Civil Services in India have evolved over time, shaped during the British period and with elements borrowed from the medieval times, their roots go all the way back to the ancient times, most remarkably the Mauryan period. After independence and mandated by the Constitution of India, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has been at the helm of selecting suitable candidates to man the various prestigious administrative offices at the central and all-India level. 

Today, the civil services form the steel framework of the Indian administration, very proudly taking the nation forward with the objects of social justice and human welfare. The timeless prestige associated with the services has always drawn hundreds of thousands of aspirants to make an attempt at the Civil Services Examination (CSE) conducted by the UPSC.

 The popularity of the examination necessitates a discussion at length about its numerous facets. Here begins the story!

Scheme of the UPSC Civil Services Examination

In 1976, the D S Kothari Committee on recruitment policy and selection method recommended that recruitment to the All India and Central Services should be made on the basis of a unified scheme of examination, common to all the Services.

It provided recommendations on the design of the examination cycle, which led to the current system of this 3-staged examination.

Through CSE, the UPSC selects candidates for the two All India Services (IAS and IPS) and other Central Services. 

A closer look at the Preliminary Exam (or the Prelims)

The Prelims consists of two papers: General Studies  Paper-I and General Studies Paper-II (commonly known as CSAT), where the UPSC assesses the aspirants' knowledge, analytical abilities, and time management through the GS syllabus, and their Civil Servant-like aptitude via mental ability, logical reasoning, and reading comprehension in CSAT.

Prelims Examination is meant to serve as a screening test only, the marks obtained in the Preliminary Examination by the candidates, who are declared qualified for admission to the Main Examination, are not counted for determining their final order of merit. 

Presently, prelims which consists of two papers carries 200 marks each. 

(i)  Both the question papers are of objective type (multiple choice questions).

(ii) The question papers are set in Hindi and English.

(iii) Each paper is of 2 hours duration.

(iv) General Studies Paper-II (CSAT) is of qualifying nature (33%).

UPSC Prelims Syllabus for the General Studies Paper-1

Candidates are advised to go through the IAS Prelims Syllabus for the Examination as given below:

• 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.

Decoding the Rules and Regulations

There is a penalty (negative marking) for wrong answers (1/3rd) marked by a candidate in Prelims. There are four alternatives for the answers to every question. If a candidate gives more than one answer, it is treated as a wrong answer even if one of the given answers happens to be correct and there will be the same penalty as above for that question. If a question is left blank, i.e. no answer is given by the candidate; there will be no penalty for that question.

Apart from that 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 Prelims Trend Analysis: For General Studies Paper-I

Table Notes: 

• In Table 1, Current Affairs questions also include the questions related to International Relations, Economics, Polity and Governance, etc.
• In Table 2, it shows the real importance of Economics in terms of the number of questions asked. In 2017, most of the Economics questions (19 questions) were from Current Affairs.

Subject-wise Trend Analysis 

Taking into consideration the trend of the last 7 years (2017 - 2023), the following observations have been made which are instrumental for an effective UPSC Prelims strategy. Polity and Governance, Economics, Environment, History (including Art and Culture), Geography, Science and Technology, and International Relations form the most important subjects from the point of view of CSE Preliminary Exam. A subject-wise analysis of the last 7 year’s question papers is as follows.

Indian Economy and Development

Over the years, the Economics section has consistently featured a blend of current affairs and fundamental economic principles. The number of questions from Economics in the last 7 years has never been less than 15 percent. The focus has shifted slightly each year, but key themes include banking and monetary policy, digital payment ecosystems (like BHIM), food security, agriculture have always been covered.

 A significant portion of the questions each year have been linked to current affairs, especially developments in the banking sector and digital payment systems. For example, questions on Digital Payment Ecosystem and BHIM in 2018 and the role of banking in money supply in 2019.

The difficulty level has been varying, as initially the questions were of core economics and easy to answer. In the last few years, UPSC has ventured into insurance, microeconomics, etc. aiming to catch the aspirants off guard.

Polity and Governance 

This subject area consistently focuses on fundamental concepts like Democracy, Equality, Rights and Duties, the Preamble, and DPSP. The trend has been towards basic and foundational questions, often derived from standard texts. Every year questions with an element of subjectivity have also featured, e.g. on ‘Law ann liberty’, the meanings of ‘Democracy’ and ‘State’, etc.

At the same time a substantial emphasis has been laid by UPSC on governance related themes like Acts and Schemes e.g. the Maternity Benefit Act, Food Security Act. The complexity of questions has varied, but there has been a consistent approach to cover core concepts and governance-related issues.

Overall, the difficulty level has been more or less consistent with most of the questions from medium and easy.

Basic Science and Science & Technology (S&T)

The S&T section has been diverse and challenging, with a notable emphasis on the topics from current affairs and cutting-edge technologies, including fundamental concepts like genome sequencing, gene therapy and other areas of biotechnology, space technologies like IRNSS, GPS, nanotechnology. In 2020 and 2021, questions related to types of vaccines were asked. Other COVID-19 related topics such as virus, etc. also featured. The questions from S&T, on the whole, have always been medium-difficult with some easy to answer questions.

