Geography is no doubt one of the most sought after and popular Optionals in UPS CSE for various reasons enlisted below; For Arts & Commerce its a natural choice, but even if you are from science stream,engineer or doctor then geography is the best optional, even if you have studied science upto 12 th class then you can safely opt for Geography optional. Having geography as your optional you have following advantages. It is scientific so once you understand the concept then you can write answer in your own words …flowery language isn't required like other humanity subjects. It covers at least 30 questions out of 100 in prelims (ecology& environment is also in geography). In mains GS paper 1 it covers 100 marks and in GS paper 3 it covers 200 marks. Paper 1, of geography optional is concept based and paper 2 of geography optional is applied that is it deals with Geography of India, where you need to use the concepts of paper one along with current developments. No other optional has such exhaustive coverage in GS ,even if you opt any other optional still you have to cover 50% of the geography optional syllabus. It is highly scoring,its possible to fetch 300+marks in geography with some effort,which is rare in other optionals. It is very interesting and you can relate geography with your day to day to day life. No other subject is so interesting. But this subject requires expert guidance or you will find yourself jumbled up with hundreds of books and notes available in the market. Gladly our faculties have been selected into service with geography as optionals and also our assitant professors are from Geography background in Sankalp IAS Forum You can go for online classes that will save your time,energy and money and help you focus on the subject. I feel myself to be lucky enough to have the opportunity of mentoring students seeking Geography,and we provide geography optional course and along with regular updates. We are in love with geography and that makes us passionate teachers. All the best, you can have your own informed choice while choosing the guidance for Geography optional. Geography plan in Sankalp IAS Forum-is one of the best strategy for Geography optional About the initiative: We already have the detailed study plans for various components of the syllabus in terms of syllabus, approach, imperatives, resources etc. The strategy would be updated regularly to cover all the remaining portions of the syllabus. Kindly note that during classroom sessions, although we shall be providing strategies for individual components of the syllabus and in fact have already provided for some of them, the representative strategy for Physical Geography is Climatology. Therefore, through the strategy of Climatology first. But in no case avoid the detailed strategies of other portions. The relevant portions of Paper I and II have been clubbed to ease your efforts. Geography optional can’t be understood without seamless integration of topics from different components of the syllabus. For example, you can’t understand desertification without having fair idea of climatic regions of the world. Similarly, you are expected to apply the concepts of Paper I into Paper II and vice versa. There are certain topics which are repeated e.g agro and social forestry, desertification, disasters etc. We have thus integrated such topics in the plan. It will definitely give you a better and comprehensive idea of the subject. Most importantly, this approach saves a lot of your time and effort. Based on this strategy and your efforts, we shall be posting a total of 5 questions daily. These questions shall be in the following format. Question 1. 5 map entries asking their location and a brief description Question 2. Terminologies related to the chapter/topic mentioned in the 100 day plan Question 3. Blue blooded Geography theory question to check your conceptual clarity Question 4. Application based descriptive/ essay type question Question 5. Reserved; may be of any type depending upon the requirement of the topic Answers will be reviewed along with feedback Brief synopsis in the form of directives will be provided at the end of the day. Mini tests will be conducted ever 15 days. This means that you shall have a minimum of 6 mini tests during this period. 10 days have been earmarked for revision purposes. During these 10 days, number of questions shall be increased. After the completion of 100 days, full mock test for both the papers will be conducted. Periodically SIF will come up with articles for important and tricky topics and also about improving the quality of answers. Now about the syllabus and book list for Geography: The prestigious UPSC civil services exam consists of 3 stages - Prelims, Mains and Interview. Amongst them Mains is the most crucial stage, as in your final selection depends upon mains ( Total marks: 1750 marks) and interview marks ( Total marks: 275 marks), while prelims is merely of qualifying nature. Now with respect to mains, there are 9 papers , having two papers of optional subject - signifying a weightage of 500 marks ( Paper 1 and Paper 2- 250 marks each). Though weightage seems to be less, the marks one can fetch in the optional subject makes it most important. This means that with a smart strategy one can achieve 60-70 % Marks ( 300-350 marks out of 500) while for other GS papers getting close to 50% is itself a mammoth task. Therefore choosing a good optional subject is a sine qua non for clearing UPSC exam. Decoding geography as an Optional:   The optional consists of two papers -  Paper I -PRINCIPLES OF GEOGRAPHY Paper-II -GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA  PAPER I  PRINCIPLES OF GEOGRAPHY  Physical Geography :  1. Geomorphology: Factors controlling landform development; endogenetic and exogenetic forces; Origin and evolution of the earth’s crusts; Fundamentals of geomagnetism; Physical conditions of the earth’s interior; Geosynclines; Continental drift; Isostasy; Plate tectonics; Recent views on mountain building; Volcanicity; Earthquakes and Tsunamis; Concepts of geomorphic cycles and Landscape development; Denudation chronology; Channel morphology; Erosion surfaces; Slope development; Applied Geomorphology; Geomorphology, economic geology and environment.  2. Climatology: Temperature and pressure belts of the world; Heat budget of the earth; Atmospheric circulation; Atmospheric stability and instability. Planetary and local winds; Monsoons and jet streams; Air masses and fronto; Temperate and tropical cyclones; Types and distribution of precipitation; Weather and Climate; Koppen’s Thornthwaite’s and Trewar Tha’s classification of world climate; Hydrological cycle; Global climatic change, and role and response of man in climatic changes Applied climatology and Urban climate.  3. Oceanography: Bottom topography of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans; Temperature and salinity of the oceans; Heat and salt budgets, Ocean deposits; Waves, currents and tides; Marine resources; biotic, mineral and energy resources; Coral reefs coral bleaching; Sea-level changes; Law of the sea and marine pollution.  4. Biogeography: Genesis of soils; Classification and distribution of soils; Soil profile; Soil erosion, Degrada-tion and conservation; Factors influencing world distribution of plants and animals; Problems of deforestation and conservation measures; Social forestry, agro-forestry; Wildlife; Major gene pool centres.  5. Environmental Geography: Principle ecology; Human ecological adaptations; Influence of man on ecology and environment; Global and regional ecological changes and imbalances; Ecosystem their management and conservation; Environmental degradation, management and conservation; Biodiversity and sustainable development; Environmental policy; Environmental hazards and remedial measures; Environmental education and legislation.  Human Geography :  1. Perspectives in Human Geography: Areal differentiation; Regional synthesis; Dichotomy and dualism; Environmentalism; Quantitative revolution and locational analysis; Radical, behavioural, human and welfare approaches; Languages, religions and secularisation; Cultural regions of the world; Human development index.  2. Economic Geography: World economic development: measurement and problems; World resources and their distribution; Energy crisis; the limits to growth; World agriculture: typology of agricultural regions; Agricultural inputs and productivity; Food and nutrition problems; Food security; famine: causes, effects and remedies; World industries: location patterns and problems; Patterns of world trade.  