Mrunal Patel

[Studyplan] Assistant Provident Fund Commissioner (APFC) by UPSC

2012-05-27T01:18:00.001+05:30

Question from a Visitor

Could you please tell me what should I study for the post of Assistant Commissioner of Employee provident fund I have checked the syllabus but if you could tell me what should I study(I mean reference books etc.).

Readymade books for APFC exam
Cost Factor
Paper 1 General English
Paper 2 General Studies
Two rules to crack this exam

Readymade books for APFC exam

Exams like APFC are not taken at regular interval, so whenever such exam comes, some bogus moneyminded publication houses, just copy paste few paragraphs and pages related to the syllabus topics, from other books and publish a Guidebook for APFC exam, containing 300 pages!
After 1 month, These people will just change the book cover release the same content for Sales Tax inspector’s exam! Therefore such bogus quality readymade books or study material does not serve much purpose.
Reason: Many candidates also prepare simultaneously for UPSC, State PSC, Banks, SSC and similar jobs therefore competitive level is always very high. You need to have your basic concepts clear and foundations strong. Don’t try to look for shortcuts using such readymade books. (Same Advice for RBI officer, LIC AAO and other similar exams.)

Cost Factor

The General Studies Manual (TMH, Unique, Spectrum) are quite expensive. They’re written for UPSC exam hence very thick and heavy. But the entire manual is not relevant for APFC exam, you’ve to do selective study of only a few topics. So better just borrow it from some friend or try to get an old copy.
Assistant Provident Fund Commissioner (APFC) comprises the following major topics/ broad areas.
The medium of the test will be both English and Hindi.

Paper 1 General English

The questions in General English component of the test will be designed to evaluate candidate’s understanding of English language and workman-like use of the words.
I don’t think any special preparation is necessary for this.
However, if you’re uncomfortable with English, you can use Compulsory English for Civil and Judicial Service by AP Bhardwaj (TMH Publication)

Paper 2 General Studies

Note: whenever I mention NCERT, know that it is legally downloaded for free, in Hindi or English from the official website of NCERT (http://www.ncert.nic.in/ )
Now talking about specific topics under Assistant Provident Fund manager’s exam.

Current Events	Download this package to prepare current affairs since Jan’11. http://www.mrunal.org/2012/03/download-current-affairs-compilation.html From now, ask your newspaperman to throw either Read The Hindu or Indian Express.
Indian Culture Heritage	NCERT class 7 to 12 (History books), class 11/12 books on Art n Culture. (optional) History portion from Tata Macgrawhill General Studies Manual- read stuff related to art, painting, dance, music from Ancient, medieval and modern era.
Freedom Movements	NCERT class 7 to 12 for History. History portion from Tata Macgrawhill General Studies Manual. Note: Syllabus clearly says “Freedom movement” so read only Post-1857 period, no need to read Ancient (Harappa) or Medival (Mughals). + do all the mock tests given at the end of General Studies Manual.
Population	Don’t know, what exactly this means! May be Human Geography class 11/12 book of NCERT could help.
Development and Globalization	See if there are some pdf files on www.egyankosh.ac.in (you’ll need to register there to download files, but it is free.)
Governance and Constitution of India	The best book ever written: relevant for all exams Indian Polity by M.Laxmikanth (TMH Publication) Thorough revision for 5-7 times. Do all mock questions given at the end of his book.
Present Trends in Indian Economy	To get the Basic idea about GDP, GNP, Public Debt, IIP, FII etc. + latest issues in economy, you can read 100+ articles on "Economy for Newcomers" by Mrunal Patel on following link http://mrunal.org/2012/02/economy-list-of-all-articles-published.html NCERT Class-11 (understanding economic development) http://www.neerajagarwal.info/ncert-books-for-class-10-Understanding-Economic-Development-Social-Science.zip Now Understand: Socialism, Communism, Capitalism, LPG (liberalisation, globalisation, privatisation), Green Revolution etc NCERT: Class-11 (Indian economic development) http://www.neerajagarwal.info/ncert-books-for-class-11-Indian-Economic-Development-Economics.zip Finally: microeconomic concepts of supply and demand, elasticity etc (without going to in mathematical details) http://www.neerajagarwal.info/ncert-books-for-class-12-Introductory-Microeconomics.zip Class-12 : Macro Economy : money and banking, role of RBI etc. (without going to in mathematical details) http://www.neerajagarwal.info/ncert-books-for-class-12-Macroeconomics.zip
Accountancy and Auditing	You can use NCERT books. I think class 11/12 has these subjects. OR search www.egyankosh.ac.in (may be in BA/MA Economics section) Or if they’re asking deep questions, you may use Unique Publication’s book on “Commerce” optional subject for UPSC. It has elaborate chapters on Audit and Account.
Industrial Relations & Labour Laws	Search www.egyankosh.ac.in
Insurance	OR search www.egyankosh.ac.in
Basic Knowledge of Computer Applications	If you’re comfortable with computers, then I don’t think any special preparation is required. Else use NCERT’s books on Computer (may be class 10,11,12) or may be Pdf files from www.egyankosh.ac.in for any certificate courses on computer.
General Science	NCERT class 7 to 10 (Freely downloaded from official site) (for additional grip) Science portion from Tata Macgrawhill General Studies Manual.
Elementary Maths & Statistics	Many people appear for IBPS and SSC have really good grip over aptitude portion. They’ll also appear for Asst. Provident fund. Hence competition becomes really tough. One should be thoroughly prepared for maths and aptitude topic. Mrunal’s articles on Aptitude (Free) to get the basic concepts clear. The standard reference books for aptitude would be (relevant for any exam starting from Bank Clerk to CAT) Quantam CAT by Sarvesh Kumar RS Agarwal’s Verbal and Nonverbal reasoning. However, if you don’t have so much time to go through both of above books, may be you can use IBPS Manual of Disha Expert , it covers all aptitude topics in brief with enough mock-questions.
General Mental Abilities	Same as above.

There are only two rules to crack this exam

For Non-aptitude (history, polity etc) Revise – revise – revise
For aptitude (math,logical reasoning) practice- practice-practice.

[Strategy] Political Science for UPSC Mains Exam with Booklist and tips by toppers

2012-05-27T00:09:00.002+05:30

Question from a reader

I'm from chennai. I have choosen my optionals as geography and political science. But when I approached the coaching centres, they told me that they are not offering political science as it is not a good optional in terms of scoring and popularity .They are manipulating me that pub ad is better and I need to join only pub ad coaching. What should i do.

You ask them, If Political science is not scoring, then how did Abhiram and Kartik Iyer got 4th and 7th Rank respectively with this same optional subject, in UPSC 2010 Exam?! Anyways, here goes the strategy and booklist for Political Science. (Geography strategy was given in previous article, click me)

Abhiram (AIR 4/CSE 2010)
Booklist for Political Science
Paper 1
Paper 2
Karthik Iyer (AIR 7 / CSE 2010)
Related Articles on Booklist / Study plan for Mains Optional Subjects

Abhiram (AIR 4/CSE 2010)

In response to queries regarding my political science preparation, i’ve decided to put up this post. Please note that I obtained 326 in pol.sci (138+188), which clearly shows my strength (paper 2) & weakness (paper 1). For paper 1, please do not regard my method as final.

The list of books I followed:

Political theory - O P Gauba
International relations – V K Malhotra
Constitution by D.D. Basu
Indian govt & politics by Fadia
Indian political thought by V.R.Mehta
India’s struggle for independence by Bipan Chandra (not a must)
Modern Indian history by Spectrum
Political thought & theory - Printed notes from several sources provided by my teacher, Balalatha madam
Cosmos book hives vol.1 & vol.3
World focus magazine
Civil service times
Hindu & frontline
International & bilateral issues - Self-made notes from Internet, M.o.External Affairs website & the Hindu.

