /contributions from different parts
of the country.]
Because this topic demands specific knowledge of Freedom Struggle and its various facets, you must,
along with the above mentioned book, read Bipan Chandra’s Struggle For India’s Independence.
TOPIC – 4
Post-independence consolidation and reorganization within the country.
For this you need to study Chapter 6 to 12 of India Since Independence – Bipan Chandra
0r Chapters 8 to 14 from India After Gandhi: The History Of The World’s Largest Democracy (above
mentioned chapters cover completely this part of the syllabus)
TOPIC-5
[History of the world will include events from 18th century such as industrial revolution, world
wars,redrawal of national boundaries,colonization,decolonization, political philosophies
like communism, capitalism,socialism etc.- their forms and effect on the society.]
Except for Industrial revolution, Mastering Modern World History by Norman Lowe (Buy From Amazon
India))covers all topics of this part of the syllabus – it is a very good book. Stick to only this book. Refer
above links for a glimpse of those sub-topics in Wikipedia, but don’t dwell deeply on them. (A 30 %
discount from Flipkart, or Or This IMPORTED copy provided you are rich- Rs 1700/ – this classic book
contains insightful chapters on the 2008 Financial Crisis, and even Arab Spring and its aftermath!)
Above book is not available anywhere these days. Best alternative is a book by Arjun Dev – History of
the World from the Late Nineteenth to the Early Twenty First Century
If both books are not available, then read this book – Old NCERT World History Class-X
TOPIC-6
[Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India.]
About salient features of Indian Society – don’t look anywhere else – Just read this NCERT – Indian
Society Class 12 (Complete book without watermarks)
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Two indispensable books to cover this topic:
• Indian Society – Ram Ahuja

• Social Problems in India – Ram Ahuja
(above books are critically acclaimed and are taught in many universities as a text, and is written by an
acclaimed scholar)
TOPIC-7
[Role of women and women’s organization, population and associated issues,poverty and developmental
issues, urbanization, their problems and their remedies.]
• For India specific women related issues download this beautiful report (PLATFORM FOR
ACTION-REPORT ON INDIAN WOMEN -DOWNLOAD FROM HERE) where you can find
everything you want to learn about Women’s issues.
Other sub-topics are general in nature and can be found in Magazines and Newspapers. If one is thorough
with current events questions on these sub-topics can be answered very well by consolidating their
knowledge.
TOPIC-8
[Effects of Globalization on Indian society]
This is also general in nature. If you have a basic understanding of Indian Society and Globalization, their
mutual relation can be elucidated with ease. Here is a good article from a Marxist politician about the
topic. (UPSC people love the slightly leftist version of everything)
To know more about effect of Globalization on Indian Society, you need to know better about Indian
Society. This book is a must have for broad understanding of the Indian Society.
• Indian Society – Ram Ahuja

• Social Problems in India – Ram Ahuja
If you want to learn the impact of Globalization on Indian Economy, here is a book. (Purely optional)
TOPIC-9
[Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism & secularism.]
This is again generic. But you must know the basic concept of communalism, regionalism and
secularism. Wikipedia comes handy here.
BASICS:
• Regionalism In India (You must read this)

GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
• Communalism (You must read this too)
For Regionalism In India.
TOPIC-10
[Salient features of world’s physical geography.
To cover this part two books are necessary:
1. Certificate Physical and Human Geography 1st Edition
2. NCERT Class-XI – Fundamentals of Physical Geography
TOPIC-11
[Distribution of key natural resources across the world (including South Asia and the Indian
subcontinent); factors responsible for the location of primary, secondary, and tertiary sector industries
in various parts of the world (including India)]
1) NCERT Class XII – Human Geography
2) NCERT Class-XII – India-People and Economy
3) For reference:Geography of India 4 Edition
TOPIC-12
[Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic

activity, cyclone etc., geographical features and their location- changes in critical geographical features
(including water bodies and ice-caps) and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes.]
This is a repetition actually. You can read Physical Geography book by Goh Cheng Leong which is
mentioned above (Certificate Physical and Human Geography 1st Edition)
This topic on critical changes in geographical features is broadly related to climate change and other
anthropogenic factors(such as depletion of resources, dumping of wastes etc). Geographical features like
rainforests, ice caps, rivers, corals, cyclones all get affected by climate change. Anthropogenic factors are
involved in increasing desertification, vanishing forests, biodiversity, pollution of rivers and lakes, etc.
Your focus should be on such changes. Question may be on how monsoon is affected by global climate
change? or how a cyclone is affected by global warming? What effect has the melting ice cap on the
biodiversity in the polar regions? etc
********************************************************************************************
*******************************
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
6 Must have Books To Clear IAS Mains General

Studies – 1
March 2, 2016 Books4Jobs
0 Comment
Books For UPSC/IAS
In part – 1 we discussed, 8 Must have Books To Clear IAS Prelims In 1st Attempt, so in this post we will
be discussing books essential to clear General studies – 1 (Mains).
Let’s Start
Hope you have already downloaded Mains Syllabus for General Studies , if not click here
GS 1 – (Mains)
Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the world and society.
There are various sections in GS Mains Paper – 1, below you will find breakdown of syllabus with
suggested books
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Books & Resources for Cultural Portion (Covering 1st Point of Syllabus)
1. Ccrtindia website (Must)

2. Facets of Indian Culture by Spectrum (Must) – Already recommended in prelims must list
3. Download 11th std new ncert on Indian culture and fine arts (Must) direct link to NCERT Site
Indian History (Covering 2nd & 3rd Points of Syllabus)
1. India’s Ancient Past (Must Read) Print Edition – Already recommended in prelims must list
2. India’s Struggle for Independence (Must Read) Print Edition – Already recommended in prelims must list
3. A Brief History of Modern India (Must Read) Print Edition – Already recommended in prelims must list
4. A New Look at Modern Indian History: Form 1707 To The Modern Times ( B.L. Grover ) (Must Read) Print
Edition
World History (Covering 5th point of syllabus)
1. Mastering Modern World History (by Norman Lowe ) (Must)

2. History of the World: From the Late Nineteenth to the Early Twenty-First Century (Arjun Dev) –
(Optional) It is almost identical to the old XIIth class NCERT. However, I liked the old Xth class NCERT by
the same author better for my preparation since I found it more explanatory and analytical. This book like
the XIIth class one seems more factual.
3. History Of The Modern World (Jain and Mathur) – (Selectively for GS) UPSC Syllabus oriented book for
History Optional students. It’s a very good book to get overall idea. But, not sufficient.
4. Wizard World History (Second Edition) Ankur Sharma – (Optional) This book is too syllabus oriented,
useful for last minute preparation.
Post Independence India (Covering 4th point of syllabus)
1. India Since Independence (Bipin Chandra) – (Must)

2. The Politics of India Since Independence (The New Cambridge History of India) – Paul Brass – (Good one)
If you want in depth knowledge of changes in the political agendas and policies of the country’s
leadership since independence and how they have impacted the country in recent years.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
3. Battles Half Won: India’s Improbable Democracy (Ashutosh Varshney) – (Good one) – It analyses the
deepening of Indian democracy since 1947 and the challenges this has created. It examines concerns
ranging from federalism and Hindu nationalism to caste conflict and civil society, the north-south
economic divide and politics of economic reforms.
4. Pradhanmantri Series of AVP News on YouTube
Indian Society (Covering 6th point of syllabus)
1. Social Problems In India (Ram Ahuja) – (Must)

2. An academic masterpiece with excellent language skills by the author who gets in to the crux of India’s
social problems.Superb factual data coupled with theoretical analysis and social impact assessment.
3. IGNOU Material – Development
4. IGNOU Material – Sociology
5. Newspaper – Be aware with the social happenings, new bills related with the society etc.
6. Yojna & Kurukshetra
Role of women, poverty etc (Covering 7th point of syllabus)
Newspaper
Globalization (Covering 8th point of syllabus)
1. Newspaper
2. PSIR website
3. Contemporary Issues in Globalization: An Introduction to Theory and Policy in India (Soumyen Sikdar) –
(Must read) This volume examines the twin phenomena of liberalization and globalization and the
complex economic issues thrown up by them. It explores the resulting interlinkages to derive policy
implications for the Indian economy.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Communalism, regionalism, secularism (Covering 9th point of syllabus)
Newspaper
Salient features of World’s Physical Geography (Covering 10th point of syllabus)
1. Certificate Physical and Human Geography ( Goh Cheng Leong ) – (Must) – Already recommended in
prelims must list.
2. NCERT Books – Old NCERT(8 TO 12th ) + New Ncert (11 & 12th)
Resource distribution (Covering 11th point of syllabus)
1. Online reading, Wikipedia