3. Population and Settlement Geography: Growth and distribution of world population; Demographic attributes; Causes and consequences of migration; Concepts of over-under-and optimum population; Population theories, world population problems and policies, Social well-being and quality of life; Population as social capital. Types and patterns of rural settlements; Environmental issues in rural settlements; Hierarchy of urban settlements; Urban morphology; Concept of primate city and rank-size rule; Functional classification of towns; Sphere of urban influence; Rural-urban fringe; Satellite towns; Problems and remedies of urbanization; Sustainable development of cities.  4. Regional Planning: Concept of a region; Types of regions and methods of regionalisation; Growth centres and growth poles; Regional imbalances; Regional development strategies; Environmental issues in regional planning; Planning for sustainable development. 5. Models, Theories and Laws in Human Geography : System analysis in Human geography; Malthusian, Marxian and demographic transition models; Central Place theories of Christaller and Losch; Perroux and Boudeville; Von Thunen’s model of agricultural location; Weber’s model of industrial location; Ostov’s model of stages of growth. Heart-land and Rimland theories; Laws of international boundaries and frontiers.  PAPER-II  GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA  1. Physical Setting: Space relationship of India with neighbouring countries; Structure and relief; Drainage system and watersheds; Physiographic regions; Mechanism of Indian monsoons and rainfall patterns; Tropical cyclones and western disturbances; Floods and droughts; Climatic regions; Natural vegetation, Soil types and their distributions.  2. Resources: Land, surface and groundwater, energy, minerals, biotic and marine resources, Forest and wildlife resources and their conservation; Energy crisis.  3. Agriculture: Infrastructure: irrigation, seeds, fertilizers, power; Institutional factors; land holdings, land tenure and land reforms; Cropping pattern, agricultural productivity, agricultural intensity, crop combination, land capability; Agro and social-forestry; Green revolution and its socio-economic and ecological implications; Significance of dry farming; Livestock resources and white revolution; Aqua-culture; Sericulture, Agriculture and poultry; Agricultural regionalisation; Agro-climatic zones; Agro-ecological regions.  4. Industry: Evolution of industries; Locational factors of cotton, jute, textile, iron and steel, aluminium, fertiliser, paper, chemical and pharmaceutical, automobile, cottage and ago-based industries; Industrial houses and complexes including public sector underkings; Industrial regionalisation; New industrial policy; Multinationals and liberalisation; Special Economic Zones; Tourism including ecotourism.  5. Transport, Communication and Trade: Road, railway, waterway, airway and pipeline networks and their complementary roles in regional development; Growing importance of ports on national and foreign trade; Trade balance; Trade Policy; Export processing zones; Developments in communication and information technology and their impacts on economy and society; Indian space programme.  6. Cultural Setting: Historical Perspective of Indian Society; Racial linguistic and ethnic diversities; religious minorities; Major tribes, tribal areas and their problems; Cultural regions; Growth, distribution and density of population; Demographic attributes: sex-ratio, age structure, literacy rate, work-force, dependency ratio, longevity; migration (inter-regional, intraregional and international) and associated problems; Population problems and policies; Health indicators.  7. Settlements: Types, patterns and morphology of rural settlements; Urban developments; Morphology of Indian cities; Functional classification of Indian cities; Conurbations and metropolitan regions; Urban sprawl; Slums and associated problems; Town planning; Problems of urbanisation and remedies.  8. Regional Development and Planning: Experience of regional planning in India; Five Year Plans; Integrated rural development programmes; Panchayati Raj and decentralized planning; Command area development; Watershed management; Planning for backward area, desert, drought-prone, hill tribal area development; Multi-level planning; Regional planning and development of island territories.  9. Political Aspects: Geographical basis of Indian federalism; State reorganisation; Emergence of new states; Regional consciousness and inter-state issues; International boundary of India and related issues; Cross-border terrorism; India’s role in world affairs; Geopolitics of South Asia and Indian Ocean realm.  10. Contemporary Issues: Ecological issues: Environmental hazards: landslides, earthquakes, Tsunamis, floods and droughts, epidemics; Issues related to environmental pollution; Changes in patterns of land use; Principles of environmental impact assessment and environmental management; Population explosion and food security; Environmental degradation; Deforestation, desertification and soil erosion; Problems of agrarian and industrial unrest; Regional disparities in economic development; Concept of sustainable growth and development; Environmental awareness; Linkage of rivers; Globalisation and Indian economy.  NOTE: Candidates will be required to answer one compulsory map question pertinent to subjects covered by this paper. Sources to Refer: Paper 1 Physical Geography by Savinder Singh Geomorphology by Savinder Singh Climatology by D S Lal Environmental Geography by Savinder Singh Evolution of Geographical Thought by Majid Husain Models in Geography by Majid Husain Human Geography by Majid Hussain GC Leong Paper-II India: A Comprehensive Geography by D R Khullar NCERTs  Orient Blackswan/Oxford Atlas Map Entries in Geography – K Siddhartha Apart from the above current affairs holds great importance especially in Paper 2 of the geography optional. For preparing these topics there is a need to keep an eye on topics relevant to our exam from various newspapers such as The Hindu, Indian Express, Down to Earth etc. RSTV programmes like Big Picture on a relevant topic such as rural development can also be helpful.

Recharge, Rejuvenate and Renew After results of UPSC CSE 2019, those who have not cleared must now gear up. It must have been many marks, might be 80-20 ,but then it surely makes a difference ,isnt it. Now when you are gearing up for new attempt, its clear that we cant fight new plan with old strategies. New plans require new strategy. Selected Candidates who aim for  Rank Improvement , if you are planning to focus on topics, my advice is not to look for important topics. against the search for topics, it is themes that must be searched and studied. Themes are actually those topics/subtopics of UPSC CSE syllabus that should be studied in deep, as if you are Secretary level officer of that department. Like a topic on Agriculture must be studied with all burning issues, where-what-when-why-whose-who-how- etc. No t only this one must know every topic has its language, and that language must be used in answers. These are keywords that must come in the answers. Effective answer writing is key to success, is the mantra to clearing UPSC CSE Now thats a tightrope – you must be thinking on one side, we are struggling to complete the syllabus and other side I am asking for enrichment. One must also make wise use of internet and know how to use internet for upsc preparation. Look, who is guiding you. So I have come up with 32 themes to be studied from horses mouth-ie the Bureaucrats themselves, along with the qualified academicians. We did this experiment between 2010 an 2015 and this was a hit. Students cleared exams with minimum efforts and Maximum o utput strategy , under our mentorship. All this by officers who have cleared Mains and are serving in system through various departments. It is during themes, that one get what UPSC actually want you to do- know all views and make your own view. Based on current affairs and issues of national importance, we have studied previous year question papers and marking pattern and come up with 32 themes. IN continuation of this, we have come up with a personal mentoring program with following themes. QEP BASIC (32 THEMES) is Designed such that it Comprehensively covers 32THEMES which once learnt, can be easily replicated to ALL PAPERS (GS I, II, III, IV, Essay, Optional) to enhance your score by at least 150+ Marks. It is for; Those taking their first Mains, and aim to get selected in their very first attempt and have done some foundation course before. Those who are aiming for CSE 2021 and have completed their Foundation Course. What do you get:
a) Online Lecture sessions according to themes, such that by the end of the course you would have made self-made notes, which you can just revise before Mains and Prelims. b) 4-5 answer writing per theme with feedbacks for improvements.
c) Quality enrichment tips and notes, theme wise on e-mail.
d) High Impact Answers: Practice using Diagrams, relevant Fact & Figures, important Keywords & Quick recall Acronyms (to remember important dimensions and way forward).