For paper 1

I could not prepare as well as I wanted to, because of the lack of time (started reading thinkers & thought only after UPSC Preliminary Examination). I read & re-read OP Gauba for the concepts like justice, equality, hegemony, rights, ideology etc. Even though “ideologies” part is good in gauba, I’d suggest you go for Andrew Heywood’s ideologies (take a photocopy if you find the book expensive). I’ve always found Indian political thought confusing for the most part, even in VR Mehta. For thought & thinkers, I mainly depended on Cosmos book-hives publication (vol. 1) and printed notes from various sources provided by my teacher balalatha madam. I also depended on the internet for some thinkers like gramsci & arendt. (Unfortunately, none of the major thinkers I prepared were asked in the mains!)

As far as Indian nationalism is concerned, I stuck to Bipan Chandra & spectrum’s history of modern India. IGNOU material is ok, but I never got time to read the same. Also, I combined the preparation for certain topics like radical humanism w/ MN Roy, dalit perspective with Ambedkar etc. Which I believe helped me save time.You can depend on DD Basu & Fadia for Indian constitution & politics. But fadia is bit outdated with regard to examples, so better find out recent ones for political issues if possible. For the various national commissions (nhrc/sc/st/women etc), I totally depended on their respective websites.
I went through the recent election analyses in The Hindu (by Yogendra Yadav’s team) for understanding election trends.

Paper 2

Comparative politics was & remains a puzzle to me. So I read only Cosmos book-hives (vol. 3) for the topic. But some seniors in the field recommended Ronald chilkote for this topic, whose book I could never lay my hands on. For IR theories (power, natl security, approaches to IR study etc.), Vinay Kumar Malhotra’s International relations is really good. For some topics like globalization, international economic order etc., it’s better to add contemporary issues that you may read in periodicals & newspapers to the answer you write.

Also, try to take stands on issues like ‘do we need NAM?’ (Better to stick to “yes” with reasons), UN/IMF/World bank reforms etc. During the days of preparation itself. Write these down in point form along with substantiating reasons, so that it’s easier to revise before the mains. Tapan biswal’s book is good for the international economy part, but again i’ve not read the book due to time shortage.

Use the internet to the maximum when you’re studying about international & regional organizations like UN, ASEAN, OAS, AU, EU, and SAARC etc. At the same time, understand the pros & cons of such organizations as well as intra-group relations of various countries (India’s big brother attitude to south asia, Thailand-cambodia clashes, eastern vs. Western Europe etc.) & how they affect the cohesion of the groupings. For contemporary world concerns like environment, terrorism, gender issues etc. I depended on Hindu, frontline & Civil Service Times.

For India & the world part, I depend on wikipedia, world focus, Hindu & min. Of external affairs website. I prepared my own notes for these topics. Another thing I did was to note the + & - of our relations with every major country. For this I took a paper, divided it into two columns, one for the +ves & the other for –ves. Jot down points you pick up from the newspaper daily in the columns, & you’ll get a very good idea of our bilateral ties.

Try to read the Nov-Dec annual issue of world focus cover to cover as it covers bilateral ties with almost all important nations. Also understand the background dynamics of issues so that you may be able to voice clear opinions. Eg: india’s role in a post-taliban Afghanistan & its ties with US & Pakistan in this perspective, India vs China in Africa, india’s stand vis-à-vis iran’s nuclear option etc.

PS – I don’t think international relations can be mastered in a short span of time. So better start reading current affairs magazines & the Hindu as early as possible to build up your base. There is no better source for IR than the internet, but only if you have regular access to it.

Regards & all the best,
Abhiram.

Karthik Iyer (AIR 7 / CSE 2010)

Abhiram has already given a good outline of his strategy for Political science and im afraid i have nothing more to add there,but i am still posting on how i went about preparing my optional for mains.
A Backgrounder-i finished my graduation and sat at home,preparing full time.i joined IGNOU (MA pol sci) and University of Pune (MA history) to keep me sane (studying at home drives me insane,used as i am to being a hostelite).so had plenty of time in my hand,and access to a great library,a personal collection of my own relative whos a professor of some renown in the subjects i chose as optionals.

I had chosen political science as my prelim option and began preparing with that.I had a friend who did Raus classes in delhi in 2006-7 and cleared ,and i began by buying his stack of notes he had scribbled while attending class.
Before i made much headway there my IGNOU MA books came,and took my fancy and so i gave them a detailed reading.(by this time i had finished off that guys notes once,they covered the portion,but left me feeling not satisfied)
I found them a little too advanced (despite my BA in Pol sci) and so went to the BA books of IGNOU.
Both BA and MA books done after a painful ordeal,i really could not make my mind up whether there was enough bang for buck in them.
Then (around december) i started borrowing and reading original books like-
The Prince,Politics among nations,Political theory,Das Kapital explained and a long list of original books.Western Political Thought in particular was something i spent a lot of time understanding.The story of philosophy is a good book for that.
Burke,Ebenstein,Rosseau,Bentha m,Mill,Locke,Hobbes,Easton,Alm ond,Coleman,Powell,Deustch,hey wood,rawls,amartya sen are some authors that readily come to mind.Indian Political thought i read in Sanskrit in original then English and made extensive notes (as my other optional was history,this overlaps).I scanned what parts i liked and thought important (and these scanned pages,when collated became my notes).OP Gauba was a book i frequently turned to for flow.
I paid special attention to Marxist thought and its development,dependency theorists,and newish developments thanks to Globalization.
Writing practice i carried on along with each topics initial study (which i did as they are listed in the syllabus).In writing passages,id consciously try including something from all my sources in each para,so that my answers were more rounded and had multiple points of view.
I made no distinction in study for prelimns and mains till april 2010,and later only started paying more attention to factual details.
Indian Polity i did from Laxmikant and DD Basu,and again noted the dry bones(facts expected from every aspirant like article no for emergency,important court cases in SC) down in my notes.
Once my notes were done (around 800 pages in all) i kept revising and re-revising it i had some confidence that anything asked from it,id put in a fair answer.
I was lucky everything was asked from that only,and so i could answer,though not to my expectations or satisfaction. For remaining topics like Feminism, i used net extensively and kept a view on current trends (like formation of UNW).

Paper 2

As far as paper 2 was concerned, my preparation was current affairs(newspapers and magazines) and internet based.I did not read any special book for it and this might have cost me heavy as my score is not up to scratch in this paper,as is the case in GS2 where a heavy dose of International Relations is seen.But based on the same,i could ace my interview which was based solely on IR.so i do not know the efficacy of my preparation,or maybe my writing style or handwriting itself cost me heavy.
EPW is a great magazine,frontline is indispensible,and i used to surf websites of BBC,CNN,Al-Jazeera for important events.

Writing practice was done extensively, and simultaneously with other things.

This is all i have done for Political Science-made notes and read them,and i was lucky to get the marks i did for it.

[Toppers Interview] Kshitij Tyagi (AIR 148/ CSE 2011) Working Professional cracks UPSC without leaving Job

2012-05-25T22:33:00.000+05:30

A Working Professional cracks the Civil Service Exam, without leaving job, without taking Coaching.
I congratulate Mr.Kshitij Tyagi, an IITian, poet, blogger, now IAS topper and thank him for giving this interview.

