Stage II: UPSC Mains Syllabus
“Mains is the heart of UPSC. This is where your knowledge, writing skills, and clarity of thought decide your rank.”
UPSC Mains Exam Structure
Qualifying Papers
| Paper | Subject | Marks |
|---|
| Paper A | Indian language ( can choose any 1 language from the 8th schedule of the Constitution) | 300 |
| Paper B | English | 300 |
(Both are qualifying, not counted for merit)
Papers Counted for Merit
| Paper | Subject | Marks |
|---|
| Paper I | Essay | 250 |
| Paper II | GS I – Indian Heritage & Culture, History & Geography of World & Society | 250 |
| Paper III | GS II – Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice & IR | 250 |
| Paper IV | GS III – Tech, Economy, Environment, Security, Disaster Mgmt. | 250 |
| Paper V | GS IV – Ethics, Integrity & Aptitude | 250 |
| Paper VI | Optional Subject – Paper 1 | 250 |
| Paper VII | Optional Subject – Paper 2 | 250 |
Sub Total (Written Test (only merit papers)): 1750 Marks
Personality Test (Interview): 275 Marks
Grand Total: 2025 Marks
Important Points
- Paper A (Indian Language) and Paper B (English) are only qualifying in nature. Marks in these papers are not counted for merit ranking.
- The difficulty level of both these papers will be of Matriculation (Class X) standard.
- A candidate must score at least 25% marks in each of these qualifying papers. Otherwise, the Essay, General Studies and Optional Subject papers will not be evaluated.
- Only marks obtained in Paper I to Paper VII (total 1750 marks) are counted for merit ranking.
- All Mains papers are conventional (essay-type) and each paper is of 3 hours duration.
- Medium of Answer Writing: A candidate can write all papers (except Paper A and B) in any one of the languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, OR in English.
- Language of Question Papers: All question papers (except the literature papers of languages) are set in both Hindi and English. Candidates can choose to answer in English or in any Eighth Schedule language, but Paper A must be answered in the Indian language chosen, and Paper B must be answered in English.
- Extra Time: Blind candidates and those with locomotor disability or cerebral palsy (with minimum 40% impairment of the writing hand) will be given 20 minutes extra per hour in both Prelims and Mains.
Syllabus – Qualifying Papers
English (Paper B)
- ✔ Comprehension of passages
- ✔ Precis Writing
- ✔ Usage & Vocabulary
- ✔ Short Essays
Indian Language (Paper A)
- ✔ Comprehension of passages
- ✔ Precis Writing
- ✔ Usage & Vocabulary
- ✔ Short Essays
- ✔ Translation: English ↔ Indian Language
Exam Guru Tip:
Many toppers say – “Never ignore Paper A & B!”
Every year, aspirants are disqualified before merit evaluation because they fail the 25% rule.
Syllabus – Merit Papers
Essay Paper (Paper I)
- Write on multiple topics (Current + Abstract)
- Must:
- Remain connected to the topic
- Organise ideas logically
- Write concisely & clearly
- Marks for effective, precise & impactful expression
Paper II: GS I (250 Marks)
Indian Heritage and 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 reorganisation within the country.
- History of the world will include events from 18th century such as industrial revolution, world wars, redrawal of national boundaries, colonisation, decolonisation, 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 organisations, population and associated issues, poverty and developmental issues, urbanisation, their problems and their remedies.
- Effects of globalisation 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.
Paper III: GS II (250 Marks)
Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations.
- Indian Constitution—historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and 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 the Indian constitutional scheme with that of 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, egovernance- applications, models, successes, limitations, and potential; citizens charters, transparency & accountability and institutional and other measures.
- Role of civil services in a democracy.
- India and its neighborhood- 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.
Paper IV: GS III (250 Marks)
Technology, Economic Development, Bio diversity, Environment, Security and 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, Nanotechnology, 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.
Paper V: GS IV (250 Marks)
Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude
The paper is designed to assess how a candidate approaches ethical issues, integrity, and probity in public life, and how effectively they can resolve societal challenges and conflicts.
The following broad areas will be covered:
- 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.
Exam Guru Tip: GS-IV is a rank booster – practice case studies daily!
Paper VI & VII: Optional Subject
Optional Subject Papers I & II: (250 + 250 Marks)
A candidate may opt for any one Optional Subject from the following:
- UPSC Agriculture Syllabus
- UPSC Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science Syllabus
- UPSC Anthropology Syllabus
- UPSC Botany Syllabus
- UPSC Chemistry Syllabus
- UPSC Civil Engineering Syllabus
- UPSC Commerce and Accountancy Syllabus
- UPSC Economics Syllabus
- UPSC Electrical Engineering Syllabus
- UPSC Geography Syllabus
- UPSC Geology Syllabus
- UPSC History Syllabus
- UPSC Law Optional Syllabus
- UPSC Management Syllabus
- UPSC Maths Optional Syllabus
- UPSC Mechanical Engineering Syllabus
- UPSC Medical Science Syllabus
- UPSC Philosophy Syllabus
- UPSC Physics Optional Syllabus
- UPSC PSIR Optional Syllabus
- UPSC Psychology Syllabus
- UPSC Public Administration Optional Syllabus
- UPSC Sociology Optional Syllabus
- UPSC Statistics Syllabus
- UPSC Zoology Syllabus
- UPSC Literature Syllabus 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.
Each Optional Subject has 2 compulsory papers.
Exam Guru Tip:
Optional = “Game Changer” in UPSC Mains.
6 Key Takeaways – UPSC Optional Subject
- Optional = Game-Changer – It’s the only paper you choose, and it can give you a 20–60 mark lead over others if chosen wisely.
- Scorability Matters – Many toppers score 350+ out of 500 in Optional (70%+), while GS averages just 50%.
- Choose Smartly – Consider scorability, your abilities, interest, overlap with GS, syllabus length, study material, and subject dynamism before finalising.
- Moderation, Not Scaling – UPSC ensures fairness across subjects by moderation (not scaling), so choose based on your strength, not competition.
- Right Fit = Higher Score – Objective subjects (Maths, Physics, Geography) suit fact-based thinkers; subjective ones (Polity, Sociology, Literature) suit strong writers.
- Time Investment – Expect 700–1000 hours (including revision + answer writing) for serious prep; self-study is possible if backed with good notes & PYQs.