Importantly full test series with above themes will give a boost of 100-150 marks for sure. Many have cleared in first attempt also. See reviews below
https://www.sankalpiasforum.com/post/story-of-a-working-guy-who-cleared-in-first-attempt-ajay-kumar-ias
h tt ps://www.sankalpiasforum.com/upsc-sucess-story-navnath-gavhane The 32 themes are given below So I have come up with 32 themes to be studied from horses mouth-ie the Burecrats themselves, along with the qualified academicians. We did this experiment between 2010 an 2015 and this was a hit. Students cleared exams with minimum efforts and Maximum o utput strategy, under our mentorship. It is during themes, that one get what UPSC actually want you to do- know all views and make your own view. Based on current affairs and issues of national importance, we have studied previous year question papers and marking pattern and come up with above 32 themes.

My IAS interview as it happened on 22th march 2012

Today I appeared for second UPSC interview of my life. Last year was
an average performance for me, hence a scope for improvement was
there. I was the first person to be called by P K Mishra board. I sat
outside the interview room for almost 10 minutes, drank a glass of
water. With heart pumping like anything I decided to think about
Sachin Tendulkar’s century, just like harry potter used to do when he
faced dementors, happy memories, you know. Finally the bell rang and
below is what conspired in next 35 minutes. (cp: chair-person, m1, m2,
m3, m4: members of board)
me: May I come in, sir.
cp: Yes, please come in.
me: Good morning ma’am, good morning sirs.
all: Good morning.
cp: Please take a seat.
me: Thank you sir (adjusted the chair a bit)
cp: Please make sure you are comfortable.
me: Thank you sir, I am comfortable. (smile)
cp: So, you are from Aligarh.
me: No sir, I am from Mathura, Aligarh was my birth place.
cp: Oh, alright. (pause for few seconds) (with big smile) Tell us
something about what is “Norway’s egg on delhi’s face
story” (everybody else laughs)
me: Sir, this was a headline in today’s newspaper. Story is related to
custody of two children in Norway. The parents, who are Indian,
requested Indian government to intervene in the issue as they argued
that it is an issue of culture insensitivity. Govt of India registered
the protest, even sent an special envoy to Norway to resolve the issue
and bring the kids back to India. But now the news report is that the
issue was related to domestic problem of the couple. So, govt has to
retract its intervention. That is why such a headline.
cp: Do you think govt was wrong to intervene?
me: Sir, I think it is proper for govt to intervene for interest of
Indians abroad, but govt should have investigated a bit before getting
involved in the issue.
cp: What was the role of media in this case? Do you think that affects
the decision of govt?
me: Sir, media in general tend to put emphasis on the emotional
content of issue without thinking about rational dimension. I think
sir, govt should be careful and should consider the interest of our
foreign policy. Otherwise such small issue can give rise to bigger
diplomatic crisis, which is not very good for our position in the
world.
cp: Okay, what is this red-cross competition that you won in your
school time? What was involved in that?
me: Sir, it was a state level competition among various schools. I was
part of the team of my school. Competition involved some practical
tests based on the knowledge of primary basic treatment given to
wounded person, tying the knots, preparing stretcher etc.
cp: Who was the founder of red-cross movement?
me: Sir, Henry Dunont from switzerland.
cp: Okay, do you know what is the structure of red-cross at district
level?
me: Sir, i know that there is a committee at state level. But I am not
aware of exact situation at district level. Sir, collector is in-
charge of such operation.
cp: (laugh) Yeah, collector is in-charge of everything, safe bet,
isn’t it so?
me: (smile) Yes sir. He is the co-ordinator of everything
cp: So, What are the major works undertaken by red-cross?
me: Sir, in India or in general?
cp: Tell us first in general then in India.
me: Sir, in general red-cross is UN authorized body to take care of
wounded soldiers in battlefield. It works as a neutral body…
(interrupts)
cp: okay, okay, in India now.
me: Sir, in India, red-cross has worked at the time of various wars
like kargil war. It is also active in maoist affected areas.
cp: You are missing a major work done by red-cross.
me: (a bit thinking) Sir, they organize blood donation camps.
cp: That’s alright, but I was pointing towards AIDS camps. They have
done good work in that area.
me: Yes sir, thank you sir.
cp: So, you have written debating as hobby. Do you start to debate
wherever you go? Would you start a debate right here if I provoke you.
(big smile)
me: (smile) No sir, I was part of debating team in my college time.
cp: Did you win any competition?
me: Yes sir, I won prizes in IIT Kanpur and IIT Delhi in inter-college
cultural festivals.
cp: What kind of topics were there when you won those debates?
me: Sir, there used to be many rounds in debate competitions. As I
recall when I was in IITK, there was a topic on the emerging patterns
in electoral politics of UP. This was right after 2007 election in UP.
cp: Can you tell us few trends emerging in recent election without
naming any party or person?
me: Sir, first I would tell about +ve then -ve trends.
cp: Yeah, go ahead.
me: Sir, positive trends are, number one, election are violence free,
they have higher voter turnout. Then sir, people are giving clear
mandate. So the hung assemblies are becoming a thing of past. Then
sir, most important trend is that shift is taking place towards
developmental politics… (interrupts)
cp: So you mean issue like bijli, sadak, paani are main issues now.
me: Yes sir, however the traditional caste politics is still there but
emphasis is shifting. Then sir, negative trends that I could think of,
is related to communalizing the election un-necessarily. There was
also a tendency to confront EC on various issues.
cp: You are from UP, you must know what is social engineering?
me: Sir, social engineering is a political concept where political
parties try to form a coalition of social groups based on caste or
religion and then use that as a vote bank.
cp: Alright (points to next lady member)
m1: Tell me name of any musician from south India?
me: A R Rehmaan, ma’am
m1: Right. Anyone older?
me: M S Subbalaxmi, but she is more famous as singer.
m1: Chakresh, why is kannauj famous in modern time?
me: Ma’am, Kannuaj is famous for ittra industry.
m1: Tell me the detail of this industry? Is it being exported?
me: Ma’am ittra is made in kannauj from the locally produced rose,
chameli and other such flowers. Factories for this are located in
every street of kannauj. Then the products are exported, mostly to
middle east and south-east asian countries. The local consumption is
very small, if I recall it correctly.
m1: What are the main problems of this industry these days?
me: Ma’am, most important problem is related to the marketing and
competition from products of other countries. In today’s globalized
world this industry is not able to compete properly. In Kannuaj, the
technology used is still very old and there is no organized efforts to
increase the sell of ittra.
m1: Can govt do something to face this situation?
me: Ma’am, govt can provide basic infrastructure and can take care of
supply chain. It can provide training for latest technology. Other
than that, in today’s competition based economy, survival in dependent
on market mechanisms only.