Introduction
Essay
Your Study plan
Interview
Marksheet
Message

Introduction

Name	KSHITIJ TYAGI
Roll number	216217
Rank (CSE 2011)	148
Optional Subjects	Sociology and Public Administration
Medium for Mains Exam	English
Mains Examination Centre	Delhi
Number of Attempts	2
Details of Graduation and Post-Grad.	B.Tech – Mechanical Engineering, IIT Kharagpur; M.Tech – Thermal Energy and Environmental Engineering, IIT Kharagpur (5 year dual degree)
Schooling (Medium)	Mount Carmel School, New Delhi (English Medium)
Extracurricular activities, hobbies, achievements etc.	Reading, Blogging : www.kshitij-tyagi.blogspot.in
Are you a working professional?	Yes – working as a Senior Scientific Officer in Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (Central service group A)
If yes, then did you leave your job or prepared while on the job?
Did you take Coaching?	Prelims: No Mains: No Interview: Took three mock interviews at Vajiram
Did you buy any postal courses?	No
Did you join any Mock test series?	No
Did you appear in any other competitive exams?	Yes (previously)
If yes, provide the details:	JEE-2002, rank-1381, Exam for entry into Ministry of New & Renewable Energy – 2009 – Rank-4

Questions

Inception

Q. When and how did the inspiration and idea of joining civil service come in your mind?
A. I cannot possibly identify any singular point in space and time where this idea germinated. As a child, I used to jocularly declare that I would one day be an IAS officer, but those were nothing more than puerile fascinations, dreams fed by media and society. I went completely astray after that and the thought of civil services had made a quiet exit from my mind. During my engineering days, I spent a lot of time reflecting on what it is that I would like to do in life. The answer remained painfully elusive. After I passed out from IIT, I joined an MNC. My work there was interesting but a huge vacuum remained and I didn’t feel, for the lack of a better word, ‘significant’ enough. I wanted to ‘touch lives’, I wanted to ‘matter’. It was during my stint there that some of my friends cleared these exams. This got me curious, and thankfully, interested enough to explore more about the services and the selection process.
I quit my job with the private firm and entered MNRE through a competitive exam and interview. I was interested in the field of renewable energy, and to top it, I had planned that if I had evenings to myself during weekdays, I could prepare well for CSE. Fortunately, the plan worked.
I gave my first attempt in 2010 rather frivolously since there wasn’t much time left before pre. I had taken mechanical engineering as optional but couldn’t clear pre without preparation. After that I dabbled with psychology for some time. It was in December, 2010, when I zeroed in on Public Administration and Sociology. I was regular with current affairs since January-2010. More details of my preparation strategy can be found on my blog – kshitij-tyagi.blogspot.in .

The Choice of Optional Subjects

Q7. After a person decides to appear in civil service exam, the first big obstacle is “Choice of optional subjects”. What factors did you consider before selecting your optional?

I went through the basic books of Public Administration and Sociology – just a cursory glance at each to ascertain if it was my cup of tea. A major reason behind choosing these optionals was that both of them can be done easily in lesser time, and I could manage both with my job. Also, there is no dearth of material available for these subjects in the market. Thirdly, they enable substantial value add to other portions of the syllabus such as Essay, GS and Interview.

Momentum

I had my share of interludes of inactivity as well. The key is to get back on track as early as possible. In fact, some breaks are necessary to recharge oneself for the arduous journey ahead. During my sojourn, I became an excellent time manager. The more tired I was after my day at work, the harder I would push myself to make good use of the remaining time of the day. The source of inspiration is a very individual thing. I looked within for motivation, I would write poetry to energize myself at times. I have detailed some of these aspects on my blog.

Hours

On an average, How many hours did you study per day? How many months did it take you to complete the core syllabus of GS and optional subjects?

I didn’t adhere to a strict number of hours – in fact it must have varied from 1 to 5 on weekdays and 4 to 10-12 on weekends, depending upon various factors. My focus was on completing the syllabus and revising what I had read as much as possible.

Internet

How did you use computer and internet for your exam-preparation?

I referred to Wikipedia for many subjects. The PIB releases were also a good source of information. Other than that, I would download whatever I felt was relevant and store it for revision at a later date.

Essay

How did you prepare yourself for the essay?
Which Essay did you write in Mains-2011?
What were your keypoints in that essay?
How many marks did you get in that essay?

I got 118 marks for the following essay –
TOPIC - In the Indian context, both human intelligence and technical intelligence are crucial in combating terrorism
This was my introduction
Men and women often take great pride in having been able to forge the sword of technological evolution in their quest to rule nature. Little did they realise that in the process, they would end up gashing their own hands, and hearts. The wounds run deep and the only cure is the ever so elusive admixture of peace, harmony and cooperation. One such wound is the emergence of the hydra-headed demon called terrorism.
This was my conclusion
Pablo Picasso once remarked - "Unless you destroy, you cannot create." What we need in this ominous hour are not correction slips but transformative changes in our security architecture and social, economic and political outlook. The objective is to enable harmonious interplay of human and technical intelligence to effectively curb this menace. With a youthful population and a demographic dividend in the offing, one can certainly be hopeful that vox populi would rise to the occasion and drive the shining diamond that is India, into a realm where winds of peace and prosperity blow about freely and the dark clouds of terrorism, in absence of any raisons-d'etre, are dissipated forever.
This is how i approached the topic
1. Emergence of terrorism as a hydra headed demon
2. Glimpse of forms and bases of terrorism and the role of human and tech intelligence in both controlling or exacerbating it
3. Human intelligence and various perspectives on it----international, national, community - civil society and media----with failures and lessons learnt for india
4. Technological intelligence perspectives ---lacunaes and suggestions drawn from national and international experience to be applied in india
5. Need for harmonious interplay between human and tech intelligence to curb the menace
6. Vision for future
Wrote about 1200 words

Phoenix

Q. Serious players get mentally shattered and depressed after failure in competitive exams. How did you cope up with failures?
I was never shattered since I knew I had not given it my 100% in my first attempt. In the following attempt, I was satisfied that I had given it my best shot. (Refer to the post titled “Three Hours” on my blog). I’ve always felt that getting into civil services was my target, and not my dream. I did not put it on a pedestal that is too high to achieve. These services are only one of the myriad ways in which you can set foot on a path that would lead you to your dream… Dreams are bigger, dreams are fantastic…!

What had gone wrong in your previous attempts, how did you fix it this time?

As opposed to my previous attempt, I was well prepared this time. My strategy was in place and I had left no stone unturned in covering the syllabus. I was confident of my success.

Profile

Many aspirants fear the interview, thinking that “my profile is not good because

I’ve low marks in SSC/HSC/College,
I don’t have any extra-curricular certificates,
I don’t have work experience,
I graduated from some unknown college,
I’m from non-English medium and so on…”

So, How important or relevant is the profile of a candidate during interview?
Though I wouldn’t say that a good profile is a must, but it does give an edge in the interview. So those who had low marks in their graduation and are not working can do some value add to their CV through internships, work with NGOs, Govt agencies, etc. However, this is not a rule, and many candidates have secured very good marks without having any of those accolades to show for.

How do you rate your own profile?

I would call it a 6/10

How much portion of your interview centered on your profile?

About 50% of my interview was centered on my current job!

Did they ask any uncomfortable questions from your profile?

They didn’t ask me uncomfortable questions per se, but there were some that stumped me. For example, the question on traditional medicine industry in India was completely unrelated to my profile.
If yes, how did you reply to those questions?
My interview transcript is available on my blog. (Click me)

Backup

Q. In case you had not cleared the UPSC exam, what was your career/future backup plan?
I would have continued to work in the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. I am a part of the National Solar Mission and there are exciting opportunities visible on the horizon.

Working professional

What is your advice and tips to working professionals – particularly on time Management?

When preparing for CSE, your job becomes secondary. So if they’ve wasted your entire day in meetings, no mattered how tired you are in the evening, get back to books with a vengeance, even if it is for a few hours. Always remember that you are competing with people who are dedicated to CSE 24X7, but believe that you can still outperform them. Be the most efficient machine you’ve ever been! Also, two months’ leave before mains is a must in my opinion, for it is not just knowledge that you need then…you also need the sublime mental focus of an eagle, and industriousness of an ass!

Family and Friends

Q. Whom do you attribute your success to?
A. My family - I wouldn’t have succeeded without their constant support and sacrifice.

Your Study plan

(Mrunal Edit: The gems are scattered throughout http://kshitij-tyagi.blogspot.in but here are the links to some specific topics)

Interview

My Personality Test 22/03/ 2012

Marksheet

ESSAY (PAPER-III)	118
GENRAL STUDIES (PAPER-IV)	118
GENRAL STUDIES (PAPER-V)	86
OPTIONAL-I(SOCIOLOGY) (PAPER-VI)	146
OPTIONAL-I(SOCIOLOGY) (PAPER-VII)	147
OPTIONAL-II(PUBLIC ADMIN.) (PAPER-VIII)	187
OPTIONAL-II(PUBLIC ADMIN.) (PAPER-IX)	156
WRITTEN TOTAL	958
PERSONALITY TEST	210
FINAL TOTAL	1168

Remarks: Recommend

Message

Q. What is your message to the aspirants?
It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog. - Mark Twain.

Previously under Inspirational Interviews

[Toppers Interview] Harshika Singh (AIR 8 /CSE 2011) Without Coaching, shares her journey and strategy with us

2012-05-25T15:01:00.001+05:30

Went to London School of Economics
Prepared for Civil Service Exam without Coaching
Gave Jharkhand and Bihar as her cadre preference to serve the society
Got 8^th Rank in CSE 2011
Yes I’m talking about 2011’s topper Harshika Singh.

