Syllabus for UPSC Mains 2026

Syllabus for UPSC(CSE)Mains 2026

The UPSC(CSE) Mains Exam is of written Examination,consists of 9 Papers of Conventional(Descriptive) type in the Subjects. Out of the 9 Papers two papers(Language Papers - One English Language & One Regional Language) will be of Qualifying nature. the marks obtained in these two papers will not be counted for Ranking, The rest of 7 Papers including Optional paper will be counted for Ranking and to promote Interview.

Paper-A: UPSC Main Paper-A: Indian Languages & (Regional Languages)- Qualifying Nature

• Comprehension of given passages
• Precis Writing
• Usage and Vocabulary
• Short Essays
• Translation from English to the Indian Language and vice-versa

Paper-B: UPSC Main Paper-B: English - Qualifying Nature

• Comprehension of given passages
• Precis Writing
• Usage and Vocabulary
• Short Essays

3. UPSC Main Paper-I: The 7 Compulsory papers(Paper I to V) are Essay and General Studies Papers VI and VII relating Optional subjects. Marks obtained in these 7 papers will be counted for Interview and also Final Ranking.

Paper-I: Essay

• This paper expects the candidates to write essays on multiple topics. As per the current pattern, the Essay Paper is divided into two sections having multiple topics. The candidate is expected to write essays on two topics, choosing one from each of the two sections.
• The UPSC expects that the essays are presented as an effective expression of ideas that are relevant to the topic and are arranged in an orderly fashion.
• The Aspirants may be required to write concise and strictly followed the Essay writting Pattern
• Credit will be given for Effective and Expression of the Ideas

The topics given in the General Studies-I paper and their detailed break-ups are as follows:

• 1. Indian culture will cover the salient aspects of Art Forms, Literature and Architecture from ancient to modern times.
  • Visual Arts Forms – Architecture, Sculpture, Painting, etc
  • Performing Art Forms – Dance, Music, Theatre, Puppetry, etc
  • Literature – Important Literary Works of major languages such as Sanskrit, Prakrit, Pali, Tamil etc
  • Miscellaneous – Buddhism, Jainism, Schools of Philosophy, Sufi Movement, Bhakti Movement, etc.

• 2. Modern Indian History from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present- Significant Events, Personalities, Issues.
  • Significant Events – Major developments during the period from the decline of the Mughals up to establishment of British Rule in India; the Revolt of 1857, etc
  • Personalities - Views and Contributions of prominent Indian historical figures such as Gandhi, Nehru, Tagore, etc
  • Issues – Impact of British Policies in India related to Economy, Education, Press, Land, etc

• 3. The Freedom Struggle — its various stages and important contributors/contributions from different parts of the country.
  • Rise of Nationalism; Pre-Gandhian and Gandhian Movements
  • Role of different sections of society in India’s freedom struggle such as those of Peasants, Tribals, Women, Leftists, etc

• 4. Post-independence consolidation and reorganization within the country.
  • Partition; Integration of Princely States; Reorganization of States; Major developments during the eras of all the Prime Ministers of India
  • Evolution of planning and economic development; Evolution of India’s Foreign Policy; Rise of Popular Movements in India

• 5. History of the world will include events from 18th century such as industrial revolution, world wars, redrawal of national boundaries, colonization, decolonization, political philosophies like communism, capitalism, socialism etc.— their forms and effect on the society.
  • Beginning of the Modern Age; the Rise of Capitalism and the Industrial Revolution; Revolutionary and Nationalist Movements such as the American Revolution, French Revolution, etc.
  • Imperialism and Colonialism; World War-I; Major developments during World War-I to World War-II such as the rise of Fascism, the emergence of the Soviet Union, etc; World War-II; Major developments after World War-II such as Cold War, rise of NAM, etc

• 6. Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India
  • Major elements of the diversity of Indian Society such as Caste, Religion, Languages, etc, and issues related to them.

• 7. Role of women and women’s organization, population and associated issues, poverty and developmental issues, urbanization, their problems and their remedies
  • Evolution of the Women’s Liberation Movement from the middle of the 18th century upto now.