m1: Do you know anything about co-operative moment in India? Tell us
whether it is successful or a failure?
me: Ma’am, this movement started at the time of national struggle for
freedom. Co-operatives are formed by forming a group of small scale
producers, farmers etc. They were very much popular in 70s and 80s,
but now the influence of these co-operatives is reducing. One famous
example of co-operative is Amul.
m1: So, what is the main difference in a company and co-operative?
me: Ma’am co-operative is formed by a community and profit is shared
among members. While company is profit oriented organization. Co-
operatives are mostly in rural areas, while companies are urban
centered… (interrupts)
m1: co-operatives are in cities also.
me: Yes ma’am, but mostly in rural areas.
m1: Okay, How do they work?
me: Ma’am companies have a board of directors and CEO as its head. Co-
operative are a mutual election based organization. I do not know much
details about this ma’am.
m1: Okay, how are they formed?
me: Sorry ma’am, I do not understand the question.
m1: I mean, under which act?
me: Companies are formed under company act and co-operative under co-
operative act (smile)
m1: Good guess, was it a guess? (smile)
me: No ma’am (smile)
m2: Which country in Africa is famous for its co-operative movement?
me: Sorry sir, I don’t know, but I can take a guess.
m2: Yeah yeah go ahead.
me: I recall faintly, It is Kenya.
m2: (laughs loudly) nahi, galat zabab, it is Tanzania.
me: Thank you sir (smile)
m2: What is the full form of NHRC?
me: sir, National Human rights Commission.
m2: Who is the chairman?
me: ex-CJI K G Balakrishnan.
m2: Okay chakresh, you must have read about nuclear disaster in japan.
So do you know any nuclear summit taking place on this issue?
me: sir, I know there is a international meeting, but i don’t remember
the details of this meeting.
m2: Actually it is taking place in this month itself and our PM is
also going there. What in your opinion would be the most burning topic
in this meeting in context of japan incident?
me: Sir, right now major issue is the security of nuclear reactors
from the natural disasters and terrorist activities. There is a
growing fear in public worldwide about the security. I think, the
strategy to face this challenge would be the major issue in any such
meeting.
m2: Go on. How to remove these fears from mind of people?
me: Sir, in my opinion, people must be made aware of the technical
details of such reactors. New cutting edge technologies should be
imported in developing country like India so that our reactors can be
made with best security features in the world. Then the publicizing
these security measures can remove fear from people’s mind.
m2: Good, have you heard about 2G scam?
me: Yes sir, It was a scam … (interrupts)
m2: Wait wait, have you read anything similar in today’s newspaper?
me: Yes sir, there is a news report about allocation of coal fields to
private and public companies without following the proper procedure.
CAG has estimated a loss of more than 10 lac crores. But I think sir,
it would be pre-mature to comment on this issue without reading
further about the issue.
m2: That’s alright.
m3: You have mentioned that you worked for tsunami relief fund in your
college days.
me: Yes ma’am.
m3: What could be done in the field of disaster management in our
country?
me: Ma’am, disaster management involves four steps, mitigation,
preparedness, response and rehabilitation. The most loss of life
occurs due to lack of pre-warning system and the diseases in aftermath
of disaster…(interrupts)
m3: Okay, lets go one by one. What should be done for preparedness?
me: Ma’am we can face such disasters better if we follow certain steps
such as installing pre-warning systems in case of tsunami, earthquake,
floods. General public can be trained for such disasters by mock
drills similar to one in delhi few weeks back. Then a important point
is to establish the alternate, more secure mode of communication from
districts to central national disaster management authority. Training
special task force to face such disaster is also a good step.
m3: Okay, what is mitigation?
me: Ma’am mitigation is process by which we try to avert a natural
disaster even before it takes place. Like banking of rivers, coastal
area management to avert the effect of tsunami.
m3: Okay, so what is the difference in leadership at the time of
disaster and normal time?
me: As in public administration theories ma’am, at the time of
disaster leadership should be centralized and top-down, while in
normal times it should be participative and bottom-up.
m3: Why centralized?
me: Ma’am at the time of crisis, time is most important factor and
there is a need of quick decision making. This can be done in
centralized leadership only.
m3: Hmmm, okay tell me what is difference between aptitude and
attitude?
me: May I think a bit ma’am.
m3: Yeah sure sure.
me: (5-10 sec pause) ma’am aptitude is the technical and educational
suitability of a person for a job and attitude is the trait of
personality, which we showcase towards others in any normal condition.
I am not sure ma’am how this definition match to the psychological
definition (smile)
m3: (smile) no no, its quite close. Attitude is this only, but
definition of aptitude is wrong.
me: May I try again ma’am?
m3: No, its alright (points to m4)
m4: What is CNG?
me: Sir, CNG is compressed natural gas, it is used as fuel in
vehicles.
m4: Is it better than others?
me: Sir, it is better in terms of pollution but it can be used for
short distance only. So it is good for metropolitan cities as Delhi
because distances are small here, but not so good for longer travel.
m4: What are the other fuels used in transportation.
me: Sir, other than CNG, petrol, diesel, coal, organic fuels are used.
Now a days new technologies are coming with use of hydrogen and
electricity also. Some vehicles use LPG cylinders also.
m4: What is the main gases in pollution?
me: Sir, pollution is caused by oxides of nitrogen, sulfur, carbon
particles, ozone
m4: Ozone!
me: Sir, there is nascent oxygen present in pollutants which forms
ozone.
m4: So, do you think Delhi is very polluted?
me: Sir, Delhi has high level of pollution compare to other cities in
world. But level of pollution has come down after metro and use of
CNG.
m4: How many percentages of pollution is caused by transportation
sector?
me: Sir, I don’t know the exact figure, but I read an estimate in
newspaper that it should be around 15%.
m4: Hmmm, may be in rural areas, but in cities it is around 25%.
me: Thank you sir.
m4: So, tell me few factors that cause air pollution and few for water
pollution?
me: Sir, air pollution is caused by traffic, industrial units, rice
cultivation. Water pollution is caused by industrial waste, dead
bodies in rivers, fertilizers etc.
m4: Okay, what is water harvesting?
me: Sir, rain water harvesting?
m4: Yes yes, the same.
me: Rain water harvesting is a method of collecting water locally for
use in irrigation and drinking etc.
m4: (smile) what you mean by locally?
me: Sir, rain water is collected in reservoirs or tanks locally before
it can go to the river. Then it is used locally
m4: Okay, water level is going down in whole of our country, do you
agree?
me: Yes sir.
m4: Why?
me: Sir, main reason is the excessive use or wastage of water in daily
activities. Then there is lack of proper management of rain water…
(interrupts)
m4: Alright, good good, you are from UP?
me: Yes sir.
m4: okay, have a nice day. That’s it from my side.
me: Thank you sir, nice day.
cp: (with a cunning smile) Okay chakresh, answer my last question then
you can go. Who was the most famous king of Kannauj?
me: (smile) Sir, king Harsha Vardhan
cp: (smile) Okay, interview is over, you may leave now.
me: Thank you sirs, Thank you ma’am.