Introduction
Your Study plan
CSAT (Paper I) General studies
CSAT (Paper II) Aptitude
Mains Examination
Compulsory Language papers
General Studies paper I
General Studies paper 2
Optional Subject #1 and #2
Economics
Anthropology
Interview
Marksheet
Message To Aspirants

Introduction

Name	Harshika Singh
Roll number	006368
Rank (CSE 2011)	8
Optional Subjects	Economics Anthropology
Medium for Mains Exam	English
Mains Examination Centre	Delhi
Number of Attempts	2
Details of Graduation and Post-Grad.	B.A Economics(hons)-St.Xavier’s College,Ranchi MSc.Economic History(London School Of Economics and Political Science,London,UK)
Schooling (Medium)	English
Extracurricular activities, hobbies, achievements etc.	Classical Dancing(bharatnatyam and Kathak), Debating, Gold medalist in graduation, School head girl, Class representative throughout my college days
Are you a working professional?	No
Did you take Coaching?	Prelims: No Mains: No Interview: No
Did you buy any postal courses?	Yes
Did you join any Mock test series?	No
Did you appear in any other competitive exams?	No
If yes, provide the details:	NA

Inception

Q. When and how did the inspiration and idea of joining civil service come in your mind?
To be a Civil Servant was a childhood dream for me and especially when I realized and understood the intricacy of the service it became a passion for me.

The Choice of Optional Subjects

Q7. After a person decides to appear in civil service exam, the first big obstacle is “Choice of optional subjects”. What factors did you consider before selecting your optional?
In my case as I have a background in Economics so that was a natural choice and for my second optional my keen interest in Anthropology was the sole reason for selecting it as my second optional

Momentum

Q. People initially prepare with much enthusiasm but then a boredom phase comes - they don’t even find the motivation to read the daily newspapers, let alone studying the books. How did you sustain the study-momentum throughout the year?

I prepared a balanced strategy at the very beginning of preparation. I roughly made a mental preparation plan and ensured on a daily basis that I am following it thoroughly.
Any person who is preparing for CSE faces the frequent bouts of enthusiasm and boredom. Even I faced it especially in the evening hours.
When I was bored or lacked enthusiasm ,I took a break..saw TV ,went on Facebook etc-did anything that diverted my mind but only for max 10 mins.
After that I reminded myself of my dreams and was back on my study table.

Hours

On an average, How many hours did you study per day? How many months did it take you to complete the core syllabus of GS and optional subjects?
I studied till the time I was able to concentrate..roughly 8-10 hrs daily and I was preparing for CSE since 2009 December for my first attempt in 2010(AIR Rank-640).
However I feel 1 year of intensive study is sufficient.

Internet

How did you use computer and internet for your exam-preparation? Since I did my preparation from home (ranchi) Internet was the only source of information and guidance for me. I used internet for keeping myself updated on the front of the news and world affairs,for updating myself on recent developments in the field of economics and anthropology and also for Science and Tech portion.

Essay

How did you prepare yourself for the essay?
Which Essay did you write in Mains-2011?
What were your keypoints in that essay?
How many marks did you get in that essay?

I did not do anything special for Essay.I used to read the editorials of newspapers seriously and in case I found some interesting quote etc I noted them down. I also made a tentative list of essay topics and practiced writing on one of it.
I attempted the essay on the topic “creation of small states and its implications”.
I tried to keep my language very simple. I also ensured that my essay is very comprehensive. I got 100 marks in essay.

Phoenix

Q. Serious players get mentally shattered and depressed after failure in competitive exams. How did you cope up with failures and rose from the ashes again? What had gone wrong in your previous attempts? How did you fix those issues in your 2011’s attempt?
Yes, I did went in depression after my first attempt’s result in 2010(though I got AIR 640 then) .Maybe I had more expectations. But thanks to my parents who helped me to regain back my senses .In my first attempt paucity of time and associated superficiality in my preparation was a major problem.In this attempt ,I tried to rectify this.

Profile

Many aspirants fear the interview, thinking that “my profile is not good because

I’ve low marks in SSC/HSC/College,
I don’t have any extra-curricular certificates,
I don’t have work experience,
I graduated from some unknown college,
I’m from non-English medium and so on…”

So, How important or relevant is the profile of a candidate during interview?
I believe CSE interview is solely “PERSONALITY TEST” and as it is CSE is a great leveler where a post doctoral is competing with a simple bachelor’s degree holder.So one’s profile doesn’t play a much important.In stead its You and your dedication that matters. As far as I am concerned ,I would accept that I had a “so called relatively better profile” but with my two years of CSE interview experience .i can say that at the end of the day ..its your personality test..that’s it.Varied medium people should never feel that they are at any disadvantage.If you are confident about what you are and can be original in the interview room …you are bound to succeed.

Backup

Q. In case you had not cleared the UPSC exam, what was your career/future backup plan?
I would definitely be disheartened. However, in case if things would have gone in different direction than I had expected, I would have moved towards a career in academics.

Family and Friends

Q. Behind one topper are many people who stood by her during those uncertain times when she was merely an ‘aspirant’. Would you like to tell the world, who were those people in your case? Any specific incidence that you would like to share with the readers?
Definitely ,in my case there were many people behind the scenes who helped me to achieve my dream. My parents who stood by me through thick and thin.Their one statement after my first result in 2010 attempt that “You can do it and you will do it,give it a second try” helped me to regain back my senses and I decided to give my 100% for that one dream.
My elder brother and sis –in-law were always there for that much needed “confidence boost” ,my friends who were there as my “vent for frustration” and most importantly some of my professors /teachers who were my true friend,philosopher and guide.
One instance , I would like to share….usually by the night , I was so drained out that I did not had the strength to read out loud (and I would admit I am in the habit of reading out loud)my GS and Anthropology materials. At that point in time , my mom would just read them for me and I used to hear them while laying down.At the end of a chapter, I used to summarize it and that was how I covered some portions!!!!In the evenings , when any aspirant is facing that bout of frustration, my dad would take me to a close-by ice-cream shop for that much needed “Ice-cream dose”…these are small instances but would like to say these instances mattered a lot !

Your Study plan

CSAT (Paper I) General studies

Topic	Source of your preparation	remark, if any
Current Affairs	Thorough and intensive reading of newspapers like TOI,The hindu,IE(only for editorials),ET,magazines like frontline ,CSR,Chronicle,Yojana and the Economist.	Always keep yourself updated with issues happening around you.I am a news maniac ..won’t ask you to become one but start loving and following news..i am sure you will start enjoying it as well.
History Ancient/Medieval/Modern	Spectrum and Vajiram Yellow book +some NCERTS
Physical Geography	All the four NCERTS of 11^th and 12th	Be very thorough with them
Geography of India	“
Geography of World
Polity and Governance	DD Basu/Laxmikant/Vajiram yellow book
Public Policy	Internet and self made notes
Rights issue	Same as above
Environment and Biodiversity	Internet, IGNOU materials
Economic and social Development	Economic Survey/PD special issue on Economy/Internet
Science	Sriram notes+internet+chronicle special issue
Economy	Economic survey/India year book

CSAT (Paper II) Aptitude

Syllabus Topic	Source of your preparation	Remarks, if Any
Quantitative Aptitude	R.S agarwal+Manuals like that of Unique,arihant,intenet sources and even some basic practice papers for CAT
Data interpretation	Same as above
Logical reasoning
Reading comprehension
Decision Making and Problem solving	I tried to practice some questions which were available on net	During exams just read these questions very nicely and calmly .