• 8. Issues arising out of the high rate of population growth such as poverty, migration, etc, and measures to control population growth.
• 9. Social issues arising out of a developmental processes such as Regional Divide, Rural Backwardness, Urbanization, and related issues such as the development of slums, etc

• 10. Effects of globalization on Indian society
  • Different phases of Globalization and their impacts on India’s Culture, Religion, Politics etc

• 11. Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism & secularism
  • Challenges faced by vulnerable sections of Indian society such as Women, Children, Minorities, Dalits, etc
  • Evolution of Communalism and Regionalism and challenges posed by them; Basic tenets of Indian Secularism

• 12. Salient features of world’s physical geography
  • Physical Geography – Latitude & Longitude; Geomorphology; Oceanography; Climatology; Biogeography; Environmental Geography

• 13. Distribution of key natural resources across the world (including South Asia and the Indian subcontinent); factors responsible for the location of primary, secondary, and tertiary sector industries in various parts of the world (including India).
  • Key natural resources such as Major Minerals, Energy Resources etc and their distribution in India and the World.
  • Primary, Secondary, Tertiary, and Quaternary industries and factors influencing their locations in India and the World.
  • Other facets of Social and Economic Geography such as growth & distribution of population, agriculture, transport, etc

• 14. 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
  • Geographic phenomena such as earthquakes, tsunamis, etc, their genesis, impacts, etc.
  • World Geography – The continents and major geographic features therein such as Mountains, Plateaus, Rivers, etc.
  • Indian Geography – Physiographic Divisions of India; Drainage System of India; Indian Climate; Soils and Vegetations of India.

• 1. Indian Constitution—historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure.
  • Evolution and salient features of Constitution; Preamble, Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles of State Policies, Fundamental Duties; Process of amendment, Basic Structure.

• 2. 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.
  • Indian Federalism and its features; Centre-state relations and related issues; Inter-state relations and related issues; Cooperative Federalism; Emergency provisions etc
  • 73rd Constitutional Amendment, PRIs and issues faced by them; 74th Constitutional Amendment, ULBs and issues faced by them.

• 3.Separation of powers between various organs dispute redressal mechanisms and institutions.
  • Doctrine of separation of powers and constitutional provisions related to it; System of checks and balances
  • Functional overlaps among various organs of the government and issues arising out of it; Dispute redressal mechanisms and institutions such as Inter-State Council, Judiciary, NITI Aayog, etc

• 4. Comparison of the Indian constitutional scheme with that of other countries.
  • Major sources of Indian Constitution; Comparison of major features of Indian Constitution vis-a-vis that of other democracies

• 5. Parliament and State legislatures—structure, functioning, conduct of business, powers & privileges and issues arising out of these.
  • Structure, functions, and major issues related to Parliament and State Legislatures such as misuse of Money Bill, inadequate control of Legislature over Executive, etc;
  • Parliamentary Committees; Sovereignty of Parliament; Parliamentary Privileges, etc

• 6. 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.
  • Executive - Powers and functions of President and Governor; Parliamentary System of Government and functioning of Union and State Council of Ministers.
  • Judiciary - Powers and functions of the Supreme Court and High Courts and issues related to them such as Judicial Accountability, Judicial Overreach etc.
  • Subordinate Courts, their structures and functions; Lok Adalats, Gram Nyayalayas, etc
  • Pressure Groups, their functions, and significance.

• 7. Salient features of the Representation of People’s Act.
  • Major provisions of Representation of People’s Acts of 1950 and 1951; Election System in India and issues related to it such as Model Code of Conduct, Criminalization of Politics, etc

• 8. Appointment to various Constitutional posts, powers, functions and responsibilities of various Constitutional Bodies.
  • Major Constitutional Bodies of India such as the Election Commission of India, Finance Commission, Comptroller and Auditor General, etc, their functions and issues relating to them.

• 9. Statutory, regulatory and various quasi-judicial bodies.
  • Major Statutory Bodies such as the Securities Exchange Board of India, National Human Rights Commission, etc, their functions and issues related to them
  • Major Regulatory Bodies such as the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, Competition Commission of India, etc, their functions and issues related to them
  • Major Quasi-Judicial Bodies such as the National Green Tribunal, Central Information Commission, etc, their functions, and issues related to them

• 10. Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.
  • Major schemes and policies of the government related to areas such as Drinking Water, Sanitation, etc, and remaining challenges

• 11. Development processes and the development industry —the role of NGOs, SHGs, various groups and associations, donors, charities, institutional and other stakeholders.
  • Civil Society Organizations, NGOs, SHGs, etc, their functions, significance, and issues related to them; Participatory governance and people’s participation in governance

• 12. 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.
  • Vulnerable sections such as Women, Children, SCs, etc, challenges faced by them and initiatives taken for their betterment.