Candidate : Anju RK
yep...im done with my interview too...was the 2nd one..and ws
interview by Prof. Purushottam Agarwal's board. It was a very cordial
affair. Bsids the chairman, there was 1 lady member and 3 male
members. I'm not 2 sure of th time it took, but must have been around
20-25 mins. I do not remmber all my answers,but I could share th ques
with u.
First a brief biodata:
-from kerala
-did schooling abroad(in Bahrain to be exact)
-Btech in ECE in NIT,Calicut
After all the formalities were over,and after they hurriedly asked me
to take a seat.
C:So, you graduated in 2010. what have you been doing for the last 2
years.
A:I was preparing for the civil services sir.
C: So I hope you have been keeping yourself updated. What do you know
about the recent NCTC contrversy.
A: (told the whole story bout coordinating intelligence,and oppn sayin
ut violates federal structure.)
C:OK,so do you think we are a federal nation. Are we tilted too
heavily to the centre.
A: (i sed something bout the centre having 2 take a strong stand in
case the issue concerns national security, and bout the states and
other stakeholders taken on board in case it is a matter which
concerns the states. he seemed satisfied. He asked a quick question on
the sch 7 n the 3 lists. amd then passd 2 the next member)
M1:So do you have any role models from the political leaders of our
long history.
A: I admire certain char of some of the leaders,but no role model in
particular.
M1k who r some of them then?
A: said about Gandhiji(and about his values like honesty,his
leadership skill to mobilise the nation,and nonviolence to the extent
possible) as well as EMS Namboothiripad(kerala's 1st cm,who was
communist and led many labour and land reforms)
C: Since you talked about EMS, what is nokkukooli?
A: (mallus wud b the only ones who need kno this,and im sure they
would. its 'looking wages' and i tried 2 explain it in the subtlest
possibl way!)
M2: Since you are an engg student please tell me why did the 2g scam
occur at all.?
A: (told bout the FCFS and auctioning etc. and the change in th
policies since it was realised 2 be a very scarce resource and should
be auctiond)
M2k,im a layman. explain spectrum 2 me in plain english.
A: (it was a lil diff....i didn think i answered proprly,but he went
on 2 th next q)
M2:how are thes diff operators allocated spectrum
A: (from what i have read, it had sumthn 2 do with the 2g being in
900/1800 MHz range with a bandwidth of around 100MHz...and they r
given the spectrum in bundles within this bandwidth.....i hope im
rite...he didn argue anyway!)
M3(lady member): so since you were abroad 4 so long wat is the basic
diff u find b/w wat u have learnt there and ur cousins here.
A: (talked bout teaching being more or less the same since im also
cbse. talked bout bahrain having better infrastructure facilities. and
sed that the basic diff was tht v were taught 2 be indians first, and
were brought up wid no discrimination of gender,caste,race
etc......they all agreed on tht 1 an nodded)
M3:so will you work in other states...even NE?
A:Sure i will
M3:what do you think must be done to make NE ppl feel less alienated.
A: (talked bout topography being main issue...need to step up
road,rail,air links....provide economic security and political
freedom.)
M3: ohh...like even if they say they want independence.
A: (said tht they r also an integral part of india.just as other
states' issues find favour with the centre, their probs must also be
brought into th limelight in the centre.)
M3: yes thts true. also we can bring in more ppl 2 interact.
A: (told bout increasing tourism in th area. refered 2 th various ads
being seen these days)
M4:Recently Arab spring was spread 2 Bahrain as well. why did it
hapen.
A: (talked bout religious sectarian discrimination.he asked me
specificaly, so i said bout shia majority-sunni rulers.then contined
talkin bout unemployment and slow pace of democratization.he was
constantly interuptin and askin me details bout each point and i
answerd)
M3: and what is being done now?the ruler is al faleh isnt it.
A: (told bout various reforms by the king shaikh hamad bin isa al
khalifa)
C: OK Thank you.
A: thank you sir. thank you ma'm thank you sirs.
Yep..it finished pretty fast,and wasnt asked 2 many confusing things
hope they were happy wid it!
all th best guys!
Candidate: abhikrt
Hmm , pheww done with interview.
Mine board was I.M.G Khan and i was 4th person to be interviewed. I
was taken to interview room and before i knew i was in front of panel.
I almost forget to wish the panel and was asked to take the seat.
After some basicinquiry about my form (there were some discrepancies)
interview started.
Questions were started by lady member.
M1 - IP rights act in field of agriculture.
Me - Seeds act ,
M1 - Close but still think about it.
Me (after some thinking) - Sorry mam, i cant remember.
M1 - Told about some protection of traditional knowledge of farmers
and asked me if i knew of that.
Me - I kept on nodding and told about protection of traditional
knowledge of farmers about seeds, farmingtechniques.
M1 - IP regime favorable to India ?
Me - (2 mins of extempore)
M1 - IP regime in medicine ?
Me - (Again 2 mins of extempore)
Passed to M2
M2 - Asked about LTTE ?
Me - LTTE as of now is defeated and dont exist.
Passed to third member
M3 - Asked about FDI in retail, supply chain management and in the end
if i will still favor ?
Me - Said benefitable to farmer, will eliminate intermediaries in
supply chain and problem of monopoly, should ensure competition. And
in the end said i will like to prefer farmers over intermediaries. (He
insisted on making a choice).
amit kumar - Mar 20
interview questions this year..
interview 2012..
I M G Khan board
questions asked ----
1. are we treating children badly in our society.. opinions.
( context- Falak)
2. what did u read in english literature that u later on also found in
political science?
3. implication of economic relations in international relations?
4. role of wto in international relations?
5.anti defection law- implications?
6. is india a case of democracy or oligopoly?
7. what is oligopoly?
8.why did u opt art stream as u had done ur 12th with splendid marks
in science stream :)
9. news paper reading hobby.. well, " budget this year came with a
whisper not with a bang" do u agree.. give reasons?
10. what was in the budget that disappointed you?
11. bipolarity, multi polarity, uni polarity in international
relations?
12. present world order..?
13. india's role in it?
14. what is RTE?
15. well u r in customs,excise.. tell us changing trends in customs
and excise over the years?
16. what is the rationale behind service tax, how would u convince
layman about service tax as u urself are a tax man?
17. what is better - GDP growth rate or Equitable distribution, why?
1-2 questions miss ho rahe hai.. yaad nahi aa rahe.
GAURAV PRAKASH - Mar 22
Vijay Singh Board: 19th march , first person in afternoon session.
1.      M1-You like watching television, what you watch on tv?2.
M1-What is your current source of information, if you don’t watch TV?
3.      M1-What sites you browse on internet?4.      M1- who you will
rate as the number 1 civil engineer? 5.      M2- how will your
knowledge of civil engineering will help you as an administrator?
6.      M2-what is your opinion on interlinking of river project?
7.      M2-We can protect environment if we guide it along the road?
8.      M2- Who is the professor at IIT Delhi who teaches meditation?
9.      M2- What is the difference between the type of yoga taught by
patanjali and those taught by ramdev & ravishankar?10.   M3-what type
of education system should we have in India? 11.   M3- do you like
reading books?12.   M3-which one was the last book you read .
