The Mains Examination is the second stage of UPSC CSE. It consists of 9 papers, of which 2 are qualifying. The written exam carries 1750 marks and the Personality Test carries 275 marks, making a grand total of 2025 marks.
Marks Structure
| Paper | Subject | Marks |
|---|
| Paper A | One Indian Language (Eighth Schedule) | 300 |
| Paper B | English | 300 |
| Paper I | Essay | 250 |
| Paper II | General Studies I — Indian Heritage, Culture, History & Geography | 250 |
| Paper III | General Studies II — Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice & IR | 250 |
| Paper IV | General Studies III — Technology, Economy, Biodiversity, Environment, Security | 250 |
| Paper V | General Studies IV — Ethics, Integrity & Aptitude | 250 |
| Paper VI | Optional Subject — Paper 1 | 250 |
| Paper VII | Optional Subject — Paper 2 | 250 |
| Sub Total (Written Test) | 1750 |
| Personality Test (Interview) | 275 |
| Grand Total | 2025 |
⚠ Paper A & B are qualifying papers — marks are NOT counted for merit ranking. Minimum 25% required in each to be eligible for evaluation of Papers I–VII.
Essay · Paper I · 250 Marks
Essay
- Candidates may be required to write essays on multiple topics
- Must keep closely to the subject — arrange ideas in orderly fashion, write concisely
- Credit given for effective and exact expression
GS Paper 1 · Paper II · 250 Marks
Indian Heritage & 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 present- significant events, personalities, issues.
- The Freedom Struggle — its various stages and important contributors/contributions from different parts of the country
- Post-independence consolidation and reorganization
- History of the world will include events from the 18th century such as industrial revolution, world wars, redrawal of national boundaries, colonization, decolonization, political philosophies like communism, capitalism, socialism etc.— their forms and effect on the society.
- Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India
- Role of women and women’s 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 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).
- 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.
GS Paper 2 · Paper III · 250 Marks
Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International Relations
- Indian Constitution — historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, 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 Indian constitutional scheme with other countries
- Parliament and State legislatures—structure, functioning, conduct of business, powers & privileges and issues arising out of these.
- Structure, organization and functioning of the Executive and the Judiciary—Ministries and Departments of the Government; pressure groups and formal/informal associations and their role in the Polity
- Salient features of the Representation of People’s 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 —the 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-governance- applications, models, successes, limitations, and potential; citizens charters, transparency & accountability and institutional and other measures.
- Role of civil services in a democray.
- India and its neighbourhood relations;
- Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.
- Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian diaspora.
- Important International institutions, agencies and fora - their structure, mandate.
GS Paper 3 · Paper IV · 250 Marks
Technology, Economic Development, Biodiversity, Environment, Security & 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- scope 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
GS Paper 4 · Paper V · 250 Marks
Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude
- This paper will include questions to test the candidates’ 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.
- 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, Citizen’s Charters,Work culture, Quality of service delivery, Utilization of public funds, challenges of corruption.
- Case Studies on all above issues
Qualifying Papers · Not Counted for Merit
Paper A — Indian Language & Paper B — English
- Comprehension of given passages
- Precise Writing
- Usage and Vocabulary
- Short Essays
- Translation from English to Indian Language and vice-versa (Indian Language paper)
- Minimum qualifying standard: 25% marks in each
✍️ Study Notes for Mains GS Papers
A candidate may opt for any one Optional Subject from the list below. Each optional subject has 2 compulsory papers carrying 250 marks each (total 500 marks).
Optional Subjects (26 + Literature)
Agriculture
Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science
Anthropology
Botany
Chemistry
Civil Engineering
Commerce & Accountancy
Economics
Electrical Engineering
Geography
Geology
History
Law
Management
Mathematics
Mechanical Engineering
Medical Science
Philosophy
Physics
Political Science & IR (PSIR)
Psychology
Public Administration
Sociology
Statistics
Zoology
Literature — 24 languages (Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, English & more)
