Indian Civil Service Exams (CSE) Syllabus - UPSC Exams

Section-A:

1. Political Science: Nature & scope of the discipline, relationship with allied disciplines like History, Economics, Philosophy, Sociology, Psychology.
2. Meaning of Politics: Approaches to the study of Politics.
3. Key Concepts: State, Society, Sovereignty, Power, Citizenship, Nation, Global order and Imperialism.
4. Political Ideas: Rights, Liberty, Equality, Justice, Rule of Law. Civil Society Swaraj, Revolution, Democratic Participation.
5. Democracy: Meaning and Theories of Democracy, Electoral system, Forms of Representation & Participation, Political accountability.
6. Political Ideologies: liberalism, Neoliberalism, Marxism, Socialism, Fascism, Gandhism.
7. Party System and Political Process: Theories of Party System, National and regional parties, Political Parties in the Third World. Patterns of coalition politics, interest and pressure groups.
8. Forms of Government: Parliamentary and Presidential. Federal & unitary Modes of decentralisation.
9. Bureaucracy Concept: Theories, Weber and critiques of Bureaucracy.
10. Theories of Development: Meaning and various approaches. Concept and Theories of underdevelopment Debates; in the Third World.
11. Social Movements: Meaning, Theories & Forms, Role of Environmental Feminist Peasant & workers movements, Role of Non Government organisation.
12. Nationalism and Internationalism:
13. Major theories of International relations : Realist Marxist, Systems & Decision making & Game theory.
14. State & the Global order: neo-Liberalism, globalisation, structural adjustment, regional economic integration, Nature and Impact of globalisation.

Section-B:

Indian Government and politics:

1. Approaches to the study of Governments: Comparative historical, legal institutional, political economy and political sociology, approaches.
2. Classification of Political systems: Democratic and Authoritarian, characteristics of Political systems in the third world.
3. Typologies of constitutions; Basic features of these constitutions & governments: including U.K., USA. France, Germany, China, and South Africa.
4. Constitutional development: in India during British Rule-A historical perspective.
5. Constituent Assembly: philosophical and socio-economic dimensions. Salient features of the Indian Constitution.
6. Nature of Indian federalism: Centre-state relations, legislative, administrative, financial and political; politics of regional move and National Integration.
7. Fundamental Rights: Constitutional provisions and political dynamics. Judicial Interpretations and socio political realities; Fundamental Duties.
8. The Union Executive: President, Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers, Constitutional provisions & framework and political trends.
9. Parliament: Powers and functions of the Lok Sabha & Rajya Sabha; Parliamentary Committees; Functioning of the Parliamentary system in India.
10. The Judiciary: The Supreme Court, Judicial Review Judicial Activism, Public Interest Litigation; Judicial Reforms.
11. The State Executive: Governor, Chief Minister and the Council of Ministers; Constitutional Provisions and Political trends.
12. Indian Party System: Evolution and Contemporary trends; coalition government at the Centre and States, pressure groups in Indian politics.
13. The interaction of Government & Scientific & Technology business: Previous and now their inter relationship and changing roles in Society, Elites, Role of Pressure groups class and voluntary associations in society.
14. Local Government & Politics: Panchayti Raj and Municipal Government, structure power & functions, Political realities, significance of 73rd and 74th Amendments, role of women in Panchayats.
15. Bureaucracy and Development: Post-colonial India; its changing role in the context of liberatis after, bureauratic Accountability.
16. Challenges to Indian Democracy:
    a) Communalism Regionalism violence, criminalisation and corruption.
    b) Regional disparities, environmental degradation, illiteracy, Mass Poverty, Population, growth, caste oppressions and socio economic inequalities among backward classes.

Indian Civil Service Exams (CSE) Syllabus - UPSC Exams