UPSC Mains Exam Introduction
(from The Telegraph)
Law as a subject may be preferred by professional students. However, others also may probe the syllabus to see if they would like to offer it as an optional subject. Likewise, engineers and doctors often take up their own subjects as the optional of their choice. An engineering subject can be very conveniently combined with a science subject for the Mains examination. Not many coaching centres are likely to offer materials on these subjects and the candidates may have to fall back upon their own resources. If you choose a professional or a science subject, my advice would be to look closely at the syllabus and seek the support of your own institutions and teachers.
Keep the Mains in mind
It is essential that one always keeps the Mains examination in mind while preparing for the preliminary examination. The optional you offer must be one of your combinations for the Mains examination. So while studying for the preliminary examination keep the syllabus for the Mains also in your view. This will help you in the long run. The same method is applicable to the study of the general studies. I mention this specifically because the two examinations may be entirely different, but the syllabi are overlapping.
Normally, you have a gap of about four months between the Preliminary and the Mains examinations. This will be reduced if you wait for the results of the Preliminary examination to be published. This is not advisable. Advanced planning is required keeping the entire examination in mind. Choose your second optional for the Mains examination well ahead, so that you can start preparing for it at an early date. If you decide to take the examination in 2005, ideally you should have made your choice in 2004.
Begin by choosing your optional subjects. From January or February you should concentrate only on the subjects for the Preliminary examination. Start preparing for the Mains immediately after the Prelims.
The Mains examination is totally different from the Preliminary in the sense that here you have to answer essay-type questions. In most questions the answers have word limits. Thus the preparation has to be different. What is valid for all subjects is that you must practise writing, particularly to keep your answers within the required word limits.
The compulsory papers
There are two compulsory papers: English and Indian languages. The syllabi for both have comprehension test, pr?cis-writing, usage and vocabulary and short essays. There is translation from English in the paper on Indian languages. Scores of these papers are not considered for the preparation of the merit list.
The two proper compulsory papers are: Essay and General Studies. The essay paper is for 200 marks. Usually there are six essays from which one h1as to answer only one. The essay can be written in English or any of the Indian languages recognised by the Eighth Schedule. But you must indicate it while filling in the form.
General Studies has two papers of 300 marks each. Paper I includes history of modern India and Indian culture, geography of India, Indian polity, current issues and topics of social relevance. Paper II has India and the world, Indian economy, international affairs and institutions, developments in the fields of science and technology, communications and space and statistical analysis, graphs and diagrams as the main topics.
SAMPLE TEST PAPER
Essays
Write an essay on any of the following subjects. The essay must be written in the medium specified in the admission certificate. The name of the medium must be stated clearly on the cover of the answer-book
* The country?s need for better disaster management system.
* The implications of globalisation for India.
* Women?s empowerment: challenges and prospects.
* Value-based science and education.
* The language problem in India: its past, present and prospects.
* As civilisation advances, culture declines.
General studies: Paper I
* What was the Mountbatten Plan? Discuss the reactions of Gandhi and Azad to the Plan. ( 250 words) 30
* Was Nehru justified in adopting the principle of non-alignment as the corner-stone of India?s foreign policy? ( 150 words) 15
* Answer the following ( about 20 words) 2×5=10
a) William Jones b) Bradman c) Sangam literature d) Rajendra Chola e) Schumacher
4. What is waste land? Write a note on prospects of waste land development in India. (125 words)