2. Indian and World Geography (Majid Husain ) – (Must) – Excellent book..it is better than khullar.. Majid
Hussain is actually masterclass..he knows what are needed for upsc aspirants.
Important Geographical Phenomenon, factors for Industrial Location, earthquake tsunami

etc. (Covering 12th point of syllabus)
1. NCERT books
2. Indian and World Geography (Majid Husain ) – (Must)
Impact on Flora – Fauna

www.eoearth.org
So, here is the quick reference of all important books mentioned above for GS – 1
(Mains)
1. Facets of Indian Culture by Spectrum (Must) – Already recommended in prelims must list.
2. India’s Ancient Past (Must Read) Print Edition – Already recommended in prelims must list.
3. India’s Struggle for Independence (Must Read) Print Edition – Already recommended in prelims must list.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
4. A Brief History of Modern India (Must Read) Print Edition – Already recommended in prelims must list.
5. India Since Independence (Bipin Chandra) – (Must)
6. A New Look at Modern Indian History: Form 1707 To The Modern Times ( B.L. Grover ) (Must Read) Print
Edition
7. Mastering Modern World History (by Norman Lowe ) (Must)
8. Social Problems In India (Ram Ahuja) – (Must)
9. Contemporary Issues in Globalization: An Introduction to Theory and Policy in India (Soumyen Sikdar)
(Must)
10. Certificate Physical and Human Geography ( Goh Cheng Leong ) – (Must) – Already recommended in
prelims must list.
11. Indian and World Geography (Majid Husain ) – (Must)
In the above list we 5 books are already mentioned in Prelims must have list
To further enhance the depth of understanding, you may follow the books given
below
1. History of the World: From the Late Nineteenth to the Early Twenty-First Century (Arjun Dev) –
(Optional)
2. History Of The Modern World (Jain and Mathur) – (Selectively for GS)
3. Wizard World History (Second Edition) Ankur Sharma – (Optional)
4. The Politics of India Since Independence (The New Cambridge History of India) – Paul Brass – (Good one)
5. Battles Half Won: India’s Improbable Democracy (Ashutosh Varshney) – (Good one)
GSM1-2015: Question Paper in Linear Format
Each Question is worth 12.5 marks and maximum word limit is 200. But content of the answer is more
important than its length.
1. The ancient civilization in Indian sub-continent differed from those of Egypt, Mesopotamia and Greece in
that its culture and traditions have been preserved without a breakdown to the present day. Comment.
2. Mesolithic rock cut architecture of India not only reflects the cultural life of the times but also a fine
aesthetic sense comparable to modem painting. Critically evaluate this comment.
3. How different would have been the achievement of Indian independence without Mahatma Gandhi?
Discuss.
4. Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, despite having divergent approaches and strategies, had a
common goal of amelioration of the downtrodden. Elucidate.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
5. It would have been difficult for the Constituent Assembly to complete its historic task of drafting the
Constitution for Independent India in just three years but for the experience gained with the Government
of India Act, 1935. Discuss.
6. Why did the industrial revolution first occur in England? Discuss the quality of life of the people there
during the industrialization. How does it compare with that in India at present?
7. To what extent can Germany be held responsible for causing the two World Wars? Discuss critically
8. Describe any four cultural elements of diversity in India and rate their relative significance in building a
national identity.
9. Critically examine whether growing population is the cause of poverty OR poverty is the main cause of
population increase in India.
10. How do you explain the statistics that show that the sex ratio in Tribes in India is more favourable to
women than the sex ratio among Scheduled Castes?
11. Discuss the changes in the trends of labour migration within and outside India in the last four decades.
12. Discuss the positive and negative effects of globalization on women in India.
13. Debate the issue of whether and how contemporary movements for assertion of Dalit identity work
towards annihilation of caste.
14. Explain the factors responsible for the origin of ocean currents. How do they influence regional climates,
fishing and navigation?
15. Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata are the three mega cities of the country but the air pollution is much more
serious problem in Delhi as compared to the other two. Why is this so?
16. India is well endowed with fresh water resources. Critically examine why it still suffers from water
scarcity.
17. The states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand are reaching the limits of their
ecological carrying capacity due to tourism. Critically evaluate.
18. How far do you agree that the behavior of the Indian monsoon has been changing due to humanizing
landscapes? Discuss.
19. Smart cities in India cannot sustain without smart villages. Discuss this statement in the backdrop of rural
urban integration.
20. What are the economic significances of discovery of oil in Arctic Sea and its possible environmental
consequences?
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
GS Mains Paper-1 2013 2014 2015

Culture 20 40 25
Freedom struggle 30 30 25
World History 40 30 25
Post independence 50 0 0
Religion, Region etc. 10 10 37.5
Poverty, Population, Development 10 20 25
Women related Qs. 10 20 25
Physical Geography 20 20 0
Geo-Climate, Disasters 20 30 50
Natural
20 20 12.5
Resources
Urbanization 10 0 25
Industrial Location 10 30 0
Total 250 250 250
Art & Culture
GS1 Syllabus Topic: Salient aspects of Art, Architecture, literature from Ancient to Modern Times
The ancient civilization in Indian sub-continent differed from those of Egypt, Mesopotamia and Greece in 2015
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
that its culture and traditions have been preserved without a breakdown to the present day. Comment.
Mesolithic rock cut architecture of India not only reflects the cultural life of the times but also a tine
2015
aesthetic sense comparable to modem painting. Critically evaluate this comment.
To what extent has the urban planning and culture of the Indus Valley Civilization provided inputs to the
2014
present day urbanization? Discuss.
Gandhara sculpture owed as much to the Romans as to the Greeks. Explain. 2014
Taxila university was one of the oldest universities of the world with which were associated a number of
renowned learned personalities of different disciplines. Its strategic location caused its fame to flourish, but 2014
unlike Nalanda, it is not considered as a university in the modern sense. Discuss.
Sufis and medieval mystic saints failed to modify either the religious ideas and practices or the outward
2014
structure of Hindu / Muslim societies to any appreciable extent. Comment.
Though not very useful from the point of view of a connected political history of South India, the Sangam
2013
literature portrays the social and economic conditions of its time with remarkable vividness. Comment.
Discuss the Tandava dance as recorded in the early Indian inscriptions. 2013
Chola architecture represents a high watermark in the evolution of temple architecture. Discuss. 2013
History: India before Independence
GS1 Syllabus Topic: Mid-18th century – Present (significant events, personalities, issues); Freedom
Struggle (various stages, important contributors from different parts of the country)
How different would have been the achievement of Indian independence without Mahatma Gandhi?
2015
Discuss.
It would have been difficult for the Constituent Assembly to complete its historic task of drafting the
Constitution for Independent India in just three years but for the experience gained with the Government 2015
of India Act, 1935. Discuss.
The third battle of Panipat was fought in 1761. Why were so many empire-shaking battles fought at
2014
Panipat?
Examine critically the various facets of economic policies of the British in India from mid-eighteenth century
2014
till independence.
In what ways did the naval mutiny prove to be the last nail in the coffin of British colonial aspirations in
2014
India?
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Defying the barriers of age, gender and religion, the Indian women became the torch bearer during the
2013
struggle for freedom in India. Discuss.
Several foreigners made India their homeland and participated in various movements. Analyze their role in
2013
the Indian struggle for freedom.
In many ways, Lord Dalhousie was the founder of modern India. Elaborate. 2013
History: India After independence
GS1 Syllabus Topic: Post-Independence (consolidation and reorganisation within country)
Critically discuss the objectives of Bhoodan and Gramdan movements initiated by Acharya Vinoba Bhave
2013
and their success.
Write a critical note on the evolution and significance of the slogan “Jai Jawana Jai Kisan”. 2013
Discuss the contribution of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad to pre-and post-independent India. 2013
Analyze the circumstances that led to Tashkent Agreement in 1966. Discuss the highlights of the agreement. 2013
Critically examine the compulsions which prompted India to play a decisive roles in the emergence of
2013
Bangladesh.
History: world
GS1 Syllabus Topic: 18th century events (e.g. Industrial revolution, WWs, redrawn boundaries,
colonisation, decolonisation); Political philosophies (e.g. communism, capitalism, socialism) and their
effect on society
Why did the industrial revolution first occur in England? Discuss the quality of life of the people there
2015
during the industrialization. How does it compare with that in India at present?
To what extent can Germany be held responsible for causing the two World Wars? Discuss critically 2015
What were the major political, economic and social developments in the world which motivated the anti-
2014
colonial struggle in India?
What were the events that led to the Suez Crisis in 1956? How did it deal a final blow to Britain’s self-image
2014
as a world power?
The New Economic Policy – 1921 of Lenin had influenced the policies adopted by India soon after
2014
independence. Evaluate.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
“Latecomer” Industrial revolution in Japan involved certain factors that were markedly different from what
2013
west had experience.
Africa was chopped into states artificially created by accident of European competition. Analyse. 2013
American Revolution was an economic revolt against mercantilism. Substantiate. 2013
What policy instruments were deployed to contain the great economic depression? 2013
Social Science: Caste, Religion, Region
GS1 Syllabus Topic: Communalism, Regionalism, Secularism; Social Empowerment
Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, despite having divergent approaches and strategies, had a
2015
common goal of amelioration of the downtrodden. Elucidate.
Describe any four cultural elements of diversity in India and rate their relative significance in building a
2015
national identity.
Debate the issue of whether and how contemporary movements for assertion of Dalit identity work
2015
towards annihilation of caste.
How do the Indian debates on secularism differ from the debates in the West? 2014
Growing feeling of regionalism is an important factor in the generation of demand for a separate state.
2013
Discuss.
Social Science: Poverty, Population, Globalization
• GS1 Syllabus Topic: Salient features of Indian Society; Diversity of India; Globalisation (effects on Indian
society)
• GS1 Syllabus Topic: Poverty, Population; Development and associated issues
Critically examine whether growing population is the cause of poverty OR poverty is the main cause of
2015
population increase in India.
Discuss the changes in the trends of labour migration within and outside India in the last four decades. 2015
The life cycle of a joint family depends on economic factors rather than social values. Discuss. 2014
Critically examine the effects of globalization on the aged population in India. 2013
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Social Science: Women
• GS1 Syllabus Topic: Role of women and women’s organisation;