Mains Examination

Compulsory Language papers

	Source of your preparation
English	Went through the previous years question papers
Indian language paper	Went through previous years question papers and practiced writing essay in Hindi almost like a month before the exam

General Studies paper I

Syllabus Topic	Source of your preparation
History	Spectrum/Vajiram yellow book
Culture	Spectrum+internet
Geography of India	Four NCERTS of 11^th and 12^th Std.
Polity	DD basu/Laxmikant/Vajiram yellow book
Issues of social relevance	Internet +magazines like chronicle
Indian economy and planning	Economic Survey
Public health
Law and order
Good governance
Environment

General Studies paper 2

Syllabus Topic	Source of your preparation
India and the World	Prepared self notes while reading newspapers
Indian diaspora	internet
India’s Economic interaction with world	Extensive reading of Business newspapers
International affairs and institutions	Newspapers
Statistics	Practiced from Spectrum esp the graphs etc(but since I have economics background,did not need much preparation for this)
Science & Tech.	Sriram study materials+internet

Optional Subject #1 and #2

For both my optional I emphasized on making my concepts very clear and re-read the textbooks. I read all of these books, different books cater to different portions of the syllabus so i have just enumerated them

Economics

For Paper 1

Microeconomics	Ahuja and Koutsyansis
Macroeconomics	Ahuja Mankiw
International Economics	Salvatore basically and for some random parts M.C Vaish
Public finance	Lekhi Dalton H.L Bhatia
Money and banking-	S.B Gupta Ahuja RBI website

For growth and development i followed Mishra and Puri/there is another book by lekhi on it(it covers the syllabus so its bit handy)/ debraj Ray-development economics an extensive use of internet for some new developments in same

Paper2

Indian Economy part from	Dutt & Sundaram Mishra & Puri Uma kapila
Economic survey	http://indiabudget.nic.in/index.asp
Economy and Political Weekly	http://epw.in/epw/user/userindex.jsp
any one business newspaper like ET/FE etc	http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/ http://www.financialexpress.com/

Anthropology

The comprehensive list of Anthropology books i followed was

Topic	Books
Physical Anthropology	B M das/P Nath
Social Anthropology	Ember n Ember Makhan Jha N.K Vaid D.N Mazumdar & T.N Madan
Indian Anthropology	Nadeem Hasnain V.S Sahay &Pradeep K Singh
Anthropological Thought	Upadhyay/ Gaya Pandey

Extensive use of internet for keeping myself updated about any new anthropological development.

Interview

How did you prepare for the interview? What questions were asked?
For my interview ,I brushed up every small aspect of my background,my home state,my optional etc(all the information furnished by me in DAF).
I was in Vijay Singh Sir’s Board.Interview board was very cordial and cooperative. Questions were mixture of World economics+my hobbies+world affairs+some decision making questions and some questions on my home state ,Jharkhand

Marksheet

ROLL NO:006368
NAME:HARSHIKA SINGH
CIVIL SERVICES (MAIN) EXAMINATION, 2011

SUBJECTS	MARKS
ESSAY (PAPER-III)	100
GENRAL STUDIES (PAPER-IV)	144
GENRAL STUDIES (PAPER-V)	132
OPTIONAL-I(ECONOMICS) (PAPER-VI)	133
OPTIONAL-I(ECONOMICS) (PAPER-VII)	213
OPTIONAL-II(ANTHROPOLOGY) (PAPER-VIII)	196
OPTIONAL-II(ANTHROPOLOGY) (PAPER-IX)	175
WRITTEN TOTAL	1093
PERSONALITY TEST	204
FINAL TOTAL	1297

Remarks: Recommended.

Message

Q. What is your message to the aspirants?
Dream a dream and make a determined effort for that….you will surely succeed. Never get disheartened. CSE preparation is a beautiful and life changing experience. Live it and you will enjoy and relish it forever. All the very best for all your endeavors.

Finally the most important question!

Magazines related to competitive exams, have established the most sacred unwritten rule of conducting Topper’s interview: the last question has to be a loaded question :
“how did our XYZ magazine help you in preparation?”
In the era of blatant marketing propaganda, I also have two similar but unloaded questions.

Did you use indianofficer.com for your preparation? If yes, How did it help you?

Did you use mrunal.org for your preparation? If yes, how did it help you?

And You can reply “No”, yet it’ll be published without distortion.

Ans. I was an IO member and the forum helped me a lot from compiling the book list for my optional to serving as a platform visiting which helped me to stay connected to the world of CSE aspirants from across the country.Thank you IO for that.
I never visited mrunal.org though.

End of interview.

If you wish to congratulate, compliment, or ask any follow up questions to Harshika Singh, visit the discussion thread on indianofficer.com (Click Me)

Previously under Inspirational Interviews

[Toppers Interview] Chakresh Mishra (AIR 412/CSE 2011) shares his journey and Study plan for Sociology Public Administration and General Studies Mains

2012-05-25T12:29:00.002+05:30

Charkesh Mishra, an IITian, writes on political issues, goes by the username “chakreshm” on Indianofficer.com forum and has cracked civil service exam 2011.
He agreed for an interview and has provided strategy for GS (Both prelims + Mains), Sociology and Public Administration.
Note: Even if you’re not a UPSC aspirant, but preparing for any other competitive exam, I still suggest you scroll down below and read his Message to the Aspirants for any competitive exam

Introduction
Your Study plan
CSAT (Paper I) General studies
CSAT (Paper II) Aptitude
Mains Examination
Compulsory Language papers
General Studies paper I
General Studies paper 2
Optional Subject #1 and #2
Public Administration (Mains)
Sociology (Mains)
Interview
Marksheet
Message to the Aspirants for any competitive exam

Introduction

Name	Chakresh Mishra
Roll number	214213
Rank (CSE 2011)	412
Optional Subjects	Sociology Public Administration
Medium for Mains Exam	English
Mains Examination Centre	Delhi
Number of Attempts	2
Details of Graduation and Post-Grad.	B.Tech. (Mechanical Engg. IIT Kanpur); M.Tech. (Instrumentation Engg. IIT Delhi)
Schooling (Medium)	Hindi
Extracurricular activities, hobbies, achievements etc.	Blogging; Debating; Various posts in college student body (Senator, Coordinator literary club, Election officer)
Are you a working professional?	No
Did you take Coaching?	Prelims: GS (Vajiram) Mains: Pub-Ad (Mohanty Sir), Sociology (Upendra Sir) Interview: Samkalp, Delhi
Did you buy any postal courses?	Crack IAS for Pub-Ad and Sociology
Did you join any Mock test series?	No
Did you appear in any other competitive exams?	Yes
If yes, provide the details:	UPSC-2010 qualified in reserve list; UPPSC-2010 couldn’t qualify prelims

Questions

Inception

Q. When and how did the inspiration and idea of joining civil service come in your mind?

Ans: Being from UP, the idea of preparing for the toughest exam in nation was always somewhere in my mind. During my 3^rd year in B.Tech. I got the chance to work with an international engineering firm. The narrowness of canvas and supposed indifference of people in corporate sector towards general public got me thinking.
It was the time when I seriously started to consider civil services as a career. I talked to some of my seniors and made up my mind for this exam. I did not appear for campus placement at IIT as I had decided to make IAS my aim. But there was a twist in the tail. As I was only 19.5 years at the time of completion of my B.Tech., I wasn’t eligible for civil services exam. So I took admission in M.Tech. IITD and started my preparation.

The Choice of Optional Subjects

Q. After a person decides to appear in civil service exam, the first big obstacle is “Choice of optional subjects”. What factors did you consider before selecting your optional?
Ans. As I considered myself pretty good in physics, I started preparing with physics and geography at first. But then my seniors suggested that I should not take physics as it was not doing very well at that time (2009-10). So I shortlisted few other optionals and read a few basic books in each of them. I found geography a bit boring (personal opinion), So finally I decided in favor of pub-ad and sociology. The main criteria were interest in subject, availability of good coaching in Delhi.

Momentum

Q. People initially prepare with much enthusiasm but then a boredom phase comes - they don’t even find the motivation to read the daily newspapers, let alone studying the books. How did you sustain the study-momentum throughout the year,

Ans: Finding constant motivation is a bit difficult. So I followed Gandhian strategy of taking small breaks between high intensity phases. I took a little break after prelims (2 weeks), a big break after mains (2 months) and visited my family/relatives/friends, did something that I enjoyed (blogging, learning driving, travelling, writing and reading short stories etc). After such breaks, when I returned to my desk, there was a sense of urgency and motivation of deadline coming up.

