UPSC conducts Civil Services Examination (CSE) for the selection of candidates for the various Services and posts.
Exam Stages
The Civil Services Examination comprises two successive stages:
- Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination:
- Objective Type paper
- For the selection of candidates for the Civil Services (Main) Examination
- Civil Services (Main) Examination:
a. Written Exams
b. Interview/Personality Test
PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION
The Examination shall comprise of two compulsory Papers of 200 marks each.
- Both the question papers will be of the objective type (multiple choice questions) and
each will be of two hours duration. - The General Studies Paper-II of the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination will be a
qualifying paper with minimum qualifying marks fixed at 33%. - The question papers will be set both in Hindi and English.
Paper I
- 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
- 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. ā Class X level);
MAIN EXAMINATION:
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 Written Examination will consist of the following papers:
Qualifying Papers:
PaperāA:
One of the Indian languages to be selected by the candidate from the Languages included in the Eighth.
Schedule to the Constitution - 300 Marks
For the Language medium/literature of languages, the scripts to be used by the
candidates will be as under:
| Language | Script |
|---|---|
| Assamese | Assamese |
| Bengali | Bengali |
| Gujarati | Gujarati |
| Hindi | Devanagari |
| Kannada | Kannada |
| Kashmiri | Persian |
| Konkani | Devanagari |
| Malayalam | Malayalam |
| Manipuri | Bengali |
| Marathi | Devanagari |
| Nepali | Devanagari |
| Odia | Odia |
| Punjabi | Gurumukhi |
| Sanskrit | Devanagari |
| Sindhi | Devanagari or Arabic |
| Tamil | Tamil |
| Telugu | Telugu |
| Urdu | Persian |
| Bodo | Devanagari |
| Dogri | Devanagari |
| Maithilli | Devanagari |
| Santhali | Devanagari or Olchiki |
The pattern of questions would be broad as follows :
- Comprehension of given passages.
- Precis Writing.
- Usage and Vocabulary.
- Short Essays.
- Translation from English to the Indian Language and vice-versa.
PaperāB
English - 300 Marks
The pattern of questions would be broad as follows :
- Comprehension of given passages.
- Precis Writing.
- Usage and Vocabulary.
- Short Essays.
Papers to be counted for Merit
PaperāI 250 Marks
Essay
Candidates may be required to write essays on multiple topics. They will be expected to
keep close to the subject of the essay to arrange their ideas in an orderly fashion and to write
concisely. Credit will be given for effective and exact expression.
PaperāII 250 Marks
General StudiesāI: 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 presentsignificant events, personalities, issues.
- The Freedom Struggle ā 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.ā their forms and effect on the society. - Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India.
- Role of women and womenās 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 worldās 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.
PaperāIII 250 Marks
General Studies ā 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 dispute redressal mechanisms and institutions.
- Comparison of the Indian constitutional scheme with that of other countries.
- Parliament and State legislaturesāstructure, functioning, conduct of business, powers &
privileges and issues arising out of these. - Structure, organization and functioning of the Executive and the JudiciaryāMinistries and
Departments of the Government; pressure groups and formal/informal associations and their
role in the Polity. - Salient features of the Representation of Peopleās 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 āthe 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-governanceapplications, 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 Indiaās interests.
- Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on Indiaās interests,
Indian diaspora. - Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate.
PaperāIV 250 Marks
General StudiesāIII: 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- scopeā 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.
PaperāV 250 Marks
General Studiesā IV: Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude
- This paper will include questions to test the candidatesā attitude and approach to issues
relating to integrity, probity in public life and his problem solving approach to various issues
and conflicts faced by him in dealing with society. Questions may utilise the case study
approach to determine these aspects. The following broad areas will be covered : - 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 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, Citizenās Charters, Work culture, Quality of service delivery,
Utilization of public funds, challenges of corruption. - Case Studies on the above issues.
Optional Paper 1 and Paper 2 (250 Marks each)
List of optional subjects for Main Examination:
- Agriculture
- Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science
- Anthropology
- Botany
- Chemistry
- Civil Engineering
- Commerce and Accountancy
- Economics
- Electrical Engineering
- Geography
- Geology
- History
- Law
- Management
- Mathematics
- Mechanical Engineering
- Medical Science
- Philosophy
- Physics
- Political Science and International Relations
- Psychology
- Public Administration
- Sociology
- Statistics
- Zoology
- Literature of any one of the following languages:
Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili,
Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu
and English.
Mains Exam Pattern and Language
- The question papers for the examination will be of conventional (essay) type.
- Each paper will be of three hours duration.
- Candidates will have the option to answer all the question papers, except the Qualifying
Language Papers, Paper-A and Paper-B, in any one of the languages included in the Eighth
Schedule to the Constitution of India or in English. Notwithstanding this, the Candidate
will have the choice to write the Optional Papers in English also if candidates opt to write
Paper I-V except the Qualifying Language Papers, Paper-A, and Paper-B, in any one of the
language included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India.
Interview/Personality Test
The candidate will be interviewed by a Board that will have before them a record of the
candidateās career.
- The object of the Interview/Personality Test is to assess the personal suitability of the candidate for a
career in public service by a Board of competent and unbiased observers. The - Test is intended to judge the mental caliber of a candidate.
- In broad terms, this is really an assessment of not only intellectual qualities but also social traits and interest in current affairs.
- Some of the qualities to be judged are mental alertness, critical powers of assimilation, clear and logical exposition, the balance of judgment, variety, and depth of interest, ability for social cohesion and leadership, intellectual and moral integrity.
- Test is not that of a strict cross-examination but of a natural, though directed and purposive conversation which is intended to reveal the mental qualities of the candidate.
- Test is not intended to be a test either of the specialized or general knowledge of the candidates which has been already tested through their written papers.
Candidates are expected to have taken an intelligent interest not only in their
special subjects of academic study but also in the events which are happening around them both
within and outside their own State or Country as well as in modern currents of thought and in new
discoveries which should arouse the curiosity of well-educated youth