Prepared by Mr. Kannan DEO
(Topics frequently asked in UPSC Prelims GS Questions)
Note: 1. Following Topics to be covered while reading ‘The Hindu’ and Competitive Monthly Magazines (Competition Wizard or Civil Service Chronicle or Civil Service Times – Preferably any one)
2. If possible students are suggested to take down daily notes on the basis of topics covered here.
1. NATIONAL
1. New Govt. schemes
2. Newly constituted committees on national issues.
3. Newly appointed heads of important offices
4. Inter state disputes
5. Important places in news
2. BILATERAL
1. Recent trade pacts like FTA, trade targets, items of trade, grouping in WTO
2. Bilateral defence deals and military exercises.
3. Bilateral visits by heads of nations
4. Bilateral summits (Place, theme to summit, issues discussed in summit)
5. Bilateral, trilateral and regional forums Eg : - IBSA, SAARC
3. ECONOMICS
1. RBI – monetary policy changes – CRR, Bank Rate, Forex reserves, inflation rate etc
2. Finance Ministry – Fiscal policy-tax rates, tax holidays, committees appointed to
review exciting tax structures.
3. CSO – National income, Per capita income, GDP growth rate, Base year, Poverty rate etc.
4. Central Govt. schemes of Employment Generation (NREGP), Social welfare (NOAP, ICDS, MDMS), Poverty eradication (AAY), Infrastructure development (NURM, NHDP)/
5. SEBI – Stock exchanges, Stock indexes, disinvestments, scams, committees
6. TRADE- Export items, Import items, export targets of various sector, trade pacts
7. PLANNING – Plan period, GDP target, priorities, sectoral allocations
8. INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTIONS
WTO – Summits, discussed issues, groupings formed for trade dialogue.
IMF, WB - development agenda, loans and grants
UNDP – Theme, HDR, HDI rankings, ILO, UNCTAD reports.
4. POLITY
1. New amendments
2. National issues – Any related article in constitution
3. Major Supreme court verdict in national issues
4. Important committees related to constitution
5. Inter state river water, territorial disputes
5. INTERNATIONAL
1. International summits – theme of summit, major agenda, total membership, observers,
Declaration issued, recent members, venue of next summit.
2. International forums and NGO’s – WEF, WSF, TI ,Greenpeace etc.
3. International disputes – Territorial claims, civil war, Non Proliferation issues and
related treaties.
4. Terrorism – Organisations, funding, recent attacks and assassination, international
efforts to curb it(UN resolutions, treaties.)
6. SPACE
1. Recent space missions – name of space mission, space research organization(country)
and name of spacecraft, planet name, purpose, period.
2. Space phenomenon – Possible Asteroids threat etc.
3. Discoveries – Names of recently discovered planets, comets and asteroids
4. International Space station
5. Space accidents – Jupiter & Shoemaker levy-4 crash, Colombia shuttle crash,
6. International space projects like Galileo (GPS).
7. DEFENCE
1.Recenlty tested missiles – Name, type, range, speed, nuclear capability, technology used, indigenous or joint production.
2. Bilateral defence deals-Fighters, ships, submarines, missiles, radars etc.
3. Bilateral military, Navy and Air force exercises – Place, Code name, nature of operation.
4. International peacekeeping operations – Indian role and presence
5. Recent bodies like Strategic Forces Command etc.,
8. AWARDS
1. National Awards - Civilian – Bharath Rathna, Gandhi peace prize,
IG prize for peace, disarmament and development
- Sports – Rajiv Khel ratna – Arjuna – Dhronacharya
- Cinema – IFFI, Dadasaheb phalke, National
- Science – Kalinga, S.S. Bhatnagar
- Literature – Jnanpith, Sahithya Academy, Vyas Samman. Saraswathi samman etc.
- Social service – IG national integration, LB Shasthri award for excellence in pub-ad etc.
2. International - Noble prize.
Oscar awards (cinema)/ Grammy awards (music).
Ramon Magsaysay Awards (Asian Nobel prize).
Right livelihood (Alternative Nobel prize).
Booker – Pulitzer- Orange-Dylan Thomas awards (Literature)
Abel prize,Templeton awards etc.
9. PERSONALITIES
1. Newly elected head of nations and important world organisations.
2. News makers, inventors etc.
3. CEO’s of major corporate bodies.
4. Major national and international award winners.
10. BOOKS AND AUTHORS
1. Recent ones containing issues of national and international importance
2. Controversial books. (eg. In the line of fire, Lajja, Satanic verses)
3. Books which recently got national/international awards.
4. Popular writers of National/ International fame. (Naom Chomsky, Salman rushdie, Arunthathi roy, Shashi Tharoor, Vikram Seth, R.K. Narayan
11. SPORTS
1. Players and sports events.
2. Major national international records.
3. Olympic, Asian, Commonwealth, South Asian games-mascot, no of countries participated. Newly added disciplines, top Medal winning countries
4. Doping cases-drug used, player, ban period, country
5. Grand slam titles in tennis
12. ENVIRONMENT
- Major treaties like Montreal – Kyoto – Basel – Cartegena etc, recent
- Summits like UNFCCC, UNEP etc.
- Calamities, Accidents and natural disasters – Valcano action, Earthquake, Tsunami,
- Storms – Cyclone – typhoon (names of it Ex.Katrina,Nargis,Gustav)
- Disease outbreak (ex. Bird flu)
-Recent campaigns by environmental agencies like
13. CULTURE AND ART
1. UNESCO World heritage sites.
2. Major temples / festivals / Eg. Recent kumba mela.
3. Dances of Indian states.
4. Folk arts and states
5.Personalities in Dance, Arts and Theatre currently in news
14. MAP BASED QUESTIONS.
1. Areas of bilateral and international disputes (islands etc).
2. Any major calamities (Valcanoe, storm, nuclear accident,)
3. Countries – language wise.
4. Location of important cities, river of a country.
5. Questions based on national census(2001).
STUDY MATERIALS FOR CURRENT AFFAIRS AREA
1. Dailies - The Hindu* ,Economic times, Dhina Mani(Tamil)
2. Magazines - Frontline ,Yojana
3. India year book* , Manorama year book.
4. Economic Survey*.
* marked are important.