Hours

On an average, How many hours did you study per day? How many months did it take you to complete the core syllabus of GS and optional subjects?

Ans: I am not a very regular and sincere student as some of my friends are. I generally study 3-4 hours per day. But there used to be few high output days & few weeks before exams, when the clock worked 6-7 hours with me. I must admit that I am a very fast reader.
I would not suggest anyone to be so erratic in his/her studies, because it affects our performance negatively. I am appearing for civil services exam this year also and I am planning to devote at-least 6-7 hours regularly. More than that I could not and would not read as quality of study goes down drastically after 6-7 hours per day. Quality is more important than quantity. Lets see how this plan works. I completed GS in 200 hours and each optional in around 150 hours time.

Internet

How did you use computer and internet for your exam-preparation?

Ans: Computer has been a constant source of entertainment and socialization for me. As this long phase of life can make you feel very disconnected. So interacting with friends/fellow aspirants and finding semblance is very important.
I also used Internet to supplement my notes, whenever I felt that I do not have sufficient material on any particular topic. In GS, few areas such as international affairs, science and technology developments etc are better prepared from internet. Then there are grand daddies of knowledge, Wikipedia & Google, which can answer your every question.
I discontinued reading newspaper during my second attempt and relied heavily on internet for news. I subscribed to feed of all the major newspaper articles, PIB and few good blogs. This provided me a wider range of opinion than following a single newspaper.

Essay

How did you prepare yourself for the essay?
Which Essay did you write in Mains-2011?
What were your keypoints in that essay?
How many marks did you get in that essay?

Ans: I was very casual in my preparation of essay in my 1^st attempt. I was convinced that having pub-ad and socio will automatically cover my essay preparation. In exam I misinterpreted the essay topic and wrote a very artistic essay. This proved disastrous as I got only 73 marks. I missed final selection by only 12 marks in my 1^st attempt (2010) due to low marks in essay.
So, I gave more attention to essay this time. I shortlisted 20-22 topics of current importance and collected material/quotes/anecdotes on them from net and books. Then I practiced writing few essay and got it checked by one of my teacher. Also, I decided to choose the most common topic and targeted average marks in essay. The strategy paid off and I got 110 in my 2^nd attempt (2011). I wrote on the smaller state topic in 2011 exam.
There are two ways of attempting essay paper. First with a lot of flamboyance, but that is a high risk/ high gain business. Second is keeping it absolutely mediocre and removing element of risk from essay marks. Choice is yours.

Phoenix

Q. Serious players get mentally shattered and depressed after failure in competitive exams. How did you cope up with failures and rose from the ashes again?
What had gone wrong in your previous attempts?
How did you fix those issues in your 2011’s attempt?

Ans: I was not very well prepared in my first attempt (2010), so the failure to make the final cut was disappointing but not depressing. It was a wake up call. After seeing my marks, I was convinced that I am just on the threshold and need a little more push. (cut-off 1134, my marks: 1121)
So, this time around, I completed whole syllabus and did not leave anything to chances. I focused on mains preparation and tried to complete optionals before pre result was announced. I revised my notes few times, this factor was missing in first attempt. I also gave more attention to essay and optionals.

Profile

Many aspirants fear the interview, thinking that “my profile is not good because

I’ve low marks in SSC/HSC/College,
I don’t have any extra-curricular certificates,
I don’t have work experience,
I graduated from some unknown college,
I’m from non-English medium and so on…”

So, How important or relevant is the profile of a candidate during interview?

Ans: I don’t think that profile matters that much. The performance at the time of interview counts more than anything else. I would go further and say that candidates with a moderate profile benefit more in interview. Interviewers expect a basic level of smartness from candidates of strong profile (good college/good job). And if a candidate with good profile fail to live up to the expectation of interviewers, he gets low marks. Opposite is true for candidates with moderate profile. One can positively surprise the interview panel with his/her personality.

How do you rate your own profile?

Ans: I think I have decent profile. Positive: good college, young age;
Negative: no job experience

How much portion of your interview centered on your profile?

Ans: Almost all the questions originated from the information I provided in my profile, then they ventured into related topics.

Did they ask any uncomfortable questions from your profile?

Ans: No, I was waiting for some tough questions so that I could use that opportunity to raise the level of my interview. But I was not asked anything like that.

Backup

Q. In case you had not cleared the UPSC exam, what was your career/future backup plan?

Ans: I would have looked for a job in engineering and research sector.

Family and Friends

Q. Behind one topper are many people who stood by him during those uncertain times when he was merely an ‘aspirant’. Who were those people in your case?

Ans: I relied on my parents for financial & emotional support and they didn’t let me down any time. Some of my seniors helped me during optional selection and preparing strategy.

Your Study plan

CSAT (Paper I) General studies

Topic	Source of your preparation	remark, if any
Current Affairs	Wizard current affairs special	Few chapters from vajiram material
History Ancient/Medieval/Modern	12^th NCERT	I skipped ancient/medieval history.
Physical Geography	11^th NCERT	Few concept clarification from net
Geography of India	12^th NCERT, Oxford atlas
Geography of World	Oxford atlas
Polity and Governance	Indian polity- Laxmikanth	When in doubt, referred to D D Basu
Public Policy	Wizard current affairs special
Rights issue	Vajiram material
Environment and Biodiversity	Wizard current affairs special	International treaties from wikipedia
Economic and social Development	11^th NCERT, Economic survey summary, Sriram’s economics
Science	TMH guide	Skipped most of it
Economy	11^th NCERT, Economic survey summary, Sriram’s economics

About the CSAT aptitude

I had good command over English and Mathematics, So didn’t need any special preparation.

Mains Examination

Compulsory Language papers

	Source of your preparation
English	Revised few grammar rules from wren-martin
Indian language paper	Started reading hindi newspaper for 15 minutes daily from one week before exam

General Studies paper I

Syllabus Topic	Source of your preparation
History	12^th NCERT
Culture	Wizard special issue
Geography of India	12^th NCERT
Polity	Indian polity- Laxmikanth
Issues of social relevance	Wizard special issue
Indian economy and planning	11^th NCERT, Economic survey summary, Sriram’s economics
Public health	Wizard current affairs special
Law and order	Wizard current affairs special
Good governance	Wizard current affairs special
Environment	Wizard current affairs special

General Studies paper 2

Syllabus Topic	Source of your preparation
India and the World	MoEA website
Indian diaspora	MoEA website
India’s Economic interaction with world	11^th NCERT, Economic survey summary, Sriram’s economics
International affairs and institutions	Wizard current affairs special & wikipedia
Statistics	Practiced last few years question papers
Science & Tech.	Hindu Thursday & wikipedia

Optional Subject #1 and #2

Ans: For optionals my approach was of “less number of sources and more number of revisions”. I made coaching notes as my base and added information on that from few books and current affairs updates.

Public Administration (Mains)

1. Prasad & Prasad - must be read 3-4 times to get a solid hold on thinkers.
2. Mohit Bhattacharya - must be read after you have completed whole syllabus once. It does not provide much new information but gives you excellent perspective and overview of subject.
3. Nicholus Henry – for budget and history of pub-ad
4. Fadia & Fadia – for rest of the topics
5. Indian Polity by M.Laxmikanth
6. ARC reports - I did not read it. That’s why I had lower marks in 2^nd paper but many of my selected friends suggest it. [Mrunal edit: Click on the link to download those reports, available in PDF format, in both English + Hindi]

Sociology (Mains)

1. Sociological Theory by Ritzer :must be read 3-4 times to get a solid hold on thinkers.
2. IGNOU BA: for first 3 chapters in paper one.
3. Collins Sociology Theme & Perspective by Harlambos & Holborne – for rest of the topics in paper one.
4. IGNOU BA & MA: for most topics in paper two.
5. Modernization of indian tradition by Yogendra Singh – one cursory read is enough.
6. Handbook of sociology by Veena Das – few selected topics.

