CSAT 2014 Pattern And Syllabus

PLAN OF EXAMINATION
The competitive examination comprises two successive stages:
(i) Civil Services (Preliminary) Examinations (Objective Type) for the selection of candidates for Main Examination; and
(ii) Civil Services (Main) Examination (Written and Interview) for the selection of candidates for the various services and
posts.
2. The Preliminary Examination will consist of two papers of Objective type (multiple choice questions) and carry a
maximum of 400 marks in the subjects set out in subsection (A) of Section-II. This examination is meant to serve as a
screening test only; the marks obtained in the Preliminary Examination by the candidates who are declared qualified for
admission to the Main Examination will not be counted for determining their final order of merit. The number of candidates
to be admitted to the Main Examination will be about twelve to thirteen times the total approximate number of vacancies to
be filled in the year in the various Services and Posts. Only those candidates who are declared by the Commission to have
qualified in the Preliminary Examination in the year will be eligible for admission to the Main Examination of that year
provided they are otherwise eligible for admission to the Main Examination.
3. Candidates who obtain such minimum qualifying marks in the written part of the Main Examination as may be fixed by
the Commission at their discretion, shall be summoned by them for interview for a Personality Test vide sub-section ‘C’ of
Section-II. Marks obtained in the papers will be counted for ranking. The number of candidates to be summoned for
interview will be about twice the number of vacancies to be filled.
Marks thus obtained by the candidates in the Main Examination (written part as well as interview) would determine their
final ranking. Candidates will be allotted to the various Services keeping in view their ranks in the examination and the
preferences expressed by them for the various Services and Posts.
Section-II
Scheme and subjects for the Preliminary and Main Examinations
A. Preliminary Examination
The Examination shall comprise two compulsory papers of 200 marks each.
NOTE (i) Both the question papers will be of the objective type (multiple choice questions).
(ii) The question papers will be set both in Hindi and English. However, questions relating to English Language
Comprehension skills of Class X level will be tested through passages from English Language only without
providing Hindi translation thereof in the question paper.
(iii) Details of the syllabi are indicated in Part A of Section III.
(iv) Each paper will be of two hours duration. Blind candidates will however; be allowed an extra time of twenty
minutes at each paper.

SYLLABI FOR THE EXAMINATION

PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION
The Examination shall comprise two compulsory papers of 200 marks each.
Paper I - (200 marks) Duration : Two hours
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, Bio-diversity and Climate Change - that do not require
subject specialization.
General Science.
Paper II- (200 marks) Duration: Two hours
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)
English Language Comprehension skills (Class X level).
Note 1 : Questions relating to English Language Comprehension skills of Class X level (last item in the Syllabus
of PaperII) will be tested through passages from English language only without providing Hindi translation
thereof in the question paper.
Note 2 : The questions will be of multiple choice, objective type.

Topicwise booklist and study-plan for CSAT 2014 General studies 


General Studies (GS) Manual





Click Here to buy From Flipkart
GS Manual a very thick book containing almost every topic of General Studies (Geography History, Polity, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, etc.)
Many publication houses (TMH, Unique,Spectrum,Pearson) release their Manuals.
You should buy atleast one of them. Because after each topic, they provide hundreds of mock questions, you must solve them to gain confidence and command over the topic.
If you have not purchased a GS manual, I recommend you get TMH (TataMacgrawhill’s) [***buy the latest Edition***]
Crux of this whole plan is : First read NCERT, then read GS Manual and at last solve the Mock-questions given at the end of GS Manual.


Science and Technology
NCERTs 7 to 10 (science): Can be downloaded for Free. For English medium scroll down to the bottom of this article you’ll get the download links
for Hindi Medium click me
For Arts and Commerce grads, the 11-12th science NCERT may appear very tiresome, so leave them.
GS Manual’s Science and Technology section (the explanations and principles of various things are important, “Why” this or that?) + the mock tests given in it. If you’ve purchased any Manual, well and good- just stick to it. But if you’re yet to purchase a GS manual, I suggest you get TataMacgrawhill’s GS Manual.[ Click Here to buy from Flipkart ]
Not much point in mugging up inventors, radius of Saturn’s moons, chem.formulas, Latin names of various plant and animal kingdoms and families etc in the manual.
The Hindu’s S&T section (can be read online).
Liberal use of websites such as Howstuffworks and Kids’ Encyclopedia Britannica for time pass.
Economy
 Click Here to buy from Flipkart 

NCERT (10, 11, 12). If you can’t grasp formulas, leave them. Just try to understand the basics only. Download Links @Bottom.
Indian Economy by Ramesh Singh (TMH Publication) = best “student friendly” book on Economy topics.
Any one GS Manual’s Economy section + the mock tests given in it.
Any one Magazine’s Economy section, to be upated with currents (Pratiyogita, CST, Wizard or Chronicle)
Regular reading of Economy section of newspaper (The Hindu or Indianexpress, whichever you can get.)
Consult wikipedia and google whenever you encounter any difficult terminology but donot try to do Ph.D on Economy. You just need to understand the basic concepts.

Polity

Click Here to Buy From Flipkart

The Best book for Polity is M.Laxmikanth (Tata Macgrawhill publication). Nobody has or can explain polity in a lucid manner than he did. So just forget everything else and read his book thoroughly atleast 3 times.
It is also available in Hindi Medium, under the title “Bharat ki Rajya Vyavastha.”
But Instead of mugging down article numbers, try to understand the provisions.
Mock questions given in GS Manual.
Magazine issues for Polity specific Current affairs (Laws, Amendments etc)
You can also try D.D. Basu’s book on Indian Constitution, .


History



NCERT 7 to 10 Social Science. Then NCERT Class 11,12 History.
GS Manual’s History Section + Mock tests.
Focus on History of Modern India (1857 and freedom struggle) as it is important topic in Mains GS too.
If you’ve time, you can use Bipin Chandra
and Spectrum’s Brief History of Modern India.
This Spectrum book is also available in Hindi, under the title “Adhunik Bharat kaa Itihas

Geography




NCERT 7 to 10 (Social Science) then NCERT 11,12 (Geography).
GS Manual (instead of trying to mug up place-names, concentrate on clearing concepts and ‘why’ this or that). + Practice mock questions given in it.
In Newspapers and Magazines issues, in the National/ International current affairs: note down the place names and check their location on Atlas.

Environment and Biodiversity (E&B)


Again NCERT 7 to 10 (Both Geography and Science):
GS Manual’s science portion
The Hindu S&T (can be read online).
Magz : current affairs related to Environment. (without getting into fact-bombing)
Wikipedia for anything that requires elaboration.The level of difficulty shown in last years’ paper for E&B, ain’t no point in doing Ph.D.
So I don’t think it is necessary to buy any separate ‘special’ book.

Empowerment




NCERT sociology books: Can be downloaded for Free in English Medium OR Hindi Medium
Magazine current affairs sections to know about various Social sector initiatives.
(if you’ve time) Yojana, Kurukshetra etc. (but then again no need to get into ‘village/NGO case-studies’) just get the basics.



Mock Tests Practice
No amount of preparation is complete, unless you practice some mock questions.Practice the mock questions given at the end of each topic in your General Studies Manual.


Click Here To download Material For CSAT 
5 Upsc Gyan: May 2014 PLAN OF EXAMINATION The competitive examination comprises two successive stages: (i) Civil Services (Preliminary) Examinations (Objective...

General Studies Tricks