• 13. Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.
  • Major schemes and policies of the government related to Health, Education, Employment, Skill Development, etc, and remaining challenges.

• 14. Issues relating to poverty and hunger.
  • Poverty, its causes, implications, and steps taken to alleviate poverty.

• 15. Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance- applications, models, successes, limitations, and potential; citizens charters, transparency & accountability and institutional and other measures.
  • Transparency and Accountability, their meaning, significance, and steps taken to promote them; Corruption in India.
  • e-Governance, its meaning, significance and applications, challenges in implementation, etc
  • Citizen Charter, its meaning, benefits, challenges in its implementation, etc

• 16. Role of civil services in a democracy
  • Role of Civil Services in governance; Reforms in civil services, its need, and recommendations of major committees thereon

• 17. India and its neighborhood- relations
  • India’s bilateral relationship with its neighboring countries such as Pakistan, China, Nepal, etc.

• 18. Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.
  • India’s bilateral relationship with major countries of its interests such as Russia, USA, etc
  • Regional and Global Groupings such as BRICS, SAARC, G-20, etc

• 19. Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian diaspora.
  • Major developments from across the globe which impact India’s interests such as Ukraine War, change in US Visa Policy, etc
  • Indian Diaspora, their roles in promoting India’s interests, challenges faced by them, etc

• 20. Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate
  • International bodies such as the UN, IMF, WHO, etc, their structure, functions, challenges faced by them, etc.

• 1.Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.
  • Planning in India, its achievements & failures, and challenges faced; primary tools for mobilization of resources such as government budgeting, taxation, disinvestment, etc
  • Growth path of the Indian economy from independence till now, and issues related to it such as Regional Disparity.
  • Employment and skill development, challenges therein, and initiatives taken to promote them

• 2. Inclusive growth and issues arising from it.
  • Inclusive growth, challenges and initiatives taken; Issues related to inclusive growth such as poverty, income inequality, etc

• 3.Government Budgeting.
  • Government Budget, its types, issues with budgeting process, and issues related to it such as Gender Budgeting; Other Fiscal Policies of the government.

• 4. 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.
  • Major crops of India such as Rice, Wheat, etc and their cropping pattern across the country.
  • Major types of irrigation system prevalent in India, and issues therein
  • Storage, transport and marketing of agricultural goods, their needs and issues therein

• 5. 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.
  • Different types of agricultural subsidies, their needs and issues therein
  • Agricultural price policies of the government; MSP, its needs and issues therein
  • PDS, its needs, limitations, and initiatives taken to revamp it.
  • Food Security, present status in India, challenges associated with it, steps taken to achieve it such as Buffer Stock, and related issues such as Hunger, Food Safety, etc
  • Major technology missions related to agriculture in India such as Green Revolution, National Mission on Agricultural Extension & Technology, promotion of Farm Mechanisation, etc
  • Livestock sector, its significance, challenges faced by it, and steps taken

• 6.Food processing and related industries in India- scope’ and significance, location, upstream and downstream requirements, supply chain management.
  • Food Processing Industries, its potential and present status in India, its significance for India, challenges faced by it, and steps taken.

• 7. Land reforms in India.
  • Factors necessitating land reform in India, its progress, and challenges coming in its way.

• 8. Effects of liberalization on the economy, changes in industrial policy and their effects on industrial growth.
  • Liberalization, policy changes made under it and their impacts on different sectors of the economy such as external trade, foreign investment, agriculture, etc.
  • Industrial Policy, its need and evolution from the Industrial Policy Resolution of 1948 through the New Industrial Policy of 1991 up to the present.

• 9. Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.
  • Major industrial infrastructures as mentioned above, steps taken for their development, challenges coming in the way such as their financing, land constraints, etc, and other issues related to them.