International Relations (IR)

The IR section has generally been easier (with very few difficult questions), with questions revolving around key geopolitical developments, bilateral relations, and international agreements. Between 2017 and 2020, the questions were direct and related to global bodies/organizations and agreements (e.g. BTIA, Global Data Protection, etc), while in the last couple of years, questions related to identification of countries and regions based on political issues and conflicts have also featured. 

India & World Geography 

Between 2017 to 2023,  questions from the Geography section were mostly map-based (Aleppo in 2018 and the Indus River in 2017) and questions from the sections like economic geography, and fundamental concepts. Economic geography questions focused on current trends, such as ilmenite and cobalt (2023), and solar parks (2022). 

The section also combined basic geographical knowledge with conceptual understanding, covering topics like the earth’s atmosphere and the Indian Ocean Dipole (2017), demonstrating the importance of foundational knowledge and its application to current scenarios. Most of the questions have been of medium to difficult level.

Environment & Ecology

From 2017 to 2023, the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Exam's environment section has shown a dynamic and evolving approach. Questions have ranged from fundamental ecological concepts to current global environmental initiatives and policies. For instance, the focus on international agreements like the Polar Code and detailed topics like the Indian Ocean Dipole highlights the importance of understanding both global trends and specific issues.

Recent exams, such as those in 2020 and 2021, have included questions on the behavioral traits of species and the application of new technologies like biofilters, reflecting a shift towards applied environmental science. The diversity in themes, from pollution control and climate change to species protection and the intersection with governance, underscores the need for comprehensive preparation. 

 Overall, these trends indicate UPSC's emphasis on a comprehensive understanding of environmental issues, blending basic knowledge with insights into current affairs, policy frameworks, and technological developments. Generally, the difficulty level is medium to hard, focusing on a holistic grasp of contemporary environmental challenges.

History of India (Ancient, Medieval and Modern) and Art & Culture

From 2017 to 2023, the History section of the Civil Services Preliminary Exam (CSP) has undergone significant changes. Initially, in 2017, the focus was balanced across different historical periods, with an emphasis on in-depth factual knowledge.

 A remarkable trend in the year 2019 was the sudden increase in the number of questions from Medieval India (5 questions) which were nearly absent in the preceding years. A similar surprising element in 2023 was the drop in the number of questions from Modern India. The trends are suggestive that UPSC has been varying the weightages of the different sections of History.

Some of the recurring themes in History have been Buddhism and Jainism, events related to Struggle for Freedom, personalities-based questions (from both ancient period and modern Indian history), society and life in historical phases like Indus Valley Civilization, while themes in Art and Culture have come from UNESCO, dances, art and crafts.

Overall, the difficulty level from the Modern Indian section has been on the easy-medium side, while for the other sections have been variable.

Current Affairs (across all the subjects)

From 2017 to 2023, Current Affairs in the Civil Services Preliminary Exam (CSP) have consistently demanded an in-depth and broad understanding of global and national issues. At the same time, purely factual questions have also featured. Most of the Current Affairs questions have been from Governance, Economics, Science & Technology, International Relations, etc. Some questions have been directly based on current events, while some have been inspired from recent happenings and indirect in nature. 

For example, a question based on the biology and sociological behavior of elephants appeared in 2020. The inclusion of that question could be ascribed to the unfortunate event in which a pregnant female elephant was intentionally killed by being fed an explosive-laden pineapple.

In 2020 and 2021, the exam included unconventional themes, such as legal concepts like dayabhaga and mitakshara, expanding beyond traditional news topics.

In recent years, notably 2022 and 2023, there was a strong focus on international relations, with questions on conflicts in African and Middle Eastern countries. This shift highlighted the importance of being well-informed about global geopolitics and maintaining regular engagement with diverse news sources. 

Miscellaneous

Apart from the above-mentioned subjects, questions based on unconventional themes have also featured, e.g. questions on microeconomics like ‘Opportunity Cost’, questions related to social capital and human capital. 

The aberrations are not limited to that,  as in the years 2021 and 2023, questions related to sports and sports events also found place in the 100 questions. For example, 2 questions in 2021; Laureus World Sports Award and 32nd Summer Olympics) and 2 questions in 2023 (Chess Olympiad and Sports Awards).

A recent observation related to the type of questions asked is the reduction of the scope for using optional elimination techniques. In 2022, UPSC introduced this way of setting options for the first time and in a few questions (pair-types questions). In the pair-type questions ‘how many of the statements are correct?’ replaced ‘which of the statements are correct?’. 

In 2023, more than 50 percent of the questions were asked in that format as shown below.

Looking Ahead

For anyone who has just made up his/her mind, the rules, the syllabus and the long process may seem unnerving, if not discouraging. The feeling is not specific to any individual, it is universal and remember it was equally intimidating for those who went on to make it to the final list. 

In this blog, you were acquainted with the nitty gritty of this popular exam. You got to know about the history, the object of the exam and all those seemingly boring subjects that you are soon going to develop a liking for. Take your time and get the rules of the game etched on your mind. As in the next blog, we will help you strategize and strengthen your resolute.

Remember, the toppers were once toddlers in this long journey and it was just their constant crawling that grew into long strides and helped them reach the finish point.