What are books that we have to refer to for UPSC Prelims?

Through this article we endeavor to provide the aspirants with the list of best books that they should refer for UPSC CSE Prelims.

If one thinks that he/she needs to read HUNDREDS of books, browse TENS of websites and prepare notes from FIVE newspapers and TEN magazines each day to clear IAS, THIS IS WRONG. The exaggerated actions are neither practical nor necessary to clear CSE. Even if an imaginary person does all what is stated above, there is still chance that he/she not clear Prelims/Mains. So, what matters is not the quantity of materials one had gone through, but the quality of learning and revision done.

UPSC conducted the Prelims for CSE 2021 on 10^th October. Paper was more random than last couple of years. It was less logical and more factual than last four years. UPSC even touched state PCS level questions like one liner History questions, questions from sports etc. Obscure Science and Technology questions, random organisms were touched.

This was a kind of paper where it was more important for a candidate to judge which question to leave rather than which one to attempt.

The strategy should be:

Read standard books, grasp basic concepts, focus on fundamentals of current affairs, read the newspaper thoroughly, be aware and observant and focus on quality rather than quantity.

UPSC CSE toppers recommend that aspirants start their UPSC preparation with NCERT books and then move on to the standard reference books.

The best books for preparation can vary from candidate to candidate depending on their previous expertise and knowledge of the subject matter. However, the books for UPSC recommended by experts are listed in this article subject-wise.

COMMON FOR BOTH PRELIMS AND MAINS:

CURRENT AFFAIRS:

Newspapers: Hindu, Business Line, Financial Times, Indian Express (any two)
Monthly current affairs: IAS Gazette
IAS GYAN website
Down to earth, science reporter

POLITY and GOVERNANCE:

NCERTs 9^th, 10^th (for basic understanding)
Acts/Bills, judgements-PRS website
Constitution of India at Work (Class XI) NCERT Publication
Indian Polity by Laxmikant
Introduction to Indian Constitution – D.D.Basu
From Government to Governance by Kuldeep Mathur
Ethics in Governance, ARC Report
NITI Aayog reports, Government reports
Governance in India by M.Karthikeyan

DEVELOPMENTAL ISSUES:

Human Development Report & World Development Report
Panchayati Raj in India by Kuldeep Mathur

HISTORY:

Ancient History of India: Old NCERT by RS Sharma/ TN class 11 th book
Medieval History of India: Old NCERT by Satish Chandra/ TN class 11 th book
Modern History
NCERTs
Plassey to Partition Book
Spectrum
India’s Struggle for Independence – Bipan Chandra (Selective Reading)
Indian Art and Culture
An Introduction to Indian Art – Class XI NCERT
Chapters related to culture in Ancient and Medieval India NCERTs
Centre for Cultural Resource and Training (CCRT) material
Heritage Crafts: Living Craft Traditions of India -NCERT
Nitin Singhania book (optional)

ENVIRONMENT AND BIODIVERSITY:

Shankar IAS Book
Biology 12^th NCERT last 4 chapters

GEOGRAPHY:

Fundamentals of Physical Geography XI NCERT
India: Physical Environment XI NCERT
Fundamentals of Human Geography XII NCERT
India: People and Economy XII NCERT
Certificate Physical and Human Geography: GC Leong
OXFORD Atlas

ECONOMY AND AGRICULTURE:

Indian Economy by Ramesh Singh
Microeconomics, Macroeconomics – NCERT Class XI, XII
Indian Economic Development – NCERT Class XI
Indian Economy by Sanjiv Verma
Economics Dictionary published by Collins & Penguin

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY:

NCERT- Class 6th to 10^th
NCERT - Biology - 11th (Unit IV & V only - read basic concepts not technical details)
NCERT Biology - 12th (Chapters 4, 5 and rest from 7 to 16)
NCERT - Biology - 12th (OLD) - Chapter 9 onwards
NCERT - Physics - 11th (Chap 1,5 & 8) and 12th (Chap 15 only)
NCERT - Chemistry - 11th (Chap 1 & 14 only) and 12th (Chap 14 & 16 only)

PRELIMS SPECIFIC:

What are books that we have to refer to for prelims?