• Although some of the following questions fall under population-globalization categories, but if a person
cultivates habit of noting down women related topics under one head, it’ll benefit in both GS1, GS2 and
Essay.
Discuss the positive and negative effects of globalization on women in India. (2013, Asked about
2015
Globalization effect on Elderly)
How do you explain the statistics that show that the sex ratio in Tribes in India is more favourable to
2015
women than the sex ratio among Scheduled Castes?
How does patriarchy impact the position of a middle class working woman in India? 2014
Discuss the various economic and socio-cultural forces that are driving increasing feminization of agriculture
2014
in India.
Why do some of the most prosperous regions of India have an adverse sex ratio for women? Give your
2014
arguments.
Male membership needs to be encouraged in order to make women’s organization free from gender bias. 2013
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Comment.
Geography: Physical
GS1 Syllabus Topic: Salient Features of World Physical Geography; Important Geophysical phenomena
(earthquakes, tsunami, volcanoes, cyclones); Geographical features and location;
Explain the formation of thousands of islands in Indonesian and Philippines archipelagos. 2014
Why are the world’s fold mountain systems located along the margins of continents? Bring out the
2014
association between the global distribution of Fold Mountains and the earthquakes and volcanoes.
What do you understand by the theory of continental drift? Discuss the prominent evidences in its support. 2013
There is no formation of deltas by rivers of the Western Ghat. Why? 2013
Major hot deserts in northern hemisphere are located between 20-30 degree north and on the western
2013
side of the continents. Why?
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Geography: Climate, Disaster related
GS1 Syllabus Topic: Critical geographical features, flora, fauna (changes and effects thereof)
Explain the factors responsible for the origin of ocean currents. How do they influence regional climates,
2015
fishing and navigation?
India is well endowed with fresh water resources. Critically examine why it still suffers from water scarcity. 2015
The states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand arc reaching the limits of their
2015
ecological carrying capacity due to tourism. Critically evaluate.
How far do you agree that the behavior of the Indian monsoon has been changing due to humanizing
2015
landscapes? Discuss.
Tropical cyclones are largely confined to South China Sea, Bay of Bengal and Gulf of Mexico. Why? 2014
Most of the unusual climatic happenings are explained as an outcome of the El-Nino effect. Do you agree? 2014
Bring out the relationship between the shrinking Himalayan glaciers and the symptoms of climate change in
2014
the Indian sub-continent.
The recent cyclone on the east coast of India was called “Phailin”. How are the tropical cyclones named 2013
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
across the world?
Bring out the causes for the formation of heat islands in the urban habitat of the world. 2013
What do you understand by the phenomenon of temperature inversion in meteorology? How does it affect
2013
the weather and the habitants of the place?
Bring out the causes for more frequent landslides in the Himalayas than in Western Ghats 2013
Geography: Resources Distribution
GS1 Syllabus Topic: Distribution of key Natural Resources (world, S. Asia, Indian subcontinent)
What are the economic significances of discovery of oil in Arctic Sea and its possible environmental
2015
consequences?
Critically evaluate the various resources of the oceans which can be harnessed to meet the resource crisis in
2014
the world.
How does India see its place in the economic space of rising natural resource rich Africa? 2014
With growing scarcity of fossil fuels, the atomic energy is gaining more and more significance in India. 2013
Discuss the availability of raw material required for the generation of atomic energy in India and in the
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
world.
It is said the India has substantial reserves of shale oil and gas, which can feed the needs of country for
quarter century. However, tapping of the resources doesn’t appear to be high on the agenda. Discuss 2013
critically the availability and issues involved.
Geography: factors affecting industrial locations
GS1 Syllabus Topic: Factors responsible for location of Industries (primary, secondary, tertiary; India,
world)
Whereas the British planters had developed tea gardens all along the Shivaliks and Lesser Himalayas from
2014
Assam to Himachal Pradesh, in effect they did not succeed beyond the Darjeeling area. Explain.
Account for the change in the spatial pattern of the Iron and Steel industry in the world. 2014
Why did the Green Revolution in India virtually by-pass the eastern region despite fertile soil and good
2014
availability of water?
Do you agree that there is a growing trend of opening new sugar mills in the Southern states of India?
2013
Discuss with justification
Analyze the factors for highly decentralized cotton textile industry in India 2013
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Geography: Urbanization
So that means All my sins are washed for the current year.
GS1 Syllabus Topic: Urbanization: problems and remedies.
Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata are the three mega cities of the country but the air pollution is much more
2015
serious problem in Delhi as compared to the other two. Why is this so?
Smart cities in India cannot sustain without smart villages. Discuss this statement in the backdrop of rural
2015
urban integration.
Discussion the various social problems which originated out of the speedy process of urbanization in India. 2013
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
*************************************************************************************
Civil Services (Mains) Examination – General Studies
Strategy for Paper 1
GS – Paper 1, which is of 250 marks, is one of the most scoring papers in the written examination. It
also has the most static portion of all the four GS papers – once you read the standard books and
understand the content, answering questions from this paper becomes easier.
Having said that, static portion in this paper, does not mean factual questions, nor does it mean repeated
questions from previous years. (Of course, exceptions are always there). It only means that the syllabus
won’t change with the current on-going events. Many opinion-based questions are a part of GS-1 as
well, which are based on the static portion.
One brilliant example from the 2014 paper can be cited here.
The third battle of Panipat was fought in 1761. Why were so many empire-shaking battles fought at
Panipat?
This is rooted in the static portion of History. Most of the students read the details about the First, Second
and Third Battles of Panipat. Even though this question is “Static” in its true sense, it is not “factual”.
The student must “think” on the spot for a variety of factors, as to why Panipat was the chosen place for
many battles. This has geographical perspective, climatic, empire boundaries and many other such
factors.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
So, while attempting GS-1, even though it is rooted in static portion, one must not fail to “think”. While
reading the static portion, one must always ask the questions “why” and “how”, more than what.
The syllabus of General Studies- 1 can be broadly divided into History, Sociology, Geography and a
few topics related to Anthropology.
The article discusses about Preparation Strategy for General Studies-1. The strategy gives you
1. Topic-wise analysis
2. Book recommendations and
3. What to Read and How to read/Understand the subject.
Note: Before going through the strategy, click on Detailed Mind Maps for Syllabus. Mind Maps are only
directive not exhaustive. It is done for a better understanding of the syllabus keeping in mind the
requirements of a beginner
A. HISTORY:
It includes the following subtopics
• Indian culture will cover the salient aspects of Art Forms, Literature and Architecture from ancient
to modern times.
• Modern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present
significant events, personalities, issues.
• The Freedom Struggle – its various stages and important contributors or contributions from
different parts of the country.
• Post-independence consolidation and reorganization within the country.
• History of the world will include events from 18th century such as industrial revolution, world
wars, redrawal of national boundaries, colonization, decolonization, political philosophies like
communism, capitalism, socialism etc- their forms and effect on the society.
1. Indian Culture: Art Forms, Literature and Architecture from Ancient to Modern times.
Frankly speaking, this topic is one of the most irritating topics in the whole syllabus as per many
aspirants. There are literally thousands of paintings, folk dances, festivals, literary books, architectural
marvels, and many more to remember. Considering the weightage given and the number of questions
based on this is never more than 3-4. Out of 250 marks, the weightage given to this section is not more
than 30 marks. So, the cost-benefit ratio of remembering so many names and information is a sheer
wastage of time and memory space. Moreover, the questions asked are opinion-based and not factual.
We are not discouraging you to, not to study this section altogether. Rather based on input-output ratio,
one most devote the time smartly. You should not panic! If you do so you will end up with a heap of
resources. Hence, IASbaba intends to give you the best resources and approach that will not only save
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
your quality time but also earn credit in generating quality answers. A myth about this section is that, it is
completely static and only factual data has to be prepared through books and notes. Ah, really??
No, not at all!! Here you will get to know that even this section, seemingly factual can be prepared from
newspapers if you can relate it smartly. In the dynamic section, we have explained this in detail.
Sources/books to follow
STATIC: CCRT Website and Tamil Nadu book- Class 11th
Read these resources as per your convenience.
• Indian Performing Arts

