UPSC-IAS

UPSC IAS

In India, The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is India’s central agency authorized to conduct the Civil Service Examination (CSE), Indian forest service examination (IFS), Indian Economic Service(IES) exam, Indian Statistical Service(ISS) exam, Engineering Services Exam, Combined Medical Services Exam, Combined Defense Services Exam, National Defense Academy(NDA) Exams, Naval Academy Exam, Special Class Railway Apprentice(SCRA), Combined Geoscientist and Geologist Exam, and Central Armed Police Forces (Assistant Commandant) exam.

Union Public Service Commission will be conducting the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination-2020 on 04.10.2020 (Sunday) all over India. The Commission has uploaded the e-Admit Card for the convenience of the admitted candidates on its official website. Candidates can download their admit card for the Preliminary examination of 2020 from the official website. Click here to Download Admit Card for UPSC Civil Service Prelims Exam:

UPSC IAS Exam Date:

IAS Prelims 2020 Exam Date	4 October 2020
IAS Mains 2020 Exam Date	8 January 2021
Admit Card Available for Prelims Exam:	1 September 2020

Eligibility Criteria for UPSC IAS Exam:

Nationality:

For the IAS, IFS & IPS, a candidate must be a citizen of India.
For the IRS and other services, a candidate must be one of the following:
A citizen of India
A subject of Bhutan
A subject of Nepal
A refugee of Tibet who came in India before 1st Jan 1962 to permanently settle in India.
A person of Indian origin who has migrated from Pakistan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia, or Vietnam with the intention of permanently settling in India.

Educational Qualification:

All candidates must have as a minimum one of the following educational qualifications to appear in UPSC Exam.

There is no minimum Pass percentage but must be a graduate.
A degree from a Central, State, or Deemed university
A degree received through correspondence or distance education is valid
A degree from an open University is also valid
A qualification recognized by Govt. of India as being equivalent to one of the above
Candidates who are in the last Semester or in the Last year of any degree.

Age Limit (age as on August 1, 2020)

Minimum Age: 21 Years

Maximum Age: 32 Years

There is also age relaxation of some years for reserved category candidates:

Category	Age Relaxation
SC/ ST	5 Years
OBC	3 Years
Defense Services Personnel, disabled in operations during hostilities with any foreign country or in a disturbed area and released as a consequence thereof	3 Years
Ex-servicemen including commissioned officers and ECOs/SSCOs who have rendered at least five years of military service as on August 1, 2020, and have been released	5 Years
PwD [(a) blindness and low vision; (b) deaf and hard of hearing; (c) locomotor disability including cerebral palsy, leprosy cured, dwarfism, acid attack victims and muscular dystrophy; (d) autism, intellectual disability, specific learning disability, and mental illness; and (e) multiple disabilities from amongst persons under clauses (a) to (d) including deaf-blindness]	10 Years

Number of Attempts

The number of times an applicant can appear for the IAS exam is pre-defined by UPSC. Even if you appear only for the preliminary examination, it will be counted as an attempt. Check out the table below:

Category	Number of Attempts
General	6
OBC	9
SC/ST	till the age limit
Candidates with Jammu & Kashmir Domicile	Up to the age limit
Persons with Disability	9 (for General and OBC)
Persons with Disability	Unlimited (for SC/ST)
Servicemen disabled during duty	Up to the age limit

Selection Process for UPSC IAS:

The selection process of UPSC IAS consists of 3 stages. The three stages are -

Preliminary Examination (Objective Type)
Main Examination (Written examination)
Personality Test(Interview)

Exam Pattern for UPSC IAS Exam:

Stage I: IAS Exam – UPSC Prelims

The questions in the IAS Exam (Prelims) are of the objective type or Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
The negative marking for incorrect answers will be 1/3rd (0.66) of the allotted marks of that question.
The GS Paper II (CSAT) in the IAS exam is of qualifying nature and candidates should score a minimum of 33 percent in this paper to qualify for the next stage of the IAS exam i.e. the Mains.
Blind candidates are given an extra time of 20 minutes for each paper in the IAS Exam (Prelims).
It is mandatory for the candidates to appear in both the papers of civil services prelims exam for the evaluation.
The marks scored by the candidates in the preliminary examination are not counted for the final score. It is only a screening test where candidates not securing the cut-off marks are eliminated.

