Candidates are advised to go through the Syllabus published in this Section for the Preliminary Examination and the Main Examination, as periodic revision of syllabus has been done in several subjects.
Civil Services Examination for recruitment to the Services and Posts mentioned below will be held by the Union Public Service Commission:
- Indian Administrative Service
- Indian Foreign Service
- Indian Police Service
- Indian Audit and Accounts Service, Group ‘A’
- Indian Civil Accounts Service, Group ‘A’
- Indian Corporate Law Service, Group ‘A’
- Indian Defence Accounts Service, Group ‘A’
- Indian Defence Estates Service, Group ‘A’
- Indian Information Service, Group ‘A’
- Indian Postal Service, Group ‘A’
- Indian P&T Accounts and Finance Service, Group ‘A’
- Indian Railway Protection Force Service, Group ‘A’
- Indian Revenue Service (Customs & Indirect Taxes) Group ‘A’
- Indian Revenue Service (Income Tax) Group ‘A’
- Indian Trade Service, Group ‘A’ (Grade III)
- Indian Railway Management Service, Group ‘A’
- Armed Forces Headquarters Civil Service, Group ‘B’ (Section Officer’s Grade)
- Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Daman & Diu and Dadra & Nagar Haveli Civil Service (DANICS), Group ‘B’
- Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Daman & Diu and Dadra & Nagar Haveli Police Service (DANI PS), Group ‘B’
- Pondicherry Civil Service (PONDICS), Group ‘B’
- Pondicherry Police Service (PON DIPS), Group ‘B’
IAS Exam Pattern , UPSC Exam Stages Prelims, Mains
The Civil Services Exam consist of 2 stages:
- Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination (Objective type) for the selection of candidates for the Main Examination; and
- Civil Services (Main) Examination (Written and Interview) for the selection of candidates for the various Services and posts noted above.
UPSC Exam Pattern IAS Prelims, Mains
-
PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION: The Examination shall comprise of two compulsory Papers of 200 marks each.
-
MAIN EXAMINATION: The Written Examination will consist of the following papers:-
Qualifying Papers :
- Paper A (One of the Indian Language to be selected by the candidate from the Languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution). 300 Marks
- Paper B English 300 Marks
Papers to be counted for merit
| Paper | Subject | Marks |
| Paper-I | Essay (can be written in the medium of the candidate’s choice) | 250 |
| Paper-II | General Studies – I (Indian Heritage & Culture, History & Geography of the World & Society) | 250 |
| Paper-III | General Studies – II (Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice & International Relations) | 250 |
| Paper-IV | General Studies – III (Technology, Economic Development, Biodiversity, Security & Disaster Management) | 250 |
| Paper-V | General Studies – IV (Ethics, Integrity & Aptitude) | 250 |
| Paper-VI | Optional Subject – Paper I | 250 |
| Paper- VII | Optional Subject – Paper II | 250 |
| Personality Test | 275 | |
| Grand Total | 2025 | |
UPSC Prelims Syllabus, IAS Preliminary Syllabus
Paper 1 of 200 marks and Duration 2 hours
- 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 2 of 200 marks and Duration 2 hours
- Comprehension;
- Interpersonal skills including communication skills;
- 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);
Important Notes for IAS Syllabus, UPSC Exam Syllabus Prelims:
- Paper 2 of the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination will be a qualifying paper with minimum qualifying marks fixed at 33%.
- The questions will be of multiple choice, objective type.
- It is mandatory for the candidate to appear in both the Papers of Civil Services (Prelim) Examination for the purpose of evaluation. Therefore a candidate will be disqualified in case he/she does not appear in both the papers of Civil Services (Prelim) Examination.
UPSC Mains Syllabus, IAS Main Exam Syllabus
The main Examination is intended to assess the overall intellectual traits and depth of understanding of candidates rather than merely the range of their information and memory.
The nature and standard of questions in the General Studies papers (Paper 2 to Paper 5) will be such that a well-educated person will be able to answer them without any specialized study. The questions will be such as to test a candidate’s general awareness of a variety of subjects, which will have relevance for a career in Civil Services. 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.
The scope of the syllabus for optional subject papers (Paper VI and Paper VII) for the examination is broadly of the honours degree 1evel i.e. a level higher than the bachelors’ degree and lower than the masters’ degree. In the case of Engineering, Medical Science and law, the level corresponds to the bachelors’ degree.
Syllabi of the papers included in the scheme of Civil Services (Main) Examination are given as follows :—
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.
Important Notes for IAS Syllabus, UPSC Exam Syllabus Mains:
- The papers on Indian Languages and English will be of Matriculation or equivalent standard and will be of qualifying nature only. The marks obtained in these papers will not be counted for ranking.
- The candidates will have to answer the English and Indian Languages papers in English and the respective Indian language (except where translation is involved)
IAS Main Syllabus PAPER 1 Essay
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.
IAS Main Syllabus PAPER 2 GS 1
General Studies 1 : 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.
IAS Main Syllabus PAPER 3 GS 2
General Studies- II: Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations.
- Constitution of India —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.
- 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 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.
- Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate.
IAS Main Syllabus PAPER 4 GS 3
General Studies 3: Technology, Economic Development, Bio diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management
- Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.
- Inclusive growth and issues arising from it.
- Government Budgeting.
- 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.
- 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; Technology missions; economics of animal-rearing.
- Food processing and related industries in India- scope’ and significance, location, upstream and downstream requirements, supply chain management.
- Land reforms in India.
- Effects of liberalization on the economy, changes in industrial policy and their effects on industrial growth.
- Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.
- Investment models.
- 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.
- Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.
- Disaster and disaster management.
- 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.
IAS Main Syllabus PAPER 5 GS 4
General Studies- IV: Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude
- Ethics and Human Interface: Essence, determinants and consequences of Ethics in-human actions; dimensions of ethics; ethics – in private and public relationships. Human Values – lessons from the lives and teachings of great leaders, reformers and administrators; role of family society and educational institutions in inculcating values.
- Attitude: content, structure, function; its influence and relation with thought and behaviour; moral and political attitudes; social influence and persuasion.
- Aptitude and foundational values for Civil Service, integrity, impartiality and non-partisanship, objectivity, dedication to public service, empathy, tolerance and compassion towards the weaker sections.
- Emotional intelligence-concepts, and their utilities and application in administration and governance.
- Contributions of moral thinkers and philosophers from India and the world.
- Public/Civil service values and Ethics in Public administration: Status and problems; ethical concerns and dilemmas in government and private institutions; laws, rules, regulations and conscience as sources of ethical guidance; accountability and ethical governance; strengthening of ethical and moral values in governance; ethical issues in international relations and funding; corporate governance.
- Probity in Governance: Concept of public service; Philosophical basis of governance and probity; Information sharing and transparency in government, Right to Information, Codes of Ethics, Codes of Conduct, Citizen’s Charters, Work culture, Quality of service delivery, Utilization of public funds, challenges of corruption.
- Case Studies on the above issues.