UPSC Main Examination Trend Analysis

In 2013 when General Studies Paper was divided into four parts from existing two parts, the importance of currents affairs also rose.Now you can see the scope of current affairs in Personality Test (Interview) as well as in Mains exam (from Essay to four papers of G.S.) and also in some optional subjects like Public Administration, Political Science, Sociology etc.

From the past 5 years ,the questions in mains exam are focusing on the current issues where aspirants need to brainstorm holistically .Topics demanded in-depth knowledge from the aspirants from different dimensions.

Current issues/news based questions continue to remain important specially in GS-2 and GS-3 papers For GS-1 and GS-2 papers ,one needs to be strong with basic points ,positives and negatives of the topics ,its implications and should have the data and reports useful for general topics for value additions. Again Current Affairs based questions were not restricted to past one year news but gauged overall depth and comprehension of the topics.Overall, themes of the questions asked seemed relevant but required in-depth understanding and knowledge.Thus, we can say that UPSC expects the aspirants to even read the fine print and prepare topics holistically.

For GS-4(Ethics),First & most important way is by practicing through case studies .To start with, read a lot of case studies .While doing this,you will notice that every situation demands a certain decision making or reaction that is different from the other. You will notice that approach to the case study varies depending upon the context .The point is to be aware of various styles of writing answer to case studies & being flexible enough to apply them appropriately here. practical answers are more appreciated in the situational case studies .Social awareness is checked more in social case studies while the application of administrative mind is checked in some cases studies. Read some basic material on SWOT analysis ,stakeholder analysis etc that gives you handle over the case studies.

Secondly ,while reading newspaper,try to focus on actions of various people involved.Its all about the three things : stakeholdes ,communication & Decision making .Use the previous years questions papers as your guiding light. Try to write the answers of case studies from PYQ & analyse it.Ethics is about articulation. It can be improved only with the help of sustained writing practice .

In the case of Essay paper ,especially in last 2-3 years ,most of the topics are becoming more and more philosophical in nature. Thus study of ethics will be helpful in Essay paper also. In general ,Essay Paper is about expression and systematic arrangement of ideas .It should be catchy and should be interesting for the examiner . For that purpose, one should be ready with the quotes ,data,reports ,recommendations etc. to strengthen your points and essay topic.This can be achieved through consistent reading & discussion of editorials ,news articles ,issues and through writing practice .