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ClearIAS » UPSC Books Review » General Studies – Civil Services Books – Mains Exam

General Studies – Civil Services Books – Mains Exam

Last updated on November 6, 2020 by Alex Andrews George

In the Civil Services exam, General Studies (GS) until 2012 had 2 papers, but the revised pattern proposed in 2013 has 4 GS papers, making it the determining factor.

GS questions can be from conventional topics or current affairs topics. While there are a lot of books available in the market for learning conventional topics, there is only one big name while preparing current affairs – The Hindu Newspaper.

As per the latest trends of UPSC, more focus is on current affairs/ general-awareness than subject knowledge gained through conventional books. But since the syllabus itself specifies many conventional areas like History, Culture, Geography, Constitution, Economics, etc, no candidate can move ahead without making his/her fundamentals strong. For that purpose, the below-mentioned books can help.

General Studies – Civil Services Books – Mains Exam

Recommended Books for General Studies – Civil Services Books – Mains Exam

Indian History Books for GS Mains – IAS

  1. History Of Modern India by Bipan Chandra
  2. India’s Struggle For Independence – Bipan Chandra
  3. Facets of Indian Culture – Spectrum
  4. India After Gandhi – Ramchandra Guha (Additional Reference)
  5. Modern India – By Spectrum (Additional Reference to Bipan Chandra)
  6. Gandhi, Nehru, Tagore and other Personalities – Spectrum

World History Books for GS Mains – IAS

  1. History of Modern World – Jain and Mathur
  2. History of Modern World – BV Rao
  3. Mastering Modern World History – Norman Lowe (Reference)

Geography Books for GS Mains – IAS

  1. Indian And World Geography – Hussain
  2. Geography of India – Majid Husain
  3. Certificate Physical and Human Geography – Goh Cheng Leong

Indian Polity Books for GS Mains – IAS

  1. Indian Polity for Civil Services Examinations – M. Laxmikanth
  2. Introduction to the Constitution of India – Durga Das Basu

Indian Economy Books for GS Mains – IAS

  1. Indian Economy – Ramesh Singh
  2. Indian – Economy – Uma Kapila
  3. Economic Survey 
  4. The Budget
  5. India Year Book

Foreign Policy and International Relations Books for GS Mains – IAS

  1. International Organisations, Conferences and Treaties – By Spectrum
  2. International Relations in 21st Century – By Pushpesh Pant
  3. Pax Indica – Shashi Tharoor
  4. 2 Markers – By Vivek Kumar Singh
  5. India’s Foreign Policy: Coping with the Changing World by Muchkund Dubey
  6. Foreign Policy of India by V N Khanna
  7. India’s Foreign Policy by Sumit Ganguly

Science and Technology Books for GS Mains – IAS

  1. Science & Technology For Civil Services Exams
  2. Science and Technology in India – Kalpana Rajaram – Spectrum
  3. General Science For Civil Services Preliminary Examinations – S.A.Majid

Environment Books for GS Mains – IAS

  1. CSAT Environmental Ecology Biodiversity & Climate Change – Pratiyogita Darpan
  2. Environmental Studies from Crisis to Cure 2nd Edition – R.Rajagoplan
  3. UPSC IAS PORTAL: Environment For Civil Services Preliminary Examination – Sachchida Nand Jha

Sociology Books for GS Mains – IAS

  • Society In India: Concepts, Theories And Recent Trends – Ram Ahuja
  • Social Problems In India – Ram Ahuja
  • Social Change In Modern India – M. N. SRINIVAS

Ethics Books for GS Mains – IAS [Ethics, Aptitude, Attitude etc]

  1. Ethics and Integrity of Governance: Perspectives Across Frontiers
  2. Public Administration Ethics for the 21st Century
  3. Corruption, Ethics and Accountability: Essays by an Administrator
  4. Ethics and Integrity in Public Administration: Concepts and Cases
  5. Politics and Ethics of the Indian Constitution
  6. Emotional Intelligence – Daniel Goleman
  7. Ethics: Approaching Moral Decisions ( For Case Studies)
  8. Managerial Ethics: Managing the Psychology of Morality (Reference)
  9. Attitude Is Everything (Reference)
  10. Ethics – by Frankena K William
  11. Human Values and Professional Ethics with Case Studies (For Case Studies)

Current Affairs Books for GS Mains – IAS

  1. India Yearbook – Publication Division
  2. Economic Survey
  3. Manorama Yearbook
  4. Mathrubhumi Yearbook

 Additional Reference for GS Mains:

  • NCERT Books Download
  • Yojana Magazine Download
  • Kurukshetra Magazine
  • Pratiyogita Darpan Magazine
  • IGNOU Books
  • Latest Books For IAS Mains as Per Revised Syllabus ( At Flipkart)
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About Alex Andrews George

Alex Andrews George is a mentor, author, and entrepreneur. Alex is the founder of ClearIAS and one of the expert Civil Service Exam Trainers in India.

He is the author of many best-seller books like 'Important Judgments that transformed India' and 'Important Acts that transformed India'.

A trusted mentor and pioneer in online training, Alex's guidance, strategies, study-materials, and mock-exams have helped thousands of aspirants to become IAS, IPS, and IFS officers.

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