UPSC CSE Prelims 2020

MAHEI presents the analysis of UPSC CSE Prelims 2020 conducted on 4th October 2020. These points may be considered or kept in mind during the preparation of UPSC 2021 Prelims by the students.

FEW IMPORTANT GENERAL NOTES FOR PRELIMS: a) A student’s own prelim experience and assessment after every prelim exam are very important. This should be the foundation to build for the next. His/Her strong areas, weak areas, exam tactics, what should have been done during prep, what should have been avoided during prep, etc are to be duly noted and considered. b) Prelim is a game of Basic/standard books and Current Affairs. Not one is not enough to crack Prelim. c) Prelim has become increasingly challenging year by year. This is a boon for those ‘maturely’/ ‘intelligently’ prepared aspirants. Shallow prep. of this exam will not do. d) UPSC CSE examination has stated objectives which are mentioned in the notification. Some of the words for Prelims, Mains, and Interview are ‘that do not require subject specialization’, ‘marks will not be allotted for mere superficial knowledge’, ‘questions on the matter of general interest’, ‘An assessment of not only his intellectual qualities............................................. and his interest in current affairs, ‘ general knowledge of the candidate’, ‘ candidates are expected to have taken an intelligent interest not only in their special subjects of academic

studies 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’, ‘ nature and standard of questions.................. a well- educated person will be able to answer them without any specialized study’, ‘the questions are likely to test the candidate’s basic understanding of all relevant issues,. socio-economic goals, objectives, and demands. e) Keeping these points in mind gives a direction and a sense of purpose in the preparation phase and may identify the areas to which one must give more attention and focus too.

I. PRELIMS 2020 ANALYSIS i) UPSC retained its style of asking Qs from areas that impacted citizens lives/important sections of the society in India in a big way- · The Qs on Aadhaar, MPLADS, Legal services authorities, Kisan credit card scheme, MSP, etc. ii) The dependable Basic/standard subjects- The basic or standard subjects have always been dependable no matter what the difficulty level of Current Affairs (CAs) are asked. Apart from a static syllabus and limited books, they have stood the test of time to be aspirant’s most reliable areas of Prelims. · Polity– the usual Fundamental Rights, DPSP, RS/LS, Budget, basic structure, Parliament, and others were asked. These Qs cud have been easily handled by Laxmikanth’s Indian Polity and PM Bakshi’s Constitution of India. Apart from these two books, one can add NCERT books like Political theory (Class 11) to answer Polity conceptual Qs asked like ‘constitutional government’, ‘characteristics appropriate for bureaucracy’ etc. · Geography, Geo-related CAs and ATLAS made a good chunk of Qs in Prelims this time covering all aspects of the subject ie physical, social, economic geography of India and the world. These can be tackled with NCERTs, basic/standard books like Khullar, Goh Cheng, Newspapers/Journals CAs and ATLAS.

Jet streams, cyclones, Siachen glacier, OMT monsoon, Desert NP, major minerals, eco-friendly agriculture, cultivation of sugarcane, fertigation of agriculture, subtropical crop-frost free, Kharif –rabi, zero tillage, biochar, coal ash, musk deer, Indian swamp deer, Ceylon frogmouth, steel slag, protected area Cauvery basin, Mekong- Thames-Volga rivers. · History – Ancient, Medieval, Modern, and Arts and culture are covered. Many standard books seemed to have been referred for making the Qs. And newspaper articles in ‘History’ seem to have been considered. The usual expectations from Buddhism, Jainism, Harappan, Gupta, Philosophy systems, etc proved useful as some Qs on these is asked. - Aurang-Banian-Mirasidar, Deser Katha, Vital-Vidhvansak, Kulyavapa-Dronavapa, Rakmabai case, Ulgulan or Great Tumult, Bhilsa-Dwarasamudra-Girinagar-Stanesvara - unknown source/ not the general source (these sources can be anything from state SCERT books, publications not popular with UPSC prep, newspaper/journal articles, etc. In any way, these are expected NOT to be known to many aspirants. So little impact Qs) - Impact of the industrial revolution in India, Fort William College, Indigo cultivation, - Modern India NCERT old - Bhoja, Mahayana Buddhism, Inscription, Panini-Kalidasa- Amarasimha, Gupta dynasty – Ancient India Old NCERT and Themes in Indian History-I - Hundi - Medieval India Old NCERT class 11

- Gandhi-Irwin Pact – Bipan Chandra India’s struggle for independence - Paramitas (Buddhism), Parivrajaka-Shramana-Upasaka - Arts, and Culture (Old NCERTs, NEW NCERTS, newspaper articles, etc) · Economy ( Basics and Current Affairs)- Always considered as one of the most important prelims areas. The basics conceptual questions can be easily covered with NCERTs and standard books like Misra Puri/Datt Sundaram. The Question types are basics, CAs and Basics+CAs. The CAs can be covered from a wide range of sources Newspapers/Journals, IYB, BUDGET, Eco survey, Reports like WB, IMF, WEF, etc. - Global financial crisis concept, Foreign Direct Investment, TRIMS, DCCBs (District Central Cooperative Banks), public investment in agriculture, Price of rice in India, G20, CPI/WPI, Commercial Paper- Certificate deposit-call money-Zero coupon bonds – Standard books like Misra Puri/Datt Sundaram - Demand Deposit Account, non-financial debt, RBI expansionist policy, 1991 economic liberalization - NCERT Macro/Micro/Indian Economic development - International trade of India, cyber insurance, Interest coverage ratio, Indo-Srilanka, Nepal, Bangladesh trade, chemical fertilizers,- IYB, Eco survey, Budget, Newspapers, Reports, etc.

· Environment Basics- Wildlife Protection Act, Social cost of carbon, Central Groundwater Authority-EPA (IYB basics). · Science Basics- the difference between animal cells and plant cells. · Basics of – Society, Internal Security and international relations- iii) The vast and dynamic Current Affairs – Current Affairs are usually asked in various aspects like a) Current Affairs of the year b) Back to Basics of these CAs c) Those CAs which are relevant and made impacts on people’s lives, society, etc. Newspapers, Journals, Magazines (UPSC dedicated), Videos, Govt. Websites, IYB, Budget, Eco Survey, Reports, etc are the sources of these CAs. - Science and Technology CAs-These year Prelims gave much importance to Science and technology CAs. These are mostly topics which have a great impact to the economy, people’s lives, cutting edge with many prospects and application, agricultural techs benefiting farmers, etc- Visible Light Communication, Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain Technology, LISA pathfinder, drones, Public Key Infrastructure, solar water pumps (Argi-Envi-tech). - Biotechnology CAS- Pronuclear transfer, carbon nanotubes. pluripotent stem cells-eggs-sperms, Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine.

- International Relations CAs – Alma-Ata declaration -Hague Convention-Talanoa Dialogue.

- Basic subjects CAs- Gold Tranche (World Institutions), West Texas Intermediate (economy/Geo).

- Environment-related CAs- benzene pollution, Indian Elephants behavior, carbon footprints, National Policy on Biofuels (Eco- Environment).

- Internal Security CAs- IAEA safeguards.

# All the 100 Qs covered.

# The books are suggestive and indicate that a Q can be answered if the book is read.

# Emphasis has been given on the areas, patterns, and concepts rather than a specific Q.

THANK YOU