• 10. Investment models.
  • Need for investment in the Indian economy, its types such as FDI, and issues related to it.
  • Types of investment models such as PPP, their advantages and limitations, and steps taken to promote them

• 11. Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life.
  • Major emerging technologies such as 5G, IoT, etc, their applications and impacts.
  • Role of Science & Technology in areas such as Health, Education, Agriculture, etc, major developments in those directions and issues arising out of them

• 12. Achievements of Indians in science & technology; indigenization of technology and developing new technology.
  • Development of science & technology in India since the 1950s upto now, and major achievements such as atomic energy, missiles, space, etc
  • Steps taken towards indigenization of technologies in major sectors such as Defense, Manufacturing, etc

• 13. Awareness in the fields of IT, Space, Computers, robotics, nano-technology, bio-technology and issues relating to intellectual property rights.
  • Major developments in the fields of IT & Computers, Nano-Technology, Bio-Technology, etc such as GM Crops, AI, etc, their applications, and issues related to them.
  • Intellectual Property Rights such as Patent, GI, etc, their benefits, and issues related to them.

• 14. Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, Environmental Impact Assessment.
  • Efforts taken for the conservation of natural resources such as forests, wildlife, rivers, etc at India and international levels.
  • Environmental pollution, its major types, causes, and their impacts such as Global Warming, Ozone Depletion, etc.
  • Environmental Impact Assessment, its need, initiatives taken, and challenges faced

• 15. Disaster and disaster management.
  • Basic concepts related to Natural Hazards, Disasters, and Disaster Management; Different phases of disaster management, steps taken in India such as the Disaster Management Act of 2005
  • Major types of disasters concerning India such as Flood, Drought, and Earthquake, etc, their causes, impacts, and steps taken to mitigate them

• 16. Linkages between development and spread of extremism
  • Relation between developmental issues and rise of extremism; Various forms of extremism in India such as Left-Wing Extremism, Insurgency, etc, factors helping their rise, challenges posed by them, steps taken to contain them, and remaining challenges.

• 17. Role of external state and non-state actors in creating challenges to internal security
  • Security challenges posed by external state actors such as those by Pakistan, China, etc; Security challenges posed by non-state actors such as Terrorism, Smuggling, etc.

• 18. Challenges to internal security through communication networks, role of media and social networking sites in internal security challenges, basics of cyber security; money-laundering and its prevention
  • Security challenges posed by social media and other forms of media such as propagation of extremism, rumor-mongering, etc
  • Cyber security, its significance, steps taken and challenges faced
  • Money laundering, its process, challenges posed by it and steps taken

• 19. Security challenges and their management in border areas - linkages of organized crime with terrorism.
  • Land and Coastal Borders of India, challenges in their management, and steps taken
  • Organized crimes, their types such as Trafficking, Smuggling, etc, challenges posed by them, their connecting with terrorism, and steps taken to tackle them

• 20. Various Security forces and agencies and their mandate
  • Major security agencies of India such as Central Armed Police Forces, Intelligence Agencies, etc, their functions and related issues.

• 1. 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.

• 2. Attitude
  • Content, structure, function; its influence and relation with thought and behavior; moral and political attitudes; social influence and persuasion

• 3. Aptitude and foundational values for Civil Service
  • Integrity, impartiality and non-partisanship, objectivity, dedication to public service, empathy, tolerance, and compassion towards the weaker sections.

• 4. Emotional intelligence concepts
  • Emotional intelligence concepts, and their utilities and application in administration and governance.

• 5. Contributions of moral thinkers and philosophers
  • Contributions of moral thinkers and philosophers from India and the world.

• 6. 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.

• 7. 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.

• 8. Case Studies
  • Case Studies on the above issues

Paper-VI & VII: Optional Subjects

• One may choose any optional subject from amongst the list of Optional Subjects as provided in the notification for UPSC CSE. The syllabus for different optional subjects can be obtained through UPSC notification Click Here.

UPSC Interview (Personality Test)

• The UPSC Interview is the Final Stage of CSE Examination, also called as Personality Test.It Assesses Aspirants suitablity for administrative roles by evaluting their Personality, communication skills, analytical ability and awareness on Current National and International Affairs, Issues and Events for about 20 to 30 minutes session for 275 marks out of 2025 total marks.The UPSC Interview Board will pose the questions from the candidates Detailed Application Form(DAF)
• The Interview covers Personal Details from DAF, awareness of National and International Issues, Socio-Economic & Governance Issues on Government Policies ,Social Policies and also Economic Policies . It assesses their problem Solving Capability and Ethical Jubgement on the Issues.
• The UPSC does not provide any defined syllabus for the Interview or Personality Test, However, the UPSC covers on Situational and Ethics and candidates ability to resolve issues as an Administrator for their future role in Governance.