Sl. No.	Name of the Paper	Duration of the Exam	Questions	Marks
1	Paper – I: General Studies	2 Hours	100	200 Marks
2	Paper-II: General Studies (CSAT)	2 Hours	80	200 Marks

Stage II: IAS Exam – UPSC Mains

The second stage of the IAS Exam is called the Mains Exam, which is a written descriptive examination and comprises 9 papers. The 9 papers in IAS Exam (Mains) are as follows: Paper-A (Compulsory Indian Language); Paper –B (English) which are qualifying in nature, while the other papers like Essay, General Studies Papers I, II, III, and IV, and Optional Papers I and II are considered for the final ranking.

Sl. No.	IAS Exam Paper	Name of the Paper	Duration of the Exam	Marks
1	Paper – A	Compulsory Indian Language	3 Hours	300 Marks
2	Paper – B	English	3 Hours	300 Marks
3	Paper – I	ESSAY	3 Hours	250 Marks
4	Paper-II	General Studies I	3 Hours	250 Marks
5	Paper – III	General Studies II	3 Hours	250 Marks
6	Paper – IV	General Studies III	3 Hours	250 Marks
7	Paper – V	General Studies IV	3 Hours	250 Marks
8	Paper – VI	Optional Paper I	3 Hours	250 Marks
9	Paper – VII	Optional Paper-II	3 Hours	250 Marks
	TOTAL			1750 Marks
		Interview or Personality Test		275 Marks
		GRAND TOTAL		2025 Marks

Personality Test/ Interview:

The maximum marks for an interview are 275 marks. The candidate will be interviewed by a Board of competent and unbiased observers who will have before them a record of his/ her career. The object of the Interview is to assess the personal suitability of the candidate for the Service. The candidate will be expected to have taken an intelligent interest not only in his/ her subjects of academic study but also in events which are happening around him/ her both within and outside his/ her own state or country, as well as in modem currents of thought and in new discoveries which should arouse the curiosity of well-educated youth.

UPSC IAS Exam Syllabus:

UPSC IAS Syllabus for Preliminary Exam

UPSC IAS Syllabus Paper I – General Studies

Current events of national and international importance
History of India and Indian National Movement
Indian and World Geography – Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World
Indian Polity and Governance – Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc
Economic and Social Development – Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector initiatives, etc
General issues on Environmental Ecology, Biodiversity and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialization
General Science

UPSC IAS Syllabus Paper-II – General Studies

Comprehension
Interpersonal skills including communication skills
Logical reasoning and analytical ability
Decision-making and problem solving
General mental ability
Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude, etc.) (Class X level), Data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency, etc. Class X level)

UPSC IAS Syllabus for Mains Exam

IAS Syllabus - Essay Paper

There is no mention of the IAS essay paper syllabus in the UPSC notification. Only a broad outline is provided in the official notification. But the expectation from the candidates has been mentioned in the notification. "They will be expected to keep close to the subject of the essay to arrange their ideas in an orderly fashion and to write concisely. Credit will be given for effective and exact expression."

UPSC always gave topics from Philosophy, Public Administration, and International scenarios. The world view of the candidates is tested through these essays. How the candidate sees the engrossed problems and how they suggest the solution to the problems.

IAS Syllabus - General Studies Paper-I

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 reorganization within the country.
History of the world will include events from the 18th century such as the industrial revolution, world wars, redrawing of national boundaries, colonization, decolonization, political philosophies like communism, capitalism, socialism, etc.— their forms and effect on society.
Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India.
Role of women and women’s organization, population and associated issues, poverty and developmental issues, urbanization, their problems, and their remedies.
Effects of globalization on Indian society.
Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism & secularism.
Salient features of the 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.