• Indian Visual Arts
• Indian Literature through Ages
• Old NCERT Class 11 – Fine Arts
• Tamil Nadu- Class 11th book
DYNAMIC:
In The Hindu, a section named ‘Friday Review’ is dedicated for updates in Indian Culture. It comprises
of Dance, Music, Faith, Art and History and Culture.
UPSC has asked many questions from this section in past years. You just need to have a thorough
understanding of topics mentioned in the syllabus. This will help you in picking up or selecting the
right articles from the newspaper related to culture. And will immensely help you both at the Prelims
and Mains. Let us see, How?
For example,
This article– mentions about Thang-Ta, a ‘Manipuri Marshal Art of Sword and Shield’. This can be
asked in Prelims.
If you go through books and other resources, you will end up with unlimited facts and figures that’s
beyond human capability. This is not required for this exam. What we suggest is study smart– Keep
your resources minimum and Revise again and again!!
Now coming back to the importance of the Newspaper – ‘while reading the newspaper keep an eye on
the topics mentioned in the syllabus’. Newspaper gives you more information and dimensions that you
seldom find in a book (or say miss in books).
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
For example,
Though not very useful from the point of view of a connected political history of South India, the Sangam
literature portrays the social and economic conditions of its time with remarkable vividness. Comment
(2013)
You might have read all the static part thoroughly, but still looking at this question makes you feel
OMG!! Where the hell did UPSC come up with such a question?
The Answer to this is –
If you read static books then there is every possibility that you may not be able to answer it because there
are infinite aspects in Literature section. Also, many of you will never prepare in such detail. So the
Mantra should be ‘take the reference from newspapers and then prepare about that topic accordingly’.
Here is the reference for above question asked by UPSC in 2013.
Previous Year UPSC Questions:
Chola architecture represents a high watermark in the evolution of temple architecture. Discuss.(2013)
Here is the reference for this question
Reference 2
Discuss the Tandava dance as recorded in the early Indian inscriptions.(2013)
To what extent has the urban planning and culture of the Indus Valley Civilization provided inputs to the
present day urbanization? Discuss. (2014)

GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Gandhara sculpture owed as much to the Romans as to the Greeks. Explain. (2014)
Reference: For quite a sometime in 2012 and 2013, Buddhist Sculptures were in news due to its safety
issues and attacks by Taliban.
Taxila university was one of the oldest universities of the world with which were associated a number of
renowned learned personalities of different disciplines. Its strategic location caused its fame to flourish,
but unlike Nalanda, it is not considered as a university in the modern sense. Discuss. (2014)
Reference:
Recent opening of Nalanda University
Are you able to understand the intention behind these references and links?
So, do not read much into this topic. Just going through the CCRT website or notes, NCERT’s, The
Hindu-Friday Review or other links related to this topic and answer-writing for some model
questions is more than enough.
Some tips to remember for Culture
• Focus on retrospective study, once finished with the static portion. What we mean by “Retrospective
study”- Make a note of terms, articles, which are in recent news from The Hindu or other sources and
revise them.
• Don’t fall under the trap of reading more books, this will only increase your anxiety and lower your
confidence. After going through previous year’s UPSC questions and the strategy on how to prepare for
Mains on IASbaba, you would have realized that even if you remember most of the things, there is no
guarantee that one can answer such questions.
• Do not even think of mugging up. It is Mission- impossible!!Book references from fellow aspirants,
coaching materials and books in the market will tempt you every now and then. But remember the
Golden words of IASbaba–‘it is a sheer waste of time!!’ Instead study smartly – make your own plan,
stick to a few resources, critically examine the issues from every possible angle and revise again and
again.
• The cost benefit of preparing this section as compared to other topics is very less. Even if you go for
extensive coverage, you may not be able to produce it. But if you prepare smartly as discussed above,
then there is every possibility for you to produce quality answers in the exam.
2. Modern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present
significant events, personalities, issues and The Freedom Struggle – its various stages and
important contributors or contributions from different parts of the country.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Indian National Movement and Indian Modern history is one of the most interesting and eventful topics,
which gives a sense of nationalistic feeling in us while reading it. So, this can be read from a plethora of
books for self-satisfaction, or to know more about the epic struggle for independence.
Many people do read a lot of books on this topic, solely because the books are page-turners and written in
the style of novels. They do give a very intriguing story, and reading stories are always entertaining. But
for UPSC, this topic needs to be analyzed from a historiographical perspective (critically
examination of sources), so just blindly turning pages, understanding only the “events” is not enough.
The book that we recommend for the wholesome understanding and the implications of this phase is –
STATIC:
Spectrum’ Comprehensive History of Modern India
This book deals with more of understanding the philosophy of the events, rather than just listing the
events and giving a gripping narrative. It is more of a subject matter book, than a story-telling novel.One
book is more than enough for this whole topic. Other books like ‘India’s Struggle for Independence’ by
Bipan Chandra OR ‘India After Gandhi’ by Ramachandra Guha, can be read if you have the time and
energy.
Note: You may find NCERT’s useful too but for Mains; Spectrum Book will suffice your need as you must
have finished NCERT’s for PRELIMS preparation.
In Dynamic section, we will refer to the aspects of Modern India and relate whether it can also be
prepared from recent news or articles, or not?
DYNAMIC:
The Hindu: Referring to newspapers will increase your awareness on the topics and aspects that is
important from any section mentioned in the syllabus. It is important to study from static sources or
books but it is more important to know and smartly guess what topics are important for the respective
year.
And this can best be done by following the news and articles coming in newspapers like The Hindu. We
will show you how?
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Note: In past years, most of the questions asked by UPSC from Modern India had appeared in some or
the other form in newspapers of that year or preceding year. In 2013, almost all the questions asked by
USPC had appeared in the news. Let us check to build credibility
Examples: Check these questions from 2013
Defying the barriers of age, gender and religion, the Indian women became the torch bearer during the
struggle for freedom in India. Discuss.
Reference: This article that appeared in March 2013, should have formed a light for preparing the content
for answering the above question. The article even mentions about the crux word, ‘The Torch Bearer’.
How easy it would become for aspirants if they prepare like this!!
Several foreigners made India their homeland and participated in various movements. Analyze their role
in the Indian struggle for freedom.
Reference: This article that appeared in August 2013, could have acted as a building base for above
question.
In many ways, Lord Dalhousie was the founder of modern India. Elaborate.
Reference:
Reference 2:
Why did UPSC ask this question?
Because Telegram service was stopped and when the telegraph service was first set up in India, part of
Lord Dalhousie’s ambitious reforms, it was the symbol of an advancing modernity.
Discuss the contribution of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad to pre-and post-independent India.
Reference: Many articles appeared in The Hindu in the year 2013, mentioning about the contribution of
Abdul Kalam Azad. Likewise such personalities are to be prepared in the Modern India section. You
should prepare about all because UPSC is unpredictable but if you stick to smart study like this, your
efforts will be maximized towards achieving success rather than wasting your time and energy.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Now check the questions from Mains-2014
Examine critically the various facets of economic policies of the British in India from mid-eighteenth
century till independence.
Reference: Though it is an easy question and forms part of every static book in detail. But one can easily
know that it may catch the attention of UPSC as it has appeared in the newspaper in some or the other
form.
3. Post-independence consolidation and reorganization within the country.
Post-independence consolidation is much more interesting than Indian National Movement, because it
has its effects on the present scenario too. Instead of reading a book, we would refer to watch a web-
series on the same.
Sources/books
• Pradhan Mantri on YouTube: This program has 24 episodes, which gives a detailed analysis of events
right from 1947 to 2014. Each episode takes one phase and the anchor talks about the issues pertaining
to those times. Ofcourse, there is some bias in the depiction, but ongoing politics is always embedded
with media bias. A true civil service aspirant should aim to extract the required knowledge and should
ignore the inherent media bias.
After this, any of the standard books can be read for a further in-depth understanding, like
• Bipan Chandra’s India Since Independence
• You can also refer to Modern India, Old NCERT book.
4. History of the world – From mid 18th

GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Before reading such topics, always try to watch videos on that, to have a basic ground-level
ground
understanding.
ing. These topics consist of a bunch of sub-topics
sub topics like World Wars, American Revolution,
French Revolution, Russian Revolution, Industrial Revolution etc. Most of them are stand
stand-alone topics,
and can be understood within 10-15
10 minutes if you watch the right videos.
Sources/books
We would recommend Khan Academy’s

Academy’ series of lecture videos which can be accessed online. Salman
Khan, who is financed by Google, has created hundreds of videos on such topics, and watching them
would help one understand the topic really
really well.After which, any standard book can be taken to give a
further in-depth reading like
• Mastering Modern World History- Norman Lowe

• History of the World from the Late Nineteenth to the Early Twenty-First
Twenty First Century
• One very good book to refer is Contemporary World d History by J.S.Rajput published by NCERT. But this
is not available nowadays. It is available in the premises of the Holy Mukherjee Nagar as Xerox
B. SOCIOLOGY
• Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India.