Interview

How did you prepare for the interview?

Ans: I revised current affairs and prepared extensively on my profile. I appeared for few mock interview tests also.
My first interview (165 marks, Shashi Uben Tripathi Board)
http://chakresh.com/iasexamtips/my-ias-interview-as-it-happened-on-24th-march-2011/
My second interview (171 marks, PK Mishra Board)
http://chakresh.com/iasexamtips/my-ias-interview-as-it-happened-on-22th-march-2012/

Marksheet

Subject	2010	2011
Essay	73	110
GS-1	116	90
GS-2	103	108
Pub-Ad-1	185	179
Pub-Ad-2	140	144
Socio-1	167	147
Socio-2	172	165
Total Written	956	943
Mains cut-off	905 (+51)	846 (+97)
Interview	165	171
Total Final	1121	1114
Final cut-off	1134 (-13)	1089 (+25)

Message to the Aspirants for any competitive exam

Q. What is your message to the aspirants?

Ans: It's funny, but after Duryodhana is killed, Krishna turns to the Pandavas and says, "We've been lucky to win." This is God speaking. And so I realized that no matter how sincere or motivated the effort, the result was eventually a matter of luck. Somebody has to check the copies, somebody else has to judge my personality, and I can do nothing more than read the books and write the answers and try to appear confident during the interview.
This spirit of detachment is what we should aim for. We should not develop an emotional attachment to the final result and must focus on particular stage of exam. Even though he's God and already knows the outcome of the war in a sense, he plans meticulously, tries his best to avert an inevitable war and does not even back down from adopting less than fair means. But he also simultaneously tells us that we may or may not achieve what we try to and must be prepared for both outcomes.
Taken together, what he's trying to say is, if you're motivated enough you will very likely succeed. But the future is still uncertain, and here's what you can do about it: nothing at all. (Courtesy: My friend Mr. Avichal Chaturvedi, AIR37, 2011 )

Finally the most important question!

Magazines related to competitive exams, have established the most sacred unwritten rule of conducting Topper’s interview: the last question has to be a loaded question :
“how did our XYZ magazine help you in preparation?”
In the era of blatant marketing propaganda, I too have two similar but unloaded questions.

Did you use indianofficer.com for your preparation? If yes, How did it help you?
Did you use mrunal.org for your preparation? If yes, how did it help you?

And You can reply “No”, yet it’ll be published without any distortion.

Ans. I have been a very regular visitor to indian-officers forum and have benefitted a lot from the interaction with fellow students. I have found many tips about exam on IO. It was also a source of genuine information and have a character of its own, compare to other online forums.
Mrunal’s blog is a good source for question paper analysis, potential sources/booklists, useful compilations of news items etc. I generally redirect people, who ask me about preparation to Mrunal’s blog ;-)

End of interview.

If you wish to congratulate, compliment, say hello or ask any follow up questions to Chakresh, visit this discussion thread on indianofficer.com (Click Me)

[International] UNHRC : India’s Universal Periodic Review + Mock Qs for GS Mains Paper1

2012-05-25T02:09:00.002+05:30

What is Universal Periodic Review (UPR)?
National Report on UPR
Questions asked to India

What is Universal Periodic Review (UPR)?

A process of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC)
To review of the human rights records of all 193* UN Member States
Conducted once every four years.
The review is done by 43 member nations of UPR working group.
They ask questions to the given nation, and Government has to reply.

*In the outdated webpages, you’ll see number “192” but South Sudan became 193^rd UN member in 2011.

Why UPR in News?

Because it is time for Second Universal Periodic review of India!
Attorney General Goolam E. Vahanvati presented India's National Report in Geneva in May 2012

National Report on UPR

Part of the process, India had to submit a national report regarding Human rights situation. You can read the whole draft on following link
www.mea.gov.in/mystart.php?id=5212
^ You’ll find plenty of fodder material in it, for Essay and Interview. You should save and read that webpage entirely and note down any important points.

Questions asked to India

Under the Review process, those members of working group, ask questions to India. Go through the following list and you’ll find plenty of mock questions for GS (Mains) paper I (Yearbook stuff/Polity/Current National Issues and Topics of Social Relevance). I have highlighted the key phrases in bold underline., I suggest you maintain minimum 100 words crisp note on each of those phrases.
These topics are also important under "Rights issue" for CSAT preliminary Paper I (GS).

ADVANCE QUESTIONS TO INDIA

IRELAND

What measures have been taken to ensure full enjoyment of the freedoms of expression, assembly and association, with particular regard to the right to protest?
What measures have been taken to promote the role of human rights defenders, through education and inclusion in decision-making, in particular amongst national authorities, law enforcement officials and security officers?
What measures have been put in place to support the work of human rights defenders?
Is the Government of India willing to consider changing the provisions of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Bill 2006 in light of widely held concerns that the Bill as it stands, if adopted, would restrict the independence and operation of non-governmental organisations?
Has the Government of India any plans to amend or repeal the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) provisions which give rise to concern about the potential for impunity, particularly in areas of conflict such as Jammu and Kashmir and the North East of India?

GERMANY

What is India doing in law and in practice to ensure equal treatment of Dalits and other scheduled casts, in particular regarding the access to land, education and medical services as well as the allocation of derogative and harmful work and in how far are the Concluding Observations of the CERD-Committee taken into account in this respect ?

PORTUGAL

We welcome the Government of India’s efforts to combat the scourge of child labour, namely through the adoption of the Child Labour Law, that came into force in October 2006. Could India share the preliminary results of the implementation of this law?

ITALY

As India announced its intention to take steps towards the ratification of the convention against torture, could you provide more information about this process?
Does India intend to issue a standing invitation to special procedures in order to enhance its longstanding cooperation with the human rights machinery of the United Nations?
According to human rights monitoring mechanism – particularly the Committee against racial discrimination – traditional practices and customs are still leading to discrimination against women, unprivileged classes and minorities. Could you elaborate on this issue, in particular on what are the main challenges and on what measures can be envisaged to eradicate this phenomenon?

SWEDEN

[Aptitude] TSD: Average speed question from CSAT-2012

2012-05-25T01:11:00.001+05:30

This question was asked in CSAT-2012.

Mr Kumar drives to work at an average speed of 48 km per hour. The time taken to cover the first 60% of the distance is 10 minutes more than the time taken to cover the remaining distance. How far is his office?
(a) 30 km (b) 40 km (c) 45 km (d) 48 km

Speed is in kmph but time is in minutes.
Better convert time into hours.
10 minutes = 10/60 = 1/6 hour.

Prepare STD table

	Phase 1	Phase 2
Speed	S1	S2
Time	T+1/6	T
Distance	60%D	40%D

Recall my Average speed article:

While solving Time n Work problems, you can only do addition or subtraction in Speed and distance cells only.
But for solving average speed you can do only do addition or subtraction in Time and Distance cells only.

We can do addition subtraction in the Time and Distance cells only.
So subtract Phase 2 from Phase 1.
In the speed cell of this new column we cannot do subtraction of speeds but we’ve to use the given average speed (48 kmph)

	Phase 1	Phase 2	Phase 1 minus Phase 2
Speed	S1	S2	48
Time	T+1/6	T	T+1/6-T= 1/6
Distance	60%D	40%D	60-40=20%D

Run STD on last column
Speed x time = distance
48 x 1/6 =20%D
8 =D x 1/5 (because 20%=1/5)
D=8 x5
D=40

Final answer: His office is 40 kms away.

Want to read my other articles on Aptitude? Just Click ME

[Aptitude] Milk and Water Alligiation from CSAT 2012

2012-05-23T23:38:00.000+05:30

This question was asked in CSAT 2012 paper II (aptitude)

Q. Two glasses of equal volume are respectively half and three-fourths filled with milk. They are then filled to the brim by adding water. Their contents are then poured into another vessel. What will be the ratio of milk to water in this vessel?

