UPSC Mains Exam 2024 - syllabus, dates, exam pattern

UPSC Civil Services 2024- Overview

UPSC CSE 2024 Important Dates

The UPSC calendar for session 2024 is released now. The exam dates have been released we have enlisted the important dates for the candidates, take a look at it -

UPSC IAS Mains Exam Pattern 2024

The UPSC Mains examination pattern comprises a total of 9 papers, including 4 General Studies Papers, 1 Essay Paper, 2 Language Papers, and 2 Optional Subject Papers. Unlike the Preliminary examination, there is no provision for negative marking in the Mains examination. The papers are designed with descriptive-based questions, testing candidates' comprehensive understanding of the subjects.

Also Read - IAS MAINS EXAM PATTERN

Key Highlights

1. The two Qualifying Papers are "Any Indian Language from the Eighth Schedule" and "English Language Paper."
2. To qualify, candidates must score a minimum of 25% in both qualifying papers, equivalent to 75 marks each.
3. The remaining seven papers are scoring in nature, and their marks contribute to the final merit list.
4. Candidates have the option to answer all the scoring subjects in either English or any of the eight scheduled languages.
5. For Paper VI and Paper VII, candidates must choose one subject from the provided table as their Optional subject.

UPSC Optional Subjects List for Mains Exam

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.

UPSC IAS Syllabus for Main Exam- Subject-wise

The structure of language papers i.e., "Paper A" and "Paper B" has been discussed in the below table. The candidates have to select any one language from the Eighth Schedule of theIndian Constitution which are given in the table below. The second language paper is fixed i.e, English. Candidates have to use the corresponding script for the language as mentioned in the table below.

Note: For the Santhali language, the question paper will be printed in the Devanagari script, but the candidates are free to answer either in the Devanagari script or in Olchiki

UPSC IAS Syllabus Questions asked in both language papers are:

1. Essay - 100 marks
2. Reading comprehension - 60 marks
3. Precis Writing - 60 marks
4. Translation:
(a) English to compulsory language (e.g. Hindi) - 20 marks
(b) Compulsory language to English - 20 marks
5. Grammar and basic language usage - 40 marks

Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and Society:

1. Indian culture covers the salient features of Literature, Art Forms, and Architecture from ancient to modern times.
2. Modern Indian history include the significant events, personalities, issues during the middle of the eighteenth century until the present
3. Various stages and important contributors and contributions from different parts of the country in 'The Freedom Struggle'
4. Post-independence consolidation and reorganization within the country
5. History of the world includes events, forms and effects on the society from the 18th century like world wars, the industrial revolution, colonization, redraw of national boundaries, decolonization, political philosophies like communism, capitalism, socialism etc.
6. Salient aspects of Diversity of India and Indian Society
7. Role of women and women's organization, population and associated issues, poverty and developmental issues, urbanization, their problems and remedies
8. Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism & secularism
9. 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
10. Effects of globalization on Indian society
11. 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
12. Salient features of world's physical geography.

UPSC Mains General Studies II Syllabus

The IAS syllabus for GS 2 encompasses subjects such as Polity, Constitution, Governance, International Relations, and Social Justice. Here is a detailed breakdown of the key points:

Polity and Indian Constitution:

Social Justice:

Governance:

International Relations:

UPSC Mains General Studies III Syllabus

The UPSC Mains syllabus for GS 3 encompasses subjects such as Economic Development, Environment, Disaster Management & Security, Technology, and Biodiversity. Here is a detailed breakdown of the key points:

Economy:

Agriculture:

Science & Technology:

Environment:

Disaster Management & Security:

UPSC Mains General Studies IV Syllabus

The IAS syllabus for GS 4 focuses on evaluating candidates' integrity, ethics, and aptitude. This paper assesses their approach, attitude, and problem-solving capabilities, with questions presented in a case-study format. Here are the major topics outlined in detail from the UPSC GS 4 Syllabus:

Human Interface & Ethics:

Attitude:

Aptitude:

Emotional Intelligence:

Contributions of Philosophers and Thinkers:

Ethics in Public Administration and Civil/Public Service Values:

Ethical Issues in Funding and International Relations:

Also Read - LBSNAA: India’s Civil Services Training Academy