• Role of women and women’s organization,
organization, population and associated issues, poverty and developmental
issues, urbanization, their problems and their remedies.
• Effects of globalization on Indian society.
• Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism & secularism.
Note: Refer to Mind Maps for Sociology topics. It has various dimensions related to all these topics.
Detailed Mind Maps
text book, class 11th and 12th, newspapers, online

All the topics can be read from the NCERT Sociology text-book,
articles etc. Many of these issues have been discussed/addressed in websites such as QUORA.COM
Note: YOJANA published by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting should be your first
preference for social issues.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Most of these topics are dynamic, rooted in the static portion. So, a separate study from standard books is
not needed. Just a general awareness along with original thinking is more than enough.
For eg., In 2013, a question on the implications of globalization on the old-age was asked. You
cannot find such answers in a single “standard book”. What it requires is awareness and on-the-spot
thinking. So, instead of reading books, reading the newspapers along with innovative discussions is what
is necessary.
1. Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India.
Sources/books to refer
• NCERT– Indian Society Class 12th– More than enough for basic understanding
• You don’t need to read Ram Ahuja or any other book for this. Save your time and work efficiently. A
basic understanding and general awareness is enough to answer UPSC questions and NCERT book will
solve your purpose.
2. Role of women and women’s organization, population and associated issues, poverty
and developmental issues, urbanization, their problems and their remedies.
As you can see these topics are dynamic in nature and enough content can be found from newspapers and
YOJANA articles of previous months. Before jumping into sources to prepare, let us have a look at
previous year’s questions asked by UPSC.
How does patriarchy impact the position of a middle class working woman in India? (2014)
Do you need to refer to any book to answer this question?
Not really. What you need is to quantify your knowledge base and analytical approach to such topics and
the best ingredient available is Newspaper articles, debates and discussion on Rajya Sabha or social
platforms etc.
Why do some of the most prosperous regions of India have an adverse sex ratio for women? Give your
arguments. (2014)
Check these articles published in The Hindu in 2014 and introspect.

GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Reference 1
Reference 2
The life cycle of a joint family depends on economic factors rather than social values. Discuss (2014)
Check this article of The Indian Express published in 2014
Reference
Discuss the various economic and socio-cultural forces that are driving increasing feminization of
agriculture in India. (2014)
Read this article, published by Live Mint in 2014
Reference
• NCERT- Sociology 12th

• Human Development Report for Population and Poverty Issues
• Do refer Economic Survey and India Year Book for data’s and facts.
• Population and Issues- Read this
• Urbanization Issues- 12th Five Year Plan
• Newspapers- The Hindu, Economic Times and Business Standard
3. Effects of globalization on Indian society
This topic is a general one. You do not need to go through any book to prepare. Play smart and prepare
the relevant stuffs from current affairs and news. Have a look at a question from 2013 Mains paper.
Critically examine the effects of globalization on the aged population in India. (2013)
Check this article published in Yojana, 2013
Reference
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
• No book as such because while studying from sociology, class 12th, economy and polity, you will generate
enough content to understand this topic.
• Articles from newspapers- A must
• Yojana Magazine- Check for update
4. Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism & secularism.
All these topics do not require any scholar understanding. You just need a basic knowledge and
analytical perspective to relate the basics into contemporary developments.
Note: Reading a whole book or several sources for these topics has many disadvantages. One of them is
cost benefit ratio. Second is wastage of your precious time and energy. If one plays smart here, can
substantially devote his/her energy for other important topics having more weightage.
One such example is from the question asked by UPSC on Secularism, in 2014.
How do the Indian debates on secularism differ from the debates in the West? (2014)
Reference:
In 2014, BJP Government came to power. There were questions raised on the secular fabrics of India by
some religious fanatics that followed a huge debate and row over Indian Secularism. One article in The
Hindu went on for an analysis of Indian versus Western Secularism. Hence UPSC came up with this
question.
Refer to QUORA for having multidimensional views and opinion on social issues and topics related to
this section.
Growing feeling of regionalism is an important factor in the generation of demand for a separate state.
Discuss. (2013)
Reference- Telangana Formation

GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
• No book to refer other than NCERT’s. While studying from NCERT’s, you will be able to gather enough
content for these topics.
• Newspaper Articles- For analytical aspect
• Do browse the website of Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and look for any important
update on Social Empowerment.
C. GEOGRAPHY
It has following subtopics
• Salient features of world’s physical geography.

• Distribution of key natural resources across the world; factors responsible for the location of primary,
secondary, and tertiary sector industries in various parts of the world (including India).
• Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic activity, cyclone
etc., geographical features and their location – changes in critical geographical features (including
waterbodies and ice-caps) and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes.
1. Salient features of world’s physical geography.
Generally aspirants rush to cover geography in length and breadth from number of books be it NCERT’s,
Majid Hussain or G.C.Leong. But the changing trend by UPSC says otherwise. We are not discouraging
to study basic books like NCERT’s but do not end up in rote learning. Since the change in pattern, 2013,
UPSC is asking more of analytical questions than static. However, one should not ignore basic books as it
forms the base for developing analytical perspective.
Now let us check some of the questions asked by UPSC in 2013 to understand the strategy and way
ahead.
What do you understand by the theory of continental drift? Discuss the prominent evidences in its
support. (2013)
Though static in its true sense but this topic and many more can be prepared with more attention while
preparing from newspaper. How?
Yes, the same year two articles came in The Hindu. Click on the references below
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Reference 1
Reference 2
Note: The comparison is not to discourage anyone from reading basic books rather it is to make you
understand the smart way of learning. One can memorize everything on earth but UPSC exam is not
about this. If you slightly tweak your preparation towards smart study, success will follow in less time.
Geography becomes very interesting when you can visualize various phenomena, and the best books to
help you with that are the standard ones which everyone must read atleast twice.
Sources/books to prepare
• NCERT- Class 11th, Physical Geography

• Goh Cheng Leong– Physical Geography
• Newspapers- The Hindu and Business Line
• Videos on Youtube
2. Distribution of key natural resources across the world; factors responsible for the location of
primary, secondary, and tertiary sector industries in various parts of the world (including India).
Most of the topics can be prepared from static books but a reference can be found from newspapers.
Let us refer to previous years questions and check whether they were part of newspapers or not?
With growing scarcity of fossil fuels, the atomic energy is gaining more and more significance in India.
Discuss the availability of raw material required for the generation of atomic energy in India and in the
world. (2013)
This question is more of static portion and general awareness. India is shifting towards Nuclear and Solar
power. Lots of initiatives and governments efforts are put to achieve efficient technological advancement.
Many articles appeared in 2013 newspapers suggesting the need of Atomic Energy and Solar Energy. So
this question was expected
Reference
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
It is said the India has substantial reserves of shale oil and gas, which can feed the needs of country for
quarter century. However, tapping of the resources doesn’t appear to be high on the agenda. Discuss
critically the availability and issues involved. (2013)
In September 2013, India gave way to Shale Gas Policy. Many articles in newspapers appeared
suggesting the critical issues involved.
Reference 1
Reference 2
Critically evaluate the various resources of the oceans which can be harnessed to meet the resource
crisis in the world. (2014)
Reference
How does India see its place in the economic space of rising natural resource rich Africa? (2014)
This question signifies the interconnection of paper 2 and 1. Various articles can be found in newspapers
of 2014 that has direct mention on the theme of this question. Check the reference
Reference
• Old NCERT Geography- Land and People

• New Geography- Class 12th– Human Geography and India-People and Economy
• Newspapers- The Hindu and Business Line
3. Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic activity, cyclone

etc., geographical features and their location – changes in critical geographical features (including
water bodies and ice-caps) and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes.
These topics can best be prepared through newspapers because most of the changing phenomenon be it
Earthquake, Cyclones, El-Nino, Tsunami etc are part of modern geographical changes due to climate
change or Global Warming and finds mention in newspaper quite often.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Let us check previous year questions.
The recent cyclone on the east coast of India was called “Phailin”. How are the tropical cyclones named
across the world? (2013)
The reference for this question can be found from this article of Business Line published in October 2013.
Reference
Bring out the causes for the formation of heat islands in the urban habitat of the world.
Urban Heat Island was in news for quite a long time and even now in news. Here are the references for
this question that were published in The Hindu and Business Line ( 2013)
Reference 1
Reference 2
Bring out the causes for more frequent landslides in the Himalayas than in Western Ghats. (2013)
Uttarakhand Disaster was the reference here. But UPSC tweaked it and rather asked about the differences
in the nature of Landslides for Himalayas and Western Ghats. One can find several articles at that time.
Reference
Most of the unusual climatic happenings are explained as an outcome of the El-Nino effect. Do you
agree? (2014)
It was an expected question. 2014 was thought to be El-Nino year and several studies and reports were
coming in support of the changing pattern of weather and climate.
Reference 1
Reference 2
Bring out the relationship between the shrinking Himalayan glaciers and the symptoms of climate change
in the Indian sub-continent. (2014)
These articles published in 2014 will do the talks

GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Reference 1
Reference 2
Reference 3
• C. Leong
• Newspaper articles- The Hindu, Business Line and Economic Times
• Youtube Videos
Ending Note:
• The given strategy tries to give the minimum number of books and sources to complete the portion,
along with a dynamic study of the syllabus. But, before starting off with this strategy, a simple reading of
all the NCERTs from 6th to 12th is mandatory, as it builds a basic foundation to start thinking in an
objective and subjective matter.
• The type of study for UPSC has changed totally. Just reading many standard books is of no use, because
the number of questions that can be asked from such books which have been there for over 30 years is
exhausted. So, a new, dynamic, on-the-spot thinking innovative questions are being asked, and one
needs to utilize their time by using the internet and various other fora judiciously.
• Do not read and accumulate data. Revision is key to your success. Do as many revisions as you can.
• Start writing practice after one reading of NCERT (Beginners)
• You should never wait to finish off everything to start writing practice. It will serve no purpose. In recent
pattern, the importance of writing has immensely increased.
• When you write something the retention is much more than reading. So, start writing as soon as possible.
You can follow ‘Think, Learn & Perform’ of IASbaba.com for preparing yourself for writing ability and
concept building for Mains
*******************************************************
IRRA SINGHALGeneral Studies Paper 1 – Marks 103/250
• Art & Culture – never prepared. But I have heard people say Spectrum is good. No clue cause I didn’t study so please check with others. I left all the questions in the
exam – which is reflected in my marks. ☺
• Independence History – Old NCERT for pre-1857 and Spectrum for 1857 and beyond. I found that the questions need you to not go in depth but just know the topic
and be able to analyse it right then and there. So I found reading the fat Bipin Chandra etc a complete waste of time. If you feel like it, then please go ahead but I
didn’t do it. Also check out the new NCERT because the important Personalities are mentioned in Boxes in that book.
• Post- independence History – ONLY the new NCERT – India Since Independence. It is a brilliant book which gives everything you need to know clearly and
concisely. Also again, the personalities are given in boxes. UPSC hasn’t run out of questions to ask from that yet, so it should suffice a few more years.
• World History – Old NCERTs available as photocopies right from 9-12th. The ones from before the year 2000. They are more than enough. Again, UPSC hasn’t run
out of questions to ask from that yet, so it should suffice a few more years.
• Sociology material – did a few coaching materials on the random topics but it was more about my general understanding of Indian Society.
• Geography – can’t help there since it was my optional so I did detailed material on the topics. But Mrunal.org has covered some stuff very nicely and YouTube has
some brilliant videos on the basic topics. NCERTs are the main starting point even for the optional people.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
General Studies Paper 2 – Marks 122/250

• Polity – I only ever did Laxmikant Polity. I find it the best book ever. Haven’t read anything else. But maybe now after the exam I will try reading D.D. Basu just to
see what it is all about. I tried it before and couldn’t get past the first chapter. So it was Laxmikant for me!
• RPA – did google search and read stuff from multiple websites and also whatever was in the news.
• Schemes etc – I did from the direct Ministry websites. Also my friend Shikhar used to listen to the news and would force me to listen with him on AIR Fm.
Sometimes the news analysis that came after the news would give brilliant points for the schemes. But I hadn’t done ministry websites before and I did it this time. It
made a huge difference. Also would google search for schemes of government of India and check out all the results that appeared.
• Current Affairs – I did Vision coaching current affairs. I think they copy paste articles from The Hindu but since I was too lazy to read the Hindu everyday, this
worked for me. I did the C.A. right from December of 2013. Last year I did not do current affairs at all, but that was a big mistake.
• International Affairs – I did from Vajiram Coaching material which they bring out around a month before the exam. It was more than sufficient in my opinion.
• Other topics – I did a lot of government documents like reports on the topics and also googled all the topics mentioned and read some of the articles that came up.
Didn’t make notes but got a general idea. I did this for the first time this year. Also did coaching material from 3 delhi based coachings – Sriram, Vajiram and Vision.
Some topics were good in one source and some in the other.

• Basic Economics – I had done this in Business School so I just brushed it up. Didn’t follow any particular source.
• Economics C.A. – Mrunal.org is a brilliant source. I did it only on the last night before the exam but I regret not paying more attention.
• Government documents and websites for the other topics where needed.
• Referred to Vision and Sriram material for most of the topics.
• Security – I did Vajiram booklet but didn’t find it great. Sriram material had covered some of the topics really well.
• Disaster – NDMA and other government websites.
• S&T, Bio-diversity and Environment – I had in my first attempt finished Wizard Science & Tech (big fat book), so I kept doing it. Bought newer editions where I just
had to update on the new additions.

• Lexicon thin book on ethics
• Didn’t really need to prepare much so no clue. Never did a single case study or read any other book. Can’t help much here.
• I handled Case Studies basis what I had learnt in Business School so there isn't any one technique. Every question requires a different strategy. Some techniques
you can google are - PESTEL, Stakeholder Analysis, Value Chain, SWOT and Pro-Con.
o ensure I actually remembered all that I thought I should remember, I started preparing questions
for several topics. For example, I have summarised Spectrum (for History), NCERTs (6-12) for
Geography, DD Basu and Subhash Kashyap for polity, and Shankar IAS’s environment book in question
form, usually chapter wise (all of these question files are included under relevant topics in the links
above).
General Studies 1
General Studies 1 paper’s syllabus comprises history, culture, geography, and a few other topics. Below, I’ve taken the syllabus verbatim
from the notification, and indicated how I prepared a particular topic. I’ve also included links to my online notes.
If you want to skip the discourse and get to the booklist I recommend, please scroll down to the end of the text.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
• Indian culture will cover the salient aspects of Art Forms, Literature and Architecture from ancient to modern
times
I was always wary of studying this portion. It seemed too vast and too unpredictable. Nevertheless, I tried (and mostly failed) to study
everything that people recommend. Firstly, I tried NIOS. Then, I tried Spectrum. Finally, I decided to give everything else up, and just
follow one set of notes properly- I picked GK Today (for no particular reason).
My advice is to not spend very much time here. Follow one source, and make peace with the fact that you can probably never feel well
prepared for this portion.
• Modern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present- significant events,
personalities, issues.
• The Freedom Struggle – its various stages and important contributors /contributions from different parts of the
country.
There are two distinct periods that need to be studied for this portion:
1. 1717 (Farrukhsiyar grants farman to the East India Company to conduct inland trade in Bengal) to 1857 (first battle of independence)
2. 1857-1947
For (i), Bipan Chandra’s ‘History of Modern India’ (I think this used to be an NCERT) is useful. This was the first book I read for my
UPSC preparation. However, I didn’t make notes, and forgot most of it. Closer to the exam, I googled all the major incidents between
1717 and 1857, and made short notes on them (these include Carnatic wars, Battles of Plassey, Panipat, Buxar, Anglo-Mysore wars,
Anglo-Maratha wars, and several important treaties, charters, and social reform movements). I consolidated all of these into brief notes
in a timeline form. You can find this here. I think for the 1717-1857 part, this is enough for GS (the timeline notes go on beyond 1857,
and till 1947; however, the notes in the link above are not exhaustive for period after 1857, and should be used only as a ready reference.
Please see below).
For (ii), I read Bipan Chandra’s ‘India’s Struggle for Independence’ and ‘Spectrum’. I think Bipan Chandra’s book gives you a good base,
but it also jumps around somewhat, and is rather bulky. I focused mostly on Spectrum.
For revision, I made chapter-wise questions from Spectrum. You can find them here. (Please note that next to some questions, I have
mentioned Page numbers. Please ignore these- they do not correspond to where you will find the answer in the Spectrum book).
Aside from the above, especially for prelims, one needs to remember factoids related to Congress Sessions, Governor-Generals/
Viceroys, and Personalities (notes included in links). (For the personalities file, I just noted down whatever name I came across in
Spectrum/ Bipan Chandra. I made brief notes for some, but not all, of them).
• Post-independence consolidation and reorganization within the country
I watched Pradhanmantri TV series. I tried making episode-wise brief notes, but couldn’t finish these for lack of time. Notes upto
Episode 7 are here.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
I also read the relevant chapters from Bipan Chandra’s ‘India Since Independence’. I ignored most of the stuff after Green Revolution,
and did not focus at all to the political fortunes/ misfortunes of various national/ regional political formations. I think UPSC does not
ask questions on these.
• History of the worldwill include events from 18th century such as industrial revolution, world wars, redrawal of
national boundaries, colonization, decolonization, political philosophies like communism, capitalism, socialism
etc.- their forms and effect on the society
I wasn’t sure what all topics to study for this portion. To be safe, I decided to complete the topics included in the syllabus for World
History in the History Optional for UPSC (look for world history topics in History Optional Paper 2 syllabus; link here).
While searching for sources, I came across a wonderful website: https://selfstudyhistory.com/world-history/ . It has incredibly detailed
topic-wise notes on all the topics in the syllabus. However, a word of caution: please don’t get bogged down by the level of detail on this
website. Always remember that this is meant for people who have chosen history as their optional. Be smart, and sift through what’s
needed for GS. Basically, ensure that you know all the topics in the website above, but don’t go too deep.
Aside from this, I also read Norman Lowe for world history after the First World War. I made short, handwritten notes for most of the
book that were quite useful in revision. I will scan and upload these in the next few days.
Once you’re done with all of this, a good way to revise is to download the question bank meticulously prepared by Mrunal Patel, and
available on his website. He has taken questions from past History optional mains papers, and also from annual examinations of
various reputed universities around the country. I copy pasted all of these into a word document, and you can find them here. I didn’t
write answers to any of these question because I didn’t have the time, but after I was done preparing World History, I ensured that
I knew the answers to all of these. If you can do the same, I think there isn’t very much else that UPSC can ask from.
• Distribution of key natural resources across the world (including South Asia and the Indian subcontinent);
• Factors responsible for the location of primary, secondary, and tertiary sector industries in various parts of the
world (including India)
• Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic activity, cyclone etc.,
• Geographical features and their location- changes in critical geographical features (including water bodies and
ice-caps) and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes.
• Salient features of world’s physical geography.
I initially started by studying GC Leong, but I now think it’s useless. Please study geography NCERTs meant for standards 6-12. I think
if one understands everything that is in the NCERTs, then one can handle geography GS questions quite easily. However, I also think
that the explanations given for many things, especially geo phenomena such as atmospheric circulation, cyclone formation etc. are very
rudimentary, and need to be heavily supplemented by internet searches.
Basically, I googled everything I didn’t understand in an NCERT. I usually found either articles or YouTube videos that were extremely
helpful in developing a strong, logical understanding. Be resilient, and don’t give up if you don’t understand concepts in the first couple
of tries. Some of the concepts are genuinely tricky, and require time and patience to understand.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
For revision, I found it useful to summarize the NCERTs in questions. Again, much like history, I knew that I could be confident about
knowing the NCERT’s contents if I could answer all of the questions that I framed. You can find these here.
Note: almost every year in prelims, there are some questions for which you need to know the world map. These could be locations of
countries, rivers, famous landforms, seas etc. I found this great website that lets you make a game out of trying to remember the world
map. They have region-wise
wise graphs for different countries, rivers, landforms etc., and close to prelims, I tried to ensure that I was doing
this once a day. It helped.
• Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India