IAS Syllabus - General Studies Paper-II

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.
The government strives to have a workforce which reflects gender balance and women candidates are encouraged to apply.
Comparison of the Indian constitutional scheme with that of other countries.
Parliament and State legislatures—structure, functioning, the 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 the development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.
Issues relating to poverty and hunger.
Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance applications, models, successes, limitations, and potential; citizens charters, transparency & accountability, and institutional and other measures.
Role of civil services in a 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.

IAS Syllabus General Studies Paper III

Technology, Economic Development, Biodiversity, 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, nano-technology, bio-technology, and issues relating to intellectual property rights.
Conservation, environmental pollution, and degradation, environmental impact assessment.
Disaster and disaster management.
Linkages between development and spread of extremism.
Role of external state and non-state actors in creating challenges to internal security.
Challenges to internal security through communication networks, the role of media and social networking sites in internal security challenges, basics of cybersecurity; 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.

IAS Ethics Syllabus

Ethics, Integrity, and Aptitude

This paper will include questions to test the candidates’ attitude and approach to issues relating to integrity, probity in public life, and his problem-solving approach to various issues and conflicts faced by him in dealing with society. Questions may utilize the case study approach to determine these aspects. 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; the role of family society and educational institutions in inculcating values.
Attitude: content, structure, function; its influence and relation with thought and behavior; moral and political attitudes; social influence, and persuasion.
Aptitude and foundational values for Civil Service, integrity, impartiality and nonpartisanship, 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 the world.
Public/Civil service values and Ethics in Public administration: Status and problems; ethical concerns and dilemmas in government and private institutions; laws, rules, regulations, and conscience as sources of ethical guidance; accountability and ethical governance; strengthening of ethical and moral values in governance; ethical issues in international relations and funding; corporate governance.
Probity in Governance: Concept of public service; Philosophical basis of governance and probity; Information sharing and transparency in government, Right to Information, Codes of
Ethics, Codes of Conduct, Citizen’s Charters, Work culture, Quality of service delivery, Utilization of public funds, challenges of corruption.
Case Studies on the above issues.

Optional Subject for IAS Mains Exam

There are 25 optional subjects in the IAS main exam and the candidates need to choose only one out of them. The optional subject carries 500 marks out of 1750. It is around 30% of the total. So the candidates are suggested to select the optional subject very carefully because it can make or break the dream of becoming an IAS officer.

The following is the official list of IAS main optional subjects. The candidates can choose any one subject as the optional subject.

Agriculture	Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science	Anthropology
Botany	Chemistry	Civil Engineering
Commerce and Accountancy	Economics	Electrical Engineering
Geography	Geology	History
Law	Management	Mathematics
Mechanical Engineering	Medical Science	Philosophy
Physics	Political Science and International Relations	Psychology
Public Administration	Sociology	Statistics
Zoology

The candidates can choose the Literature of any one of the following languages as their optional subject:

Assamese	Bengali	Bodo
Dogri	Gujarati	Hindi
Kannada	Kashmiri	Konkani
Maithili	Malayalam	Manipuri
Marathi	Nepali	Odia
Punjabi	Sanskrit	Santhali
Sindhi	Tamil	Telugu
Urdu	English

IAS Exam Centres for Prelims Exam

The number of IAS prelims exam centers are more than the IAS main exam centers because the number of candidates is far more in the prelims. The list of centers is as follows.

