The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) designs the UPSC Civil Services syllabus differently for for both prelims and mains exam. The exam board creates the civil service syllabus and puts up the same in its official UPSC website – www.upsc.gov.in in PDF format.
Here candidates will find detailed information about both prelims and mains syllabus of UPSC IAS exam.
UPSC Civil Services Syllabus 2022 – Overview
|
Exam Name |
Civil Services Exam (UPSC CSE) |
|
Exam Conducting body |
Union Public Service Commission |
|
Number of Exam Stages |
|
|
Exam Mode |
Offline |
|
UPSC Paper Pattern |
|
|
Number of papers in UPSC Exam |
|
|
Duration |
|
UPSC Civil Services Syllabus – Prelim Exam Syllabus
The first step of IAS preparation is to understand the syllabus of the exam. It is imperative that students are aware of the weaker and stronger sections of the UPSC IAS Prelims syllabus. In this section, there are 2 papers of 100 marks each. The IAS prelims exam is an MCQ-based exam that requires the candidates to mark the right answer from the given options.
To know everything about the IAS exam, read about the Civil Services (IAS) Examination here.
|
Subjects |
Questions & Duration |
Marks |
|
General Studies Paper I |
100 Questions to be solved in 2 hours |
200 |
|
General Studies Paper-II (CSAT – Qualifying only) |
80 Questions to be solved in 2 Hours |
200 (qualifying only) |
|
|
Total |
200 |
General Studies Syllabus
The current affairs section is the most significant part of the General Studies 1 syllabus. The general studies paper 2 is also known as Civil Service Aptitude Test (CSAT). Even though it is an important and scoring paper, it is only a qualifying paper and the marks secured in this paper is not considered for the prelims result.
|
Paper |
Important topics |
|
General Studies 1 Paper 1 |
Current events related to national and international importance |
|
General Science |
|
|
Economic and Social Development, especially:
|
|
|
General issues on:
|
|
|
Indian Polity and Governance –
|
|
|
Indian and World Geography –
|
|
|
General Studies 2 (CSAT) Paper 2 |
Interpersonal skills including communication skills |
|
Logical reasoning and analytical ability |
|
|
Decision making and problem-solving |
|
|
Data interpretation (graphs, charts, data sufficiency, tables etc. (Class 10th level) |
|
|
Questions on General mental ability |
|
|
Basic numeracy (orders of magnitude, numbers and their relations, etc.) (Class 10th level) |
|
|
Comprehension |
UPSC Civil Services Syllabus – Main Exam Syllabus
The UPSC Civil Services mains exam is a descriptive paper and candidates have to write long answers to the questions asked. There are also two essays that candidates have to attempt apart from the General Studies questions.
Check the recent updates on CSE IAS Dates, in Civil Services (IAS) Exam dates here.
Main Exam Pattern
|
Paper |
Name of the Paper |
Marks Allotted |
|
Qualifying Papers |
||
|
A |
One of the Indian Languages 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) |
|
Papers to be Counted for Merit |
||
|
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 |
|
|
Total – IAS Main (written) |
1750 |
|
|
IAS Interview |
275 |
|
|
Total |
2025 |
UPSC IAS Mains Paper 1 Syllabus
There is no specific syllabus for the IAS essay paper. There is only a broad outline mentioned in the UPSC Civil Services paper. The topics that are mostly given during the mains exam are:
- International scenarios
- Public Administration
- Philosophy
UPSC IAS Mains Paper 2 Syllabus (GS 1)
- Indian culture covering the salient aspects of Art Forms, Literature and Architecture from ancient to modern times
- The Freedom Struggle — various stages and important contributors/contributions from different parts of the country
- Modern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present- significant events, personalities, issues
- Post-independence consolidation and reorganization within the country
- Role of women and women’s organization, population and associated issues, poverty and developmental issues, urbanization, their problems and their remedies
- History of the world including the events from 18th century such as the world wars, industrial revolution, colonization, re-drawal of national boundaries, decolonization, political philosophies like communism, capitalism, socialism etc., their forms and effect on the society
- Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, volcanic activity, cyclones, 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
- Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism and secularism
- Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India
- Salient features of the 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)
- Effects of globalization on Indian society
- Flora and Fauna and the Effects of such changes
UPSC IAS Mains Paper 3 Syllabus (GS 2)
- The Indian Constitution— historical underpinnings, the evolution of the constitution, features of the constitution, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure of the constitution of India
- Separation of powers between various organs disputes redressal mechanisms and institutions
- Functions and responsibilities of Union and States, issues and challenges pertaining to the federal structure, devolution of powers and finances up to local levels and challenges
- Salient features of Representation of People’s Act
- Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of population by Centre and States and performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for protection and betterment of vulnerable sections
- Appointment to various Constitutional posts, powers, functions and responsibilities of various Constitutional Bodies
- Development processes and development industry — the role of SHGs, NGOs, various groups and associations, charities, donors, institutional and stakeholders, etc.
- Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources
- Parliament and State legislatures—structure, functioning, the conduct of business, powers & privileges and issues arising
- Statutory, regulatory and various quasi-judicial bodies
- Issues relating to hunger and poverty
- Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests
- India and its neighbourhood-relations
- Comparison of the Indian constitutional scheme with that of other countries
- Structure, organization and functioning of Executive and Judiciary— Ministries and Departments of Government; pressure groups and formal/informal associations and their role in Polity
- Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation
- Important aspects of governance, e-governance- applications, transparency and accountability, models, successes, limitations, and potential; citizen’s charters, transparency & accountability and institutional and other measures
- Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian diaspora
- Role of IAS in democracy
- Important International institutions, agencies and fora (their structure, mandate)
UPSC IAS Mains Paper 4 Syllabus (GS 3)
- Indian Economy and issues relating to the mobilization of resources, planning, growth, development and employment
- Government Budgeting
- Food processing and related industries in India- scope and significance, location, upstream and downstream requirements, supply chain management
- Effects of liberalization on the economy, changes in industrial policy and their effects on industrial growth
- Science and technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life
- Investment models
- 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
- Challenges to internal security through communication networks, the role of media and social networking sites in internal security challenges, basics of cybersecurity, money-laundering and its prevention
- Security challenges and their management in border areas – linkages of organized crime with terrorismInclusive growth and issues arising from it
- 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
- Various Security forces and agencies and their mandate
- Major crops-cropping patterns in various parts of the country, – transport and marketing of agricultural produce and issues, different types of irrigation and irrigation systems storage and related constraints; e-technology in the aid of farmers
- Land reforms in India
- Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways, etc.
- Achievements of Indians in science & technology; indigenization of technology and developing new technology
- 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
UPSC IAS Mains Paper 5 Syllabus (GS 4)
- Human Values – lessons from the lives and teachings of great leaders, reformers and administrators; the 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
- Ethics and Human Interface – Essence, determinants and consequences of Ethics in-human actions; dimensions of ethics; ethics – in private and public relationships
- 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
- Government strives to have a workforce that reflects gender balance and women candidates are encouraged to apply. 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; Information sharing and transparency in government, Philosophical basis of governance and Probity, Codes of Ethics, Right to Information, Codes of Conduct, Work culture, Citizen’s Charters, Quality of service delivery, Utilization of public funds, challenges of corruption
- Case Studies on the above issues
UPSC Civil Services Optional Subject 2022
Paper 6 and Paper 7 are the optional papers. Candidates can choose one of the optional subjects from the following:
|
Agriculture |
Management |
|
Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science |
Mathematics |
|
Anthropology |
Mechanical Engineering |
|
Botany |
Medical Science |
|
Chemistry |
Philosophy |
|
Civil Engineering |
Physics |
|
Commerce & Accountancy |
Political Science & International Relations |
|
Economics |
Psychology |
|
Electrical Engineering |
Public Administration |
|
Geography |
Sociology |
|
Geology |
Statistics |
|
History |
Zoology |
|
Law |
Ethics |
To follow current updates on UPSC exam including IAS, check the official webpage here.
The candidates can choose the Literature of any one of the following languages as their optional subject:
|
Assamese |
Bengali |
Bodo |
|
Dogri |
Gujarati |
Hindi |
|
Kannada |
Kashmiri |
Konkani |
|
Maithili |
Malayalam |
Manipuri |
|
Marathi |
Nepali |
Odia |
|
Punjabi |
Sanskrit |
Santhali |
|
Sindhi |
Tamil |
Telugu |
UPSC IAS 2022 – Previous Year Question Papers
Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2022
Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2020
Civil Services (Main) Examination, 2020
UPSC Civil Services Syllabus – FAQs
Q. How many marks will be awarded for every correct answer in IAS 2022 Fmain exam?
A. For every correct answer, students will get 2.5 marks.
Q. Will the marks be deducted for an incorrect answer?
A. 0.33 marks will only be deducted for every wrong objective type answer.
Q. How many papers are there in the IAS Main exam?
A. There are 9 question papers in the Civil services main exam.
Q. How to start Civil Services IAS paper preparation?
A. The candidates should start preparing the basics with the NCERT books and daily newspaper.
Q. What are the subjects that candidates need to prepare for UPSC IAS Prelims?
A. In IAS Prelims exam, the questions are asked from the subjects namely General Studies and Aptitude Test.