• Role of women and women’s organization, population and associated issues, poverty and
• Developmental issues, urbanization, their problems and their remedies
• Effects of globalization on Indian
ian society
• Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism & secularism
I think these topics are fairly general. I did not do any preparation for these.
BOOKLIST FOR GS 1
Other sources (I
Topic Source I recommend didn’t do most of
these)
NIOS, Spectrum,
Culture GKToday notes
tes (available online) NCERT, CCRT
website
Bipan Chandra
(History of Modern
1717-1857 Internet/ my notes India)
Indian
History
Bipan Chandra
(India’s Freedom
1857-1947 Spectrum Struggle)
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Bipan Chandra
1947- (India Since
Pradhanmantri Independence)
present
https://selfstudyhistory.com/world-
https://selfstudyhistory.com/world
history/
World
Arjun Dev’s book
History Norman Lowe’s book
Question bank from Mrunal
GC Leong, Majid
Geography NCERTs 6-12
Hussain
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
General Studies 2
• Indian Constitution- historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic
structure
• Functions and responsibilities of the Union and the States, issues and challenges pertaining to the federal
structure, devolution of powers and finances up to local levels and challenges therein
• Separation of powers between various organs dispute redressal mechanisms and institutions
• Comparison of the Indian constitutional scheme with that of other countries
• Parliament and State Legislatures – structure, functioning, conduct of business, powers & privileges and issues
arising out of these
• Structure, organization and functioning of the Executive and the Judiciary Ministries and Departments of the
Government; pressure groups and formal/informal associations and their role in the Polity
For the above, people say one should do either DD Basu or Laxmikant. I studied DD Basu, but I saw that it didn’t have very much
information on how things function within the Parliament. UPSC has asked questions around these in the past (especially in prelims).
So, to cover that, I also studied Subhash Kashyap’s ‘Our Parliament’.
For revision, I made chapter-wise questions from DD Basu and Subhash Kashyap. You can find thesehere and here, respectively. Again,
the idea was that if I could answer all the questions in these documents, I could be confident that I remembered the book.
• Salient features of the Representation of People’s Act
Read the act, and this article by Yogendra Yadav (found this article thanks to Insights)
• Appointment to various Constitutional posts, powers, functions and responsibilities of various constitutional
bodies
• Statutory, regulatory and various quasi-judicial bodies
Mostly just followed current affairs. For any institution that was in the news (for example, appointment of the CIC was delayed
significantly last year), I would try and find out the structure, power, functions, appointment procedures etc. See notes here.
• Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design
and implementation
Follow newspapers closely, keep an eye out for any new policies being announced/ old policies being reformed, and know all the details
of the proposed policy change. As an example, see my current affairs notes on government policies/ schemes here.
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
• Development processes and the development industry- the role of NGOs, SHGs, various groups and associations,
donors, charities, institutional and other stakeholders
ARC Report number 9, and Report on Success and Failures of SHGs in India by the Planning Commission (summary notes here);
Current Affairs
• Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these
schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these
vulnerable sections
Current Affairs
• Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human
Resources
Mostly newspaper. For Education and Health, I made notes from books by Amartya Sen (An Uncertain Glory) and Jagdish Bhagwati
(India’s tryst with Destiny). You can find them here (education) and here(health).
• Issues relating to poverty and hunger
I knew this from economics optional preparation. Try to remember poverty rates, methodologies to calculate poverty line in India,
current debates etc. For those interested, you can find relevant questions to know the answers to here. But please keep in mind that
these were prepared with the viewpoint of economics optional, and might be too deep for GS 3.
• Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance- applications, models,

successes, limitations, and potential; citizens charters, transparency & accountability and institutional and other
measures
ARC report number 11. Notes here.
• Role of civil services in a democracy
Didn’t prepare.
• India and its neighbourhood- relations

• Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests
• Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian Diaspora
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
I think I over-prepared here. I made notes for India’s relations with all its neighbouring countries, and with strategically important non-
neighbouring countries/ blocks such as the EU. I did this mostly from The Diplomat magazine- I used their search function, and if I
wanted to make notes on India-Bangladesh relations, I would type ‘India Bangladesh’ in the search box, and try and read whatever
came up. You can find my notes in a zip file here.
• Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate
I made a list of prominent international organisations, and made short notes on each of them, focusing on their structure and impact on
India. My notes are here. (I don’t think these notes are exhaustive; as with everything else, closely follow any conferences/ summits/
bilateral or multilateral meets of international organisations, and for whatever organisation is in the news, know at least the basics such
as its functions, members, when it was founded, important recent policy announcements etc.)
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
General Studies 3
General Studies 3 paper’s syllabus comprises economics, environment, disaster management, security and a few other topics. Below,
I’ve taken the syllabus verbatim from the notification, and indicated how I prepared a particular topic. I’ve also included links to my
online notes.
As you will see, after developing a good understanding of basic concepts, most of the topics can be covered just by regularly reading the
newspaper, and having a good filing system for current affairs.
For economics-related topics in GS3, I should put in a disclaimer that my optional subject was economics. I didn’t prepare very much
for GS3 economics portion specifically, because almost everything was covered in economics paper-2 syllabus. Nevertheless, I’ve
included sources/ notes where I can.
Economic Survey document is a must read. People focus more on Volume 1, and that is justified as far as GS 3 is concerned. However, if
you have some time, try and go through Volume 2 as well. It looks intimidating, but once you distill the useful information contained in
it, you’ll find that there’s a wealth of statistics that you can add in a number of your answers. See here for chapter-wise important stats
from Volume 2 that I tried to remember.
• Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, development and employment
This is too general. But try and remember key trends/ facts about each of the keywords. For example:
• Planning: know difference between central and indicative planning, why India followed central planning till 1980s, why we currently
follow indicative planning etc.
• Mobilization of resources: India’s tax base, difference between tax and non-tax revenue, fiscal deficit, deficit financing, FDI, PSUs etc.
• Growth: trends/ growth rates of the economy and different sectors
• Development: too broad
• Employment: statistics related to unemployment, labour laws and their impact, informal employment and its effects on the workforce,
workforce participation rate, gender imbalance in workforce participation etc.
• Inclusive growth and issues arising from it
Again, this is very broad. Know the definition of inclusive growth (many are available; just google and pick one you understand most
easily. No need to try and remember, express in your own words)
• Government Budgeting
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
There is a chapter on this in one of the books I did for my economics optional. The book is ‘Public Finance: HL Bhatia’. However, I
wouldn’t recommend buying the entire book just for this one chapter.
Insights has a collection of articles that might be useful.
• Major crops cropping patterns in various parts of the country, different types of irrigation and irrigation systems
storage, transport and marketing of agricultural produce and issues and related constraints; e-technology in the
aid of farmers
For storage, transport, and marketing of agricultural produce, I thought that the topic does not belong in this subset of topics (where
UPSC has classified it) but belongs with the discussion on PDS and MSPs. You can find my notes on this along with the notes on PDS in
one of the topics below.
For cropping patterns, I summarized the basic information about most major crops from one of the geography NCERTs (I think
8th standard, but I might be wrong). For this and the rest of the topics under this heading, I did google searches; I don’t remember what
all I ended up studying, but whatever I thought was important is included in my notes, which are here.
• Issues related to direct and indirect farm subsidies and minimum support prices; Public Distribution System-
objectives, functioning, limitations, revamping; issues of buffer stocks and food security
I think I studied this mostly from Uma Kapila, which is a basic text for economics optional paper 2. I then supplemented that with
readings found on the internet, and from the Shanta Kumar committee report. I have made topic-wise notes for each of the three sub-
topics above, plus for storage and transport of crops. These are here.
• Technology missions; economics of animal-rearing
Google. Notes here.
• Food processing and related industries in India- scope and significance, location, upstream and downstream
requirements, supply chain management
Notes here. I think I didn’t do this as well as it should be done, so please put in some more effort beyond the notes.
• Land reforms in India
Relevant chapter from Bipan Chandra’s ‘India since Independence’. I think there are 3 or 4 chapters. Consolidated notes here.
• Effects of liberalization on the economy, changes in industrial policy and their effects on industrial growth
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
Again, did this from Uma Kapila. For GS, try to remember at least the following:
• Growth rates for a few key periods before and after liberalisation
• Shares in GDP and employment of major sectors, such as agriculture, industry, manufacturing, and services
• Growth trends, opportunities, and challenges for each of these sectors
These notes might be helpful for the industries portion (summary of Uma Kapila); again, be careful, these were prepared for economics
optional, and hence are quite detailed, and contain stuff from pre-liberalization era as well.
• Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.
No special preparation- follow current affairs. Renewables is a hot topic, and will (and should!) remain as such in the next few years.
Know India’s energy generation mix (% for renewable/ non-renewable), scope and challenges for each of the sub-sectors etc.
• Investment models
For any investment model you hear of in the news, ensure you know the details. I prepared BOT, EPC, Leveraged Equity, Swiss
Challenge Model etc. There were a couple of others mentioned in the Economic Survey 2014 document, but I don’t remember these
right now.
• Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life
• Achievements of Indians in science & technology; indigenization of technology and developing new
technology
• Awareness in the fields of IT, Space, Computers, robotics, nano-technology, bio-technology and issues relating to
intellectual property rights
For prelims, I flipped through General Science NCERTs from standards 6-12. Otherwise, relevant notes from the newspaper. See
example here.
• Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment
I primarily used Shankar IAS’s book, and made chapter-wise questions for revision (find them here). A few days before the prelims
exam, I also flipped through GKToday’s environment handouts (available for a fee online), and a couple of question in the 2015 prelims
were directly from these (so I was lucky!)
• Disaster and disaster management
ARC report number 3; CAG report titled ‘Performance Audit of Disaster Preparedness in India’. Summary notes here..
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
• Linkages between development and spread of extremism

• Role of external state and non-state actors in creating challenges to internal security
• Challenges to internal security through communication networks, role of media and social networking sites in
internal security challenges, basics of cyber security; money-laundering and its prevention
• Security challenges and their management in border areas; linkages of organized crime with terrorism
• Various Security forces and agencies and their mandate
Googled keywords from each bullet point above, and read whatever looked interesting. Consolidated notes here, for each of the bulleted
topic above. I’m mentioning two sources I read that I still remember:
1. Read a few chapters from this book by Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars, titled ‘India’s Contemporary Security
Challenges’. I don’t think this is essential, but if you some time, it’ll help you develop a good perspective
2. IDSA task force report titled ‘India’s Cyber Security Challenges’, available for free online
GS Mains Paper-1
****************************** ************************************
General Studies 4
I did very little preparation for Ethics. When I first went to Jawahar Book Shop in December 2014 to buy books for UPSC, they handed
me a fat book for GS 4 (I don’t remember now which one). Not knowing any better, I bought it. I tried to study from that, but gave up
midway through the first chapter because I found it extremely boring and too general to be useful.
Then, I tried reading topic-wise links given on Insights for GS 4. Again, here as well, I thought that the readings were extremely dry, and
I remember dozing off after the first couple of pages of the first recommended reading.
After these two attempts at reading something for Ethics, I thought maybe it would be better to see what kind of questions UPSC asks. I
printed the GS 4 papers for the last two years, and took two timed tests. After writing these, I was confident that there is no need to
study anything at all for GS 4. The paper is extremely general, but one needs to have good writing speed. So, in the end, my preparation
for Ethics was simply writing 6 timed tests in total, 2 of which were past year UPSC papers, and 4 were from the Vision IAS test series.
I have heard many people say that a book by Lexicon publications is good; I did not study that, so cannot comment on its usefulness.
Some general tips:
• Please don’t use jargon. Some people like to use words like ontological/ de-ontological, but I think one should write simple answers.
Remember, the person checking your paper will not be an ‘ethics’ specialist (whatever that means), so is extremely unlikely to know
what these theoretical terms mean
• Every year, UPSC asks questions based on some key qualities for public service. They usually ask you to give examples of things like
‘fortitude’ and ‘magnanimity’. If your vocabulary is weak, you should try and read the question in Hindi as well. More often than not, it
should be clear to Hindi speakers what the word means once they read the translation
• I always tried to start my case studies with a brief summary (1-2 lines) of the dilemma at hand, and then very quickly outlined the
possible ways forward. Only then I got to answering the actual sub-parts of the case study questions
• Again, to re-iterate, please be very mindful of the time in the Ethics paper. Section A in 2015 paper wasvery lengthy, and I could only
complete the paper in time because I was very strict about allocating only 7 minutes per 10 marks (I used a stop watch in all my papers
for this very reason)

Mains Paper

Загружено:

Сведения о документе

Исходное описание:

Оригинальное название

Авторское право

Доступные форматы

Поделиться этим документом

Поделиться или встроить документ

Параметры публикации

Этот документ был вам полезен?

Это неприемлемый материал?

Авторское право:

Доступные форматы

Mains Paper

Загружено:

Авторское право:

Доступные форматы

GS Mains Paper-1

How To Prepare UPSC Civil Services Mains

Once done with this book, then read following books.

1. NCERT Class VI – History – Our Past

Why this book? Why not Bipan Chandra?

Post-independence consolidation and reorganization within the country.

[Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India.]

Two indispensable books to cover this topic:

• Indian Society – Ram Ahuja

[Effects of Globalization on Indian society]

• Indian Society – Ram Ahuja

[Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism & secularism.]

• Regionalism In India (You must read this)

• Communalism (You must read this too)

For Regionalism In India.

[Salient features of world’s physical geography.

To cover this part two books are necessary:

1. Certificate Physical and Human Geography 1st Edition

2. NCERT Class-XI – Fundamentals of Physical Geography

1) NCERT Class XII – Human Geography

2) NCERT Class-XII – India-People and Economy

3) For reference:Geography of India 4 Edition

[Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic

6 Must have Books To Clear IAS Mains General

Books For UPSC/IAS

1. Ccrtindia website (Must)

Indian History (Covering 2nd & 3rd Points of Syllabus)

World History (Covering 5th point of syllabus)

1. Mastering Modern World History (by Norman Lowe ) (Must)

Post Independence India (Covering 4th point of syllabus)

1. India Since Independence (Bipin Chandra) – (Must)

Indian Society (Covering 6th point of syllabus)

1. Social Problems In India (Ram Ahuja) – (Must)

Role of women, poverty etc (Covering 7th point of syllabus)

Globalization (Covering 8th point of syllabus)

Communalism, regionalism, secularism (Covering 9th point of syllabus)

Salient features of World’s Physical Geography (Covering 10th point of syllabus)

Resource distribution (Covering 11th point of syllabus)

1. Online reading, Wikipedia

Important Geographical Phenomenon, factors for Industrial Location, earthquake tsunami

Impact on Flora – Fauna

GSM1-2015: Question Paper in Linear Format

GS Mains Paper-1 2013 2014 2015

Art & Culture

History: India before Independence

History: India After independence

GS1 Syllabus Topic: Post-Independence (consolidation and reorganisation within country)

American Revolution was an economic revolt against mercantilism. Substantiate. 2013

Social Science: Caste, Religion, Region

GS1 Syllabus Topic: Communalism, Regionalism, Secularism; Social Empowerment

Social Science: Poverty, Population, Globalization

Social Science: Women

• GS1 Syllabus Topic: Role of women and women’s organisation;

There is no formation of deltas by rivers of the Western Ghat. Why? 2013

Geography: Climate, Disaster related

across the world?

Geography: Resources Distribution

Geography: factors affecting industrial locations

GS1 Syllabus Topic: Urbanization: problems and remedies.

Civil Services (Mains) Examination – General Studies

Strategy for Paper 1

It includes the following subtopics