Agartala	Ghaziabad	Gautam Buddh Nagar
Agra	Gorakhpur	Panaji (Goa)
Ajmer	Gurgaon	Patna
Ahmedabad	Gwalior	Port Blair
Aizawl	Hyderabad	Puducherry
Aligarh	Imphal	Pune
Allahabad	Indore	Raipur
Anantpur (Andhra Pradesh)	Itanagar	Rajkot
Aurangabad	Jabalpur	Ranchi
Bangalore	Jaipur	Sambalpur
Bareilly	Jammu	Shillong
Bhopal	Jodhpur	Shimla
Bilaspur	Jorhat	Siliguri
Chandigarh	Kochi	Srinagar
Chennai	Kohima	Thane
Coimbatore	Kolkata	Thiruvananthapuram
Cuttack	Kozhikode (Calicut)	Tiruchirapalli
Dehradun	Lucknow	Tirupati
Delhi	Ludhiana	Udaipur
Dharwad	Madurai	Varanasi
Dispur	Mumbai	Vellore
Faridabad	Mysore	Vijayawada
Gangtok	Nagpur	Vishakhapatnam
Gaya	Navi Mumbai	Warangal

IAS Exam Centres for Main Exam

The IAS main exam is conducted on weekends and most of the time it takes two weekends to complete. The candidates need to make accommodations or travel various times to the exam center. The candidates can see the IAS exam center list for the IAS main exam as notified by the UPSC.

Ahmedabad	Dehradun	Mumbai
Aizawl	Delhi	Patna
Allahabad	Dispur (Guwahati)	Raipur
Bengaluru	Hyderabad	Ranchi
Bhopal	Jaipur	Shillong
Chandigarh	Jammu	Shimla
Chennai	Kolkata	Thiruvananthapuram
Cuttack	Lucknow	Vijayawada

IAS Officer Salary: After 7th Commission

Aspirants can check the salary structure of the most sought after post of the UPSC Exam. The basic per month salary of an IAS officer starts at Rs.56,100(TA, DA, and HRA are extra) and can go on to reach Rs.2,500,00 for a Cabinet Secretary. Candidates can check the pay scale and pay level for each level of the IAS Salary. We compare the Pay band and Pay Level in the table for a good understanding of the IAS Salary structure. Candidates can check the other perks, emoluments in the last part of the article.

Grade	Post	No. Of Years	Old System		New System
Grade	Post	No. Of Years	Grade Pay	Pay Scale(INR)	Pay Level	Basic Pay (INR)
Junior or Lower Time Scale	ASP/SDM/ Asst. Commissioner	1-4	5400	15600 – 39100	10	56100
Senior Time Scale	ADM/Deputy Secretary/ Undersecretary	5-8	6600	15600 – 39100	11	67700
Junior Administrative	DM/ Joint Secretary/ Deputy Secretary	9-12	7600	15600 – 39100	12	78,800
Selection Grade	DM/ Special Secretary cum director/ Director	13-16	8700	37400 – 67000	13	1,18,500
Selection Grade	Divisional Commissioner/ Secretary Cum Commissioner/ Joint Secretary	16-24	8700	37400 – 67000	14	1,44,200
Super Time Scale	Divisional Commissioner/ Principal Secretary/ Additional Secretary	25-30	12000	37400 – 67000	15	1,82,200
Above Super Time Scale	Additional Chief Secretary	30-33	NA	80000 (Fixed)	16	2,05,400
Apex Scale	Chief Secretary	34-36	NA	90000 (Fixed)	17	2,25,000
Cabinet Secretary Grade	Cabinet Secretary of India	37+ years	NA	90000 (Fixed)	18	2,50,000

UPSC IAS Officer Salary: HRA And Transport Allowance

In the IAS Officer Salary, the HRA allowance is 24 percent, 16 percent, and 8 percent as per 7th Pay Commission norms. HRA depends on the city you are posted. Along with these, the 7th Pay Commission has also recommended for enhancement of HRA while DA crosses 50% and 100%. As far as Transport Allowance is concerned, there is no increase. However, DA which is 125% has been merged with the existing Transport Allowance. Besides these, the 7th Pay Commission has discontinued the Pay Band – Grade Pay System which existed before. Candidates can check different allowances in IAS Officer Salary in the table.