(a) 1 : 3
(b) 2 : 3
(c) 3 : 2
(d) 5 : 3

Explanation

Imagine there is a glass half filled with milk. (say total capacity is 100 ml and right now it has 50 ml of milk)
Now you fill it to brim by adding water. (that will be 100-50=50 ml.)
Total mixture is 100 ml and it contain 50 ml milk.
So concentration of milk = 50 / 100 = 50%
Second glass same capacity but
3/4 th filled with milk.
Fill up remaining ¼ part of glass using water.
Therefore now you’ve 100 ml of mixture, containing ¾=75% milk.
Rest part is walk in the park using the Alligation (Wine+water) mixture method, that I had explained in my First article on Alligation (click Me).

Rephrased question :

There are two glasses of milk,
Each has same volume (say 100 ml)
They contain 50% and 75% concentration of milk respectively
Add them together in a new bowl, what’s the new concentration of this new mixture?

Create the Alligation table.

Concentration	50%	M%	75%

Volume	100ml	(100+100)=200ml	100ml

Recall the visual method:

75-M = 100…eq1
M-50=100…eq2
Divide eq1 and eq2
(75-M)/(M-50)=100/100
The 100/100 will cancel each other , therefore
(75-M)/(M-50)=1
(75-M)=(M-50)
2M=125
M=125/2=62.5
It means this new mixture contains 62.5% of milk
Therefore is contains 100-62.5=37.5% water.
So the ratio of Milk: Water in this new container = 62.5/37.5=5:3
Final answer: ratio of milk to water in this vessel is 5:3

Sidenotes

Shortcut #1

[Aptitude Q] Difference Between Simple and Compound Interest Rate over Two years

2012-05-23T22:39:00.002+05:30

Question by a Reader

The difference between simple and compound interests and compounded annually on a certain sum of money for 2 years at 4% per annum is Re. 1. The sum (in Rs.) is how much?

Case 1:Simple interest earned for two years @4%

=principal x 4 x 2 / 100
=principal x 2/25
=2P/25 (denoting Priciple as “P”)

Case 2:Compound interest rate for two years @4%

=principal x (104/100)² minus principal.
=Px (104/100)²-P

^ how did we get this? Refer the old article Compound Interest Rate, Population Growth/Decline made without easy Formulas

Now, It is given in the question that difference between case 1 and 2 is Rs.1
Important : Keep in mind that Compound interest rate for 2 years will be higher than simple interest rate for two years. (If the principal and rates are same)
Therefore we have to deduct case #2 from case #1

Case #2 minus Case #1 =Rs.1
[P x (104/100)²-P] –(2P/25)=1

Solve this equation and you get P=625.*

Final answer: The principal was Rs.625

*Solution steps explained by Microsoft Mathematics software (because it's too tiresome to type these steps!)
Read more »

[Strategy] Geography Mains Booklist, Study plan, Answer-writing Tips and Maps Preparation for UPSC

2012-05-23T22:08:00.003+05:30

Mrunal: This article is a compilation of tips given by Mr.Abhiram AIR 4/CSE 2010.

Preface

I received some emails & requests from fellow IO members asking me about the strategy I followed for geography. This short article is in response to those requests. I hope this will be of at least some value to future aspirants.

Before that I’ll introduce myself – I’m Abhiram - cleared CSE 2010 in my first attempt. My rank is mainly due to my marks in geography (385 marks – 196+189 in papers 1 & 2).

Overview of Geography (Mains) Preparation

1. I think it is better to read the minimum possible number of books, but it should be revised regularly. For eg: I followed only savindra singh for physical geography, and did not buy separate books for geomorphology, climatology or oceanography. (i’ve attached the list of books I followed at the end).

2. I did not prepare notes from standard text books, as I felt it was redundant. Instead I wrote tips & headings on the margins of the book for easier reference. I concentrated on my class notes for proper structuring of answers.

3. Use diagrams, maps, flowcharts & other innovative illustrations in your answers. Diagrams simplify the detail & improve the presentation also. I followed the thumb-rule of one diagram for a paragraph (i.e. Approx. 1 or 2 figures per page.) Even in questions where the need of a diagram may not be apparent, try to draw at least one. Eg: for the question on occidental culture realm, I just drew a rough map & marked the corresponding area, which might have caught the examiner’s eye. Eg: for a question on world trade pattern, I drew a world map with arrows pointing out the nature & flow of commodities between developed & developing nations. This, I believe, leads to a better expression of an idea which is either difficult or lengthy to express in words.

4. As far as mapping is concerned, try to identify places that appeared in the news for some reason (eg: jaitapur, sanand, krishnapatanam etc.). Frankly speaking, luck was a major factor that helped me in india map & I notched up 11 correct locations out of 15 given in the question. My interest in wildlife/travel & my location in south india helped me identify 6 locations.

5. I followed the deadline of (number of marks/2) minutes for answer completion & did not take into account the number of words. Eg: I put aside 10 minutes for a 20 marker. Even this strategy failed me in Geo paper 1 as I was not able attempt around 15-20 marks.

6. For answering less specific questions (eg: problems & prospects of agro-based industries in bihar), use intelligent correlation to write comparatively good answers. For eg: problems of agro industries are related to geomorphology, climate, transportation, quality of manpower etc. You can opt for either a bright or dull prospect, but substantiate the stand. If you are positive, then suggest the advantages of bihar with respect to agri production, large pool of manpower, flat land suitable for road/rail etc. Along with the conditionality like bridges, better education & skill development of workforce etc.

7. Practice drawing of diagrams to increase speed & save time.

8. Mock tests conducted by Shankar sir, followed by individual correction sessions greatly refined the quality of my answers.

9. For ‘’contemporary issues’’ topic in the syllabus, I mainly relied on my preparation for GS.

PS – I am heavily indebted to Shankar sir for motivating & training me to think innovatively & answer creatively during the exam. The credit for almost all the tips that i’ve mentioned goes to him
List of major sources i followed. The list is definitely not exhaustive, but i have tried to be just to your need.

Booklist for Geography Mains

Booklist for Geography

Physical Geography by Savindra Singh
Certificate Physical and Human Geography by Goh Che Leong
Ncert 11th & 12th geography textbooks (can be downloaded free online from official NCERT website.)
Human Geography by Majid Hussain
Evolution Of Geographical Thought by Majid Hussain
Indian Geography by Khullar
Geographic theories by K.Siddartha or Majid husain
The Orient blackswan Atlas
Oxford atlas
Spectrum’s geography guide for illustrations & miscellaneous topics
Made Simple series of Rupa publication (2 books)
Shankar sir's class notes

Paper 1

Geomorphology/climatolgy & oceanography - Physical geography by savindra singh
Biogeography & ecology part of environmental geography - Rupa series
Contemporary areas of bio/environmental geography - no specific preparation. Just what i read in magazines & newspapers
Human geo theories - Human Geography By Majid Husain
World agriculture in economic geo - Models, theories & processes by Siddartha &
Certificate Physical and Human geography by goh cheng leong
Population geo - Human Geography By Majid Husain
Settlement geo - Spectrum’s geography guide (Ed. I think author is “Rajiv Ahir”)
Regional planning - mainly handouts given by shankar sir (photocopy from some textbook)
Models, theories & laws - Geographic theories by Siddartha & parts from Majid husain

Paper 2 (Indian Geography)

Regional development & planning - mainly handouts given by shankar sir (photocopy from some textbook)
Settlements - NCERT & Spectrum’s geography guide
Political geo - no specific material, just class discussions with shankar sir
Contemporary issues - no specific preparation. Just what i read in magazines & newspapers
For the rest about india, ncerts & Indian Geography by Khullar is more than sufficient

Books for Hindi Medium

I do not know about Hindi medium books in geo, because i wrote the exam in English. But savindra singh's 'physical geography' is available in Hindi. You can definitely buy that. Ncert 11th & 12th geo will also be available in Hindi. As for other books, i've no idea.
(Ed. Majid Hussain’s books under Tata MAcgrawhill Publication are usually available in Hindi as well.)

Coaching

Missing topics can be read from spectrum's geography.
It is not absolutely necessary to take coaching, but in a highly popular subject like geo, it always helps to be a few steps ahead of the crowd which is possible if you get good guidance.
Pls do not leave out any topic as a whole. Have a basic idea of everything in the syllabus. But you can be selective while studying in-depth.

Review on specific books

Indian Geography By Khullar