The UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) conducts the Civil Services Examination in three stages – Preliminary, Mains and Interview. The Preliminary stage of the examination consists of two papers – General Studies Paper I and General Studies Paper II (CSAT).

Here is the list of subjects covered under the UPSC Prelims Exam Syllabus:

General Studies Paper I

This paper covers the following subjects:

1. Current events of national and international importance
2. Indian History and Indian National Movement
3. Indian and World Geography – Physical, Social, Economic geography of India and the world
4. Indian Polity and Governance – Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.
5. Economic and Social Development – Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector initiatives, etc.
6. Environmental Ecology, Biodiversity and Climate Change – General issues on Environmental Ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change
7. General Science

General Studies Paper II (CSAT)

This paper tests the candidates’ aptitude and comprehension abilities. It covers the following subjects:

1. Comprehension
2. Interpersonal skills including communication skills
3. Logical reasoning and analytical ability
4. Decision-making and problem-solving
5. General mental ability
6. Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude, etc.) (Class X level), Data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency, etc. – Class X level)

The Preliminary stage of the UPSC Civil Services Examination is a screening test. The marks scored in this stage are not counted for the final selection. However, a candidate must clear this stage to appear for the Mains Examination.