HRA Distribution
Class X	8 Cities only- 24% HRA (Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, and Pune)
Class Y	Around 100 Towns (With a Population above 5 Lakhs) – 16% HRA
Class Z	Rural Areas – 8% HRA
Dearness Allowance
DA	DA now crosses 50 to 100 %
Transport Allowance
The Transport allowance is not included in the DA which can reach up to 125% now

IAS Salary Perks

UPSC CSE offers a lot of perks, emoluments, and very high social respect in India. Candidates can check the perks, emoluments below. Their Perks, Emoluments are common for all the UPSC CSE Posts like IAS, IFS, IPS, IRS, and other posts.

Apartment (3 or 4 BHK)
Electricity and Water Bill
Medical Expenses
Free Phone Call
Office Vehicles
Study leave
Abroad Study Option
Transport Allowances
Security Guard and Household Helpers
Dearness Allowance (As governed by the inflation index) (at 65 percent)
Pensions and Retirement Benefits.

UPSC Cut Off 2019

The table below mentions the official UPSC Cut-Off 2019 for all the categories:

UPSC Cut Off – IAS 2019
Category	UPSC Cut Off - IAS Prelims	UPSC Cut Off – IAS Mains	UPSC Cut Off – IAS Final
General	98	751	961
EWS	90	696	909
OBC	95.34	718	925
SC	82	706	898
ST	77.34	699	893
PwBD-1	53.34	663	861
PwBD-2	44.66	698	890
PwBD-3	54.66	374	653
PwBD-4	61.34	561	708

Powers & Responsibilities of an IAS Officer

The clichéd quote ‘With great power comes great responsibility’, stands true for an IAS officer as they have to look after and manage administrative functions as well as implement developmental policies for the government. The powers of an IAS officer are in proportion to responsibilities adhered to them; therefore as an officer grows in their career the responsibilities and powers required to fulfill them also grow accordingly.

General Responsibilities and associated powers of an IAS officer

Apart from post-specific and role-specific powers and responsibilities, every IAS officers are given the power to fulfill certain general responsibilities as mentioned below:
To manage the governmental affairs and infrastructure
Implement and supervise the implementation process of governmental policies
Disburse funds and resources for the implementation of policies and upkeep and maintenance of governmental infrastructure
Ensure zero irregularities in fund management, as the officer is answerable to the Parliament and respective state legislature for an accounting of funds allotted to them

Responsibilities of an IAS officer as per their post/role

As mentioned before, the responsibilities and associated powers of an IAS officer change at different points in their career. The general ones are given below:

• At Sub-Divisional Level: IAS officers are posted at the sub-divisional level on the post of the sub-divisional magistrate at the beginning of their careers. Here, they have to maintain law & order as well as look after general administrative and developmental work in the area allotted under their jurisdiction.

• At District Level: IAS officers are deployed on District Magistrate’s post or as a District Collector or Deputy Commissioner.

The responsibilities and associated powers of IAS officers at the district level remain the same. They have to look after administrative affairs of the district and implement and supervise developmental work in the area allotted under their jurisdiction.

• At State Level: IAS officers are promoted to state-level administration after being promoted from the post of District magistrate. Here, they can be posted as a bureaucrat in state secretariat or head of departments. This is the time when they use their field-level experience in the Policy Formation and advise the elected executives for the Policy Decisions.

• In Public Sector Undertakings: Many IAS officers are also posted at high-level administrative positions in government-owned Public Sector Undertakings as well. A new trend shows that most of the Big PSUs are headed by the IAS Officers.

• At Central Level: Posting with central government lies at top of the hierarchy as far as IAS offices postings are concerned. At the central level, the officer can serve as Cabinet Secretary, Secretary, Additional Secretary, Joint Secretary, Director, Deputy Secretary, and Under Secretary under different departments or ministries of the central government. The main responsibility of an IAS officer at the central level is to formulate an overview the implementation of governmental policies in different ministries like finance, defense, or commerce.