UPSC IAS Syllabus 2021 PDF – Download Prelims & Mains Exam Pattern for Civil Service Exam. Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has planning to conduct the Civil Service Examination for IAS; for that, they will upload the Prelims and Mains Exam Syllabus & Exam Pattern on the Official Site. In this article, we will provide you with all the necessary information on UPSC IAS Syllabus 2020-21.
UPSC IAS Syllabus 2021 PDF
Board Name | Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) |
Post Name | Civil Service (IAS) |
Vacancy | 822 |
Exam Date | Announced Later |
Selection Process | Prelims & Mains |
Status | Syllabus Available |
UPSC IAS Syllabus 2021:
Part A—Preliminary Examination:
- Current events of national and international importance.
- History of India and Indian National Movement.
- Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.
- Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.
- Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.
- General issues on Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialization.
- General Science.
Paper II ‐ (200 marks):
- Comprehension;
- Interpersonal skills including communication skills;
- Government strives to have a workforce who reflects gender balance and women candidates are encouraged to apply.
- Logical reasoning and analytical ability;
- Decision making and problem solving;
- General mental ability;
- Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude, etc.) (Class X level), Data
- interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency etc. — Class X level);
Part B—Main Examination:
Qualifying Papers On Indian Languages And English:
The aim of the paper is to test the candidates’ ability to read and understand serious discursive prose, and to express ideas clearly and correctly, in English and Indian language concerned.
The pattern of questions would be broadly as follows:
- Comprehension of given passages.
- Precis Writing.
- Usage and Vocabulary.
- Short Essays
Indian Languages:
- comprehension of given passages.
- Precis Writing.
- Usage and Vocabulary.
- Short Essays.
- Translation from English to the Indian Language and vice-versa.
PAPER‐I
Essay: Candidates may be required to write essays on multiple topics. They will be expected to keep closely to the subject of the essay to arrange their ideas in orderly fashion, and to write concisely. Credit will be given for effective and exact expression.
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 significant events, personalities, issues.
- 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 globalization on Indian society.
- Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism & secularism.
- Salient features of world’s physical geography.
- Distribution of key natural resources across the world (including South Asia and the Indian sub-continent); 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.
PAPER‐III
General Studies‐ II: Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations.
- 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 disputes redressal mechanisms and institutions.
- Comparison of the Indian constitutional scheme with that of other countries.
- Parliament and State legislatures—structure, functioning, the 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.
- Salient features of the Representation of People’s Act.
- Appointment to various Constitutional posts, powers, functions, and responsibilities of various Constitutional Bodies.
- Statutory, regulatory, and various quasi-judicial bodies.
- Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.
- Development processes and the development industry —the role of NGOs, SHGs, various groups and associations, donors, charities, institutional and other stakeholders.
- 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.
- Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.
- Issues relating to poverty and hunger.
- Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance applications, models, successes, limitations, and potential; citizens charters, transparency & accountability, and institutional and other measures.
- Role of civil services in a democracy.
- India and its neighborhood- 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.
- Important International institutions, agencies, and fora- their structure, mandate
UPSC IAS Prelims Exam Pattern 2021:
Paper | Questions & Time | Marks |
General Studies Paper I | 100 Questions | 200 |
General Studies Paper-II (CSAT – Qualifying only) | 80 Questions | 200 ( Marks not considered) |
Total | 200 |
AS per the UPSC prelims syllabus, there is “Negative Marking” in the Prelims exam. For every wrong answer, 1/3rd of marks allotted for every question will be reduced from the correct tally of score. So candidates need to be extra careful while making wild guesses in the prelim exams.
UPSC IAS Mains Exam Pattern 2021:
Paper | Name of the Paper | Marks allotted |
A | One of the Indian language to be selected by the candidate from the languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the constitution(Qualifying only) | 300 (Qualifying Only) |
B | English(Qualifying Only) | 300 (Qualifying Only) |
1 | Essay Paper | 250 |
2 | General Studies I | 250 |
3 | General Studies II | 250 |
4 | General Studies III | 250 |
5 | General Studies IV | 250 |
6 | Optional Subject Paper I | 250 |
7 | Optional Subject Paper I | 250 |
IAS Main (written)Total | 1750 | |
IAS Interview | 275 | |
Total | 2025 |
Download UPSC IAS Syllabus 2021 PDF
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