UPSC General Studies

The UPSC Civil Service Examination requires an effective ‘strategy plus smart work’. This toughest Civil Service Examination needs more than just preparation and a crystal clear plan. Most aspirants remain confused with their UPSC strategy. They keep on piling up different books from different sources and end up making the biggest mistake. 

UPSC is all about right knowledge and a positive perspective. Though, perspective needs to be build and can be developed based on experiences in life. However, knowledge needs to be gained through the ‘right sources’.

Before starting preparation for the UPSC Civil Service Examination (or any other examination):

First two steps are the most important:-

1. Understanding the UPSC syllabus: keeping a close eye on UPSC detailed syllabus is fundamental for good preparation as it will give clarity and understanding what to read and what not to read. Besides, it also helps to decide the contours of your preparation. The adherence to UPSC syllabus is the first step towards smart and efficient preparation.
2. Previous Year Papers: The previous years papers help you to understand the nature and pattern of the exam. This gives a glimpse of difficulty level pertaining to questions asked in the exam. Going through the previous years papers helps you to identify the weaker spots and hence help you to make your strategy accordingly. These papers also helps you to understand that where your preparation actually lies.
3. Choosing the right sources: This step requires proper guidance as it can make or break the game. In initial stage, it is important to make your basics strong, thus, relying on NCERTs UPSC GS Mains Book List and other basic books is crucial. After this stage, it is important to shift to a higher level and in this stage, including relevant government sources is crucial.

Most aspirants commit mistake in the third step. It is very important to select the right books and limit the sources. Here, the tip is- Information and news from the Government sources can help to earn some extra brownie points in the examination. Thus, it is equally important to include relevant government sources into your list.

Some of the important Government sources are as given below:

1. PRS Legislative Research (PRS)
2. Press Information Bureau (PIB)
3. Yojana Magazine
4. Kurukshetra Magazine
5. Economic Survey
6. Indian Budget
7. Defense and Foreign relations (IDSA)

Following links of government websites has been given subject wise that can be utilized for more efficient and result oriented preparation:

• Art & Culture : http://ccrtindia.gov.in/
• Constitution of India : http://indiacode.nic.in/
• Parliament - structure, functioning, conduct of business, powers & privileges: http://parliamentofindia.nic.in/
• Government policies, Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections, Social Sector Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources: http://wcd.nic.in/, http://mhrd.gov.in/, http://socialjustice.nic.in/, http://www.mohfw.nic.in/, http://rural.nic.in/netrural/rural/index.aspx, https://india.gov.in/my-government/schemes

• Governance, Transparency and Accountability, e-governance, Citizens charters: http://darpg.gov.in/

• India’s Foreign Policy, Indian Diaspora Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate: http://mea.gov.in/, http://www.idsa.in/, http://www.mea.gov.in/overseas-indian-affairs.htm

• Government Budgeting, Economic Survey: http://indiabudget.nic.in/

• Indian Economy, Planning, mobilization of resources: http://niti.gov.in/

• Space Technology, Issues relating to intellectual property rights: http://www.isro.gov.in/, http://dipp.nic.in/

• Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment: http://envfor.nic.in/, http://cpcb.nic.in/

• Disaster and disaster management: http://www.ndma.gov.in/en/

• Internal Security, Agencies etc : http://www.mha.nic.in/, http://www.idsa.in/
• Ethics in Public administration: http://arc.gov.in/
• Probity in Governance, Information sharing and transparency in government, Right to Information, Codes of Ethics, Codes of Conduct, Citizen’s Charters: http://darpg.gov.in/, http://rti.gov.in/