13. M3-what is the name of the main protagonist?14. M3-what you learn
from his character?15. M4-tell about any one good project you did as
an NSS Secretary?16. M4- was there no map of campus from before? 17.
M4-what is spic macay? 18. M4-what is the name of IIT delhi prof who
heads it?19. M5- what is there in the budget this time? 20. M5- Is
service going to affect poor, how?21. M4-what qualities of
Visvesvaraya should an administrator have?22. M1- have you been to
Bihar recently?23. M1- what change you see in Bihar?24. M1-what about
roads?25. M1- do you believe that if political will is there
transformation can be brought about in a very short span of time? 26.
M1- what lesson does it have for the people?
xyz . - Mar 22
 Socha na tha!!!!:
PLS share ur experience with us if possible ...thks
These are the questions that I was asked - (My background - Mech Engg,
currently a scientist in Ministry of New and Renewable Energy,
optionals - Pub Admn and socio)What is your name?
You are from Delhi?
What is Bernoulli's Theorem?
What is "new" in new and renewable energy?
What are the different parliamentary committees?
What are the different ways in which parliament can hold the executive
responsible?
What is "cut motion"?
What is traditional medicine and what policy steps do you envisage so
as to promote and strenghten this sector?
How can traditional medicine be of economic importance?
IP related issues with traditional medicine? What do you propose?
Why has solar energy not picked up in India and Africa in all these
years?
What is the money required for setting up solar plants?
What is the area requirement for setting up solar plants?
what do you know about BRICS ?
When and where is the BRICS summit scheduled to be held?
What interdependence do you see in the process of automobile and
textile industry?
What do you understand by culture?
what is wider culture?
What do you know about M.N. Srinivas?
What do you understand by westernization and sanskritization?
Which states have a high wind power potential?
What are the problems faced while connecting wind power to grid?
Why are solar pumps not being used for pumping underground water in
rural areas?
What is fuel cell technology? What are the by products?
What are the efficiencies of solar plants and how do you envisage the
future scenario to be?
Situational question - there is a sincere and erudite CEO who is very
hard working but is unable to avoid the failure of the company. There
is a cunning CEO who is corrupt and practical and brings success for
the company and himself. The first is fired and second is rewarded -
Do you agree with the management's decision? What would you do?
Abhishek Yadav - 6:01 PM
My Interview - 23.03.2012
K.K. Paul Board
(2nd to go in)
The Board was very cordial, and contrary to what I have read or heard
about KK Paul, I found him to be a nice guy. No grilling, but yes, no
smiling either :). As you would see below, I found that quite a lot of
it, stemmed from my bio-data and very few were absolutely un-related
to me personally in some way.
My Background
Electrical Engineer (2008)
Hobbies: Watching movies (fiction), Reading books (fiction)
Extra-Curricular: Chief Coordinator of the Literary Society..
K.K. Paul
1. You are an electrical engineer. What is Plant Load Factor and what
is efficiency of a power plant.
2. If efficiency is ultimately the only thing that matters, what is
the use of Plant Load Factor.
3. You are from Our Lady of Fatima Secondary School, what is this Our
lady of Fatima...
4. You have the hobby of watching movies, fiction? What is this
fiction. Aren't all movies fiction.
5. What kinds of books do you read. (Science fiction).
6. Favorite author.
7. There was a movie in 1966-67, a very famous one, a book had also
been written on it. What was it? (2001: A Space Odyssey - though I
didnt know it and Paul Sir told the name).
8. Who was the author of the book.  (After I said that yes, I know
about the book and the movie and that infact, the book had been
written after the movie).
9. Where did the author live. (Since, despite being an British, he
lived in Sri Lanka).
10. You graduated in 2008, are you working somewhere. (Since working
as Income Tax Inspector)
M1
1. Why is your tie red?
2. No no, I mean, why is it looking red? (Since, I had misunderstood
and said that I felt it would suit my shirt).
3. Why do we use red color as a warning sign?
4. What do you think is the difference between Indians in India and
Indians in America.
5. What is the difference between Red Indians and Indians.
6. Who settled America. (which people that is)...
M2
1. What is free press.
2. In light of the clarification in the papers today regarding CAG and
the coalfields issue, how do you see the freedom of press.
3. Shouldn't we do something about the sensationalising of news...
4. But the Press Council isn't doing anything. (Since I had mentioned
it).
5. Give me an example of his activism (Since I had talked about the
acitivism of Markandey Katju).
6. We find that kids in smaller classes, have these events like story
telling, drawing etc etc. Does it serve any purpose.
7. What did you do as the CC of your literary society.
M3
1. We have so much atmospheric pollution nowadays from thermal power
plants, what are we doing to curb it.
2. Where is this Coal Gassification being done. (Since I had mentioned
the technology)
3. Are we doing anything on the Waste treatment front.
4. What about Solar. (Since I mentioned Renewable but didnt expand).
M4
1. You mentioned solar energy. What mission do we have for it.
2. What incentives is the govt. giving for them.
3. Do you know about Renewable Energy Certificates (Since I had said
that I am unable to recall the specific provisions).
4. It is said, " The Sun is still clouded when it comes to the solar
industry" - What does this mean.
5. You said, you like Sci-fi books. Name some indian authors on Sci-
fi.
6. I am not talking about movies. (Since I had mentioned Satyajit Ray.
Thank God, M2 said that he did write sci-fi books as well, or M4 might
not have believed me :P)
KK Paul
1. Ok, one last question. Who was the director of 2001: A Space
Odyssey.
2. Any other film he made (after I named the director)
3. What happened to that movie (A Clocwork Orange)

One day a young IT professional came to me in late evening, as i was about to wrap up my days work, "May i know where I can meet Santosh Sir", he asked Politely, to help desk, I was there, i said "yes go ahead, Am Santosh" . He was #IIMKoziokodeIAS graduate, from #HimachalPradesh and placed with a handsome salary in CARE Ratings,Mumbai. and who am i ? see below Also read story of Youngest IAS officer who got AIR 10th rank in his first attempt, Amrutesh Aurangabadkar, here Also read story of an IAS officer who cleared exam in his last attemt, MBBS-IAS, DR Navnath Gavhane, here Read What strategy should follow to became an IAS officer? , here Read How to crack UPSC in first attempt, How to become IAS in the first attempt? here Read how to crack ias by self-study, how to crack upsc in first attempt without coaching here He wanted to appear, as he said after general salutation talks, NOT JUST TRY for IAS. "Am going to do it, would u help me? " he asked confidently. By that time i had already helped a few others ,that time in #HinjewadiITPark,Pune. #orkut was the source from where he got my number. I couldn't say no. Days went by, and he became IPS in first attempt and IAS in his second attempt. He left job only 3 days ahead of his joining for #FoundationTraininginMussorie. I can say, he is a model for those who want to give #UPSCwhileworking. His work place was in #Sion,Mumbai and he stayed in #PrateekshaNagar. that effectively saved lot of his time in commuting. Working professionals may take this plan. Alternatively, #MadhukarAnand,now #IRS, was also working,but stayed distance apart. he used his time of commuting to listen his own voice-- he recorded his own reading books, this was my strategy that i give mantra to students. timetable for working professionals for IAS-UPSC exam Get a mentor, to whom you would be accountable. Fix time for SAPAE- Survey-analyse-plan-act-evaluate. Start early, like by 5.30am, do meditate, revise in mornings of what you did the previous day, when you reach office, brush up with Current Affairs, in evenings- read new, write and talk with your mentor. Following year same story was repeated. Smit Parmar, Jay Waghmare, Madhukar Anand, Kedar Gokhale also cleared exams- all in their maiden attempts, and that too with total preparation in Mumbai itself.. The saga continues ..this is beacuse of two persons, My friends who have been selected through exams have started a forum, Sankalp IAS Forum for proper guidance. in past few years the results have been amazing . proper mentoring, test series and feedback evaluation sessions have been helping aspirants in Mumbai & Pune . I am evaluating online test series too. Gtalk- santyrockspune@gmail.com ... , whatsapp: 9930075295 now where i teach i had gathers a great team, as you know officers cant be full time with the students,. So enjoy the company of intellectuals, Officers and mentors… please call 9987105552 for my schedule, alternatively, ping me on 9930075295(whats app) . wish you a very happy study time, .

What plan should I follow for one year to get a top 10 rank in the UPSC civil service exam? How do I crack UPSC CSE in the first attempt while being under any circumstances?  What mistakes did you do while preparing for UPSC CSE?   I am just an average student. Can I crack the IAS exam?  How did you clear the UPSC CSE in your first attempt? What are the tips for cracking the UPSC on the first attempt?  As a beginner, what should be my strategy for the UPSC CSE ?  So many questions are asked by students, do here's the answer by our mentor-Santosh Rokade Sir.  Why top 10……? Why not becoming topper…..? No no I just saying only…… this type of attitude is necessary for clearing this exam…… but all are same and put same efforts those who are in the final list. Never give up attitude. First I mention richest sources to clear this exam. 1. NCERT - this one for clear cut basics 2. Newspaper - finest source for current affairs and analysis and to form opinion which is useful for mains and interview. 3. Standard text books. 4. Answer writing practice - how much information we know is not at all required in mains, how much information we present in easiest and understandable manner. 5. Proper Evaluation and feedback of answers written- Since CSE is a personality test, and questions are of the type that test intre-conceptual linkages, with focus on seeking opinions and comments, one must be clear of his/her personality and this absolutely is personalized. 6. Revision Revision  and Revision 7. Test series and rectify our mistakes as mentioned in Point 5. BTW have you read the above book? Its by Amrutesh Aurangabadkar? To grab a copy, call 9987105552   Amrutesh Aurangabadkar made history of sorts and became an inspiration for other aspirants, as he stood first in Maharashtra and was ranked 10th in the country after cracking the UPSC Examination in 2012. Read about him here. lets Continue; 1.Allocate first three months for ncerts and develop reading and understanding of newspaper like habitual action. Study till you get perfection. 2.Allocate next five months for reading standard textbooks. Don't segregate prelims and mains. First see the syllabus and prepare in combined pattern. Only world history, ethics is major difference(these two only in mains). Try to complete ethics also during these five months of time. 3. You must complete NCERTs and Standard text books at any cost with answer writing and personalized evaluation. Talk to the evaluator, seek advice. A mentor is one who evaluates, rectifies you over a long period of time. Its not a matter of one -2 months. Like those aspiring for 2019, will have to evaluated / mentored for long 23 months, ie till April 2010, when results are out. Read and Understand, its not a class, its personalised target based study, and personal mentoring.  4.Reading newspaper daily without fail. Allot qualitvly   focussed two hours daily for this. Here itself try to understand and remember most of articles and issues (bcz continuously repeat important issues). 5.Follow Insights / IAS BABA/ Unacademy/ Byju or ANY ONE such website daily even though you read above mentioned sources. It provides so much important content like toppers strategy, motivation, daily CA, daily quiz, and enrich your answers in weekly tests (for mains). 6.Practice answer writing daily, I don't say from the start of your preparation. Atleast you start after three months. For this one follow Insights Secure. But they wont evaluate your answers or give you one-one feedback. Else join Sankalp IAS Forum’s personal mentoring program to get real-view picture of self-performance.  Allot 2 hours at night time. 7.Allot three months for optional. I think for 2019 you may start optional subject in October-January. Till December you must complete above GS targets. Then you have freely read optional without taking much stress in January. 8.Revision Revision Revision. Every week or atleast once in 15 days you revise what you study earlier. Otherwise you may forget over a period of time.            Now, the flow is like this- Based on revision-write answers-get personally evaluated- know what has gone wrong- rectify revision sources- rewrite- get marks enriched. 9. Attempt or Practice test series for prelims either you join offline or take Xerox copies and practice on your own. For mains part daily practice secure and after prelims you join test series. 10. If you follow above mentioned, definitely you will be in the top. Prepare daily, weekly, and monthly schedule by considering your strengths and weaknesses – get mentored- enrich performance- score well- go the top.  What UPSC Needs? - UPSC exams is the total story of how well you present yourself-your personality test-through answer writing and Interviews. So the crux is knowing your personality and writing answers . This should be evaluated by officers who have approached that path. Personalised feedback and inputs should be given and in such a way, incremental progress over a period of time must take place. What students do? -Joining a class OR self study- more focus on reading - some may be doing answer writing and may or not may not be getting them evaluated from some senior. Where do you get a personalized touch to this type of studies. What classes do? They will give you live videos, contents, notes and tests. Who evaluates the paper, how do they do scaling, is there any personal touch? NO, and given the commercial narrative that they follow, even the best of best faculty, class cant give that personal guidance. What Sankalp does is doing, is something for first time in India.  Personal mentoring/ group mentoring Targets for study every week or fortnight  Test based on targets with personal feedbacks. Throughout mentoring and hand holding. Total guidance about syllabus, sources, approach, analysis and personalized areas for scoring. How Sankalp IAS Forums Personal mentoring will help you? -✅ will save time by working with much more professional approach.  -✅ will give more effective and efficient orientation to your studies -✅ will help you keep motivated and inspired. -✅ you are definitely going to find qualitative and quantitative improvements in your studies-we assure you 55% more improvements than that you would have done on own or by coaching class.  -✅ will hugely improve your self-esteem and confidence to successfully appear for exams . join the 
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So how to become Youngest IAS Officer or just on how to become an IAS Officer, please watch this video Name Age when cleared Rank Ansar Ahmed Sheikh 21 361 Roman Saini 22 18 Tina Dabi 22 1 Gaurav Goyal 22 10 Amrutesh Aurangabadkar 22 10 HE SAID, “HE COULDN’T BELIEVE AS IT WAS UNEXPECTED AS HE NEVER AIMED AT TOPPING THE EXAMINATION AS HE ALWAYS WANTED TO CRACK THE INDIAN ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICE (IAS) EXAMINATION, BUT NEVER THOUGHT HE WOULD TOP IN THE STATE”. he was Maharashtra ias topper. Sankalp IAS Forum, Sankalp IAS academy, Sankalp UPSC Coaching Very early in my life he realized the importance of #CivilServices as his father was a #government officer. He had opportunity to meet #IAS officers which inspired him to think about Civil Services as career. His future goal was to implement government schemes effectively so that they reach the maximum number of people. Family Background His father Kalidas was deputy director at Ground Water Survey and Development Agency. His mother Raksha is a gold medalist in BA (Economics) and his sister Chinmaya is an IRS (Indian Revenue Service) officer. Educational Background AmruteshAurangabadkar studied at Dr Kalmadi Shamarao High School, Ganeshnagar, Pune. He did his Bachelor in Arts (BA) course from Fergusson College, majoring in Economics. He also did a diploma in National Security and International Relations. OptionalPaper He opted for Sociology and Philosophy as his optional paper. Being an economics graduate he did not have to work upon it much as he did diploma also. For Sociology social issues were covered there in but his focus was always on latest happenings. He said, “One should opt for subjects dear to one’s heart”. Overall Amrutesh Aurangabadkar Book Includes: Me- In the Words Of My Mentor-Sister Chinmaya about My Decision and General Perception List of Civil Services About CSE For CSE, Stream Of Graduation Starting Early Medium Of Examination Planning Preliminary Examinations Syllabus For General Studies Approach To General Studies Note Making Reading The India Year Book, NEWSPAPERS, Magazines Interpreting The Question For Main Examination Answer Writing (Approach To Main Examination) Booklist & Websites For General Studies Revise, Recollect And Reproduce Tips For Mains Examination Filling Up The Mains Form Essay Group Discussion Personality Test My Interview Transcript Full-time Business? Joining A Coaching Institute Mentor Frequently Asked Questions Action Plan UPSC CSE 2012 Final Result He Sets Best Example For Every Youth Who Dreams To Become An Ias Officer.

Dear Aspirants, we must heart fully thanks to Aishabai Fazlani Trust, MESCO & Sankalp Foundation for UPSC coaching by Sankalp IAS Forum. Please read this website and understand who we are, and our methodology. We are giving primary test results here, not necessarily in top to bottom order and are not to be deemed as final selection. What must you do? You have to see this list and come for final selection, which will be based on personal interview, and will be followed by orientation session on date and time given below for all. Call 9930075297, 9930075267 for details. please see Sankalp IAS Forum, Dadar Mumbai office address on Google map. In the meanwhile, do also read following pages from this website. About Ajay kumar, IAS, Who studied while working in Corporate industry. https://www.sankalpiasforum.com/blog/story-of-a-working-guy-who-cleared-in-first-attempt-ajay-kumar-ias Strategy for being in TOP 10 ranking in UPSC CSE https://www.sankalpiasforum.com/blog/manage-your-blog-from-your-live-site

Dear Aspirants, we must heart fully thanks to Aishabai Fazlani Trust, MESCO & Sankalp Foundation for UPSC coaching by Sankalp IAS Forum. Please read this website and understand who we are, and our methodology. We are giving primary test results here, not necessarily in top to bottom order and are not to be deemed as final selection. What must you do? You have to see this list and come for final selection, which will be based on personal interview, and will be followed by orientation session on date and time given below for all. Call 9930075297, 9930075267 for details. please see Sankalp IAS Forum, Dadar Mumbai office address on Google map. In the meanwhile, do also read following pages from this website. About Ajay kumar, IAS, Who studied while working in Corporate industry. https://www.sankalpiasforum.com/blog/story-of-a-working-guy-who-cleared-in-first-attempt-ajay-kumar-ias Strategy for being in TOP 10 ranking in UPSC CSE https://www.sankalpiasforum.com/blog/manage-your-blog-from-your-live-site

My IAS interview as it happened on 22th march 2012

Today I appeared for second UPSC interview of my life. Last year was
an average performance for me, hence a scope for improvement was
there. I was the first person to be called by P K Mishra board. I sat
outside the interview room for almost 10 minutes, drank a glass of
water. With heart pumping like anything I decided to think about
Sachin Tendulkar’s century, just like harry potter used to do when he
faced dementors, happy memories, you know. Finally the bell rang and
below is what conspired in next 35 minutes. (cp: chair-person, m1, m2,
m3, m4: members of board)
me: May I come in, sir.
cp: Yes, please come in.
me: Good morning ma’am, good morning sirs.
all: Good morning.
cp: Please take a seat.
me: Thank you sir (adjusted the chair a bit)
cp: Please make sure you are comfortable.
me: Thank you sir, I am comfortable. (smile)
cp: So, you are from Aligarh.
me: No sir, I am from Mathura, Aligarh was my birth place.
cp: Oh, alright. (pause for few seconds) (with big smile) Tell us
something about what is “Norway’s egg on delhi’s face
story” (everybody else laughs)
me: Sir, this was a headline in today’s newspaper. Story is related to
custody of two children in Norway. The parents, who are Indian,
requested Indian government to intervene in the issue as they argued
that it is an issue of culture insensitivity. Govt of India registered
the protest, even sent an special envoy to Norway to resolve the issue
and bring the kids back to India. But now the news report is that the
issue was related to domestic problem of the couple. So, govt has to
retract its intervention. That is why such a headline.
cp: Do you think govt was wrong to intervene?
me: Sir, I think it is proper for govt to intervene for interest of
Indians abroad, but govt should have investigated a bit before getting
involved in the issue.
cp: What was the role of media in this case? Do you think that affects
the decision of govt?
me: Sir, media in general tend to put emphasis on the emotional
content of issue without thinking about rational dimension. I think
sir, govt should be careful and should consider the interest of our
foreign policy. Otherwise such small issue can give rise to bigger
diplomatic crisis, which is not very good for our position in the
world.
cp: Okay, what is this red-cross competition that you won in your
school time? What was involved in that?
me: Sir, it was a state level competition among various schools. I was
part of the team of my school. Competition involved some practical
tests based on the knowledge of primary basic treatment given to
wounded person, tying the knots, preparing stretcher etc.
cp: Who was the founder of red-cross movement?
me: Sir, Henry Dunont from switzerland.
cp: Okay, do you know what is the structure of red-cross at district
level?
me: Sir, i know that there is a committee at state level. But I am not
aware of exact situation at district level. Sir, collector is in-
charge of such operation.
cp: (laugh) Yeah, collector is in-charge of everything, safe bet,
isn’t it so?
me: (smile) Yes sir. He is the co-ordinator of everything
cp: So, What are the major works undertaken by red-cross?
me: Sir, in India or in general?
cp: Tell us first in general then in India.
me: Sir, in general red-cross is UN authorized body to take care of
wounded soldiers in battlefield. It works as a neutral body…
(interrupts)
cp: okay, okay, in India now.
me: Sir, in India, red-cross has worked at the time of various wars
like kargil war. It is also active in maoist affected areas.
cp: You are missing a major work done by red-cross.
me: (a bit thinking) Sir, they organize blood donation camps.
cp: That’s alright, but I was pointing towards AIDS camps. They have
done good work in that area.
me: Yes sir, thank you sir.
cp: So, you have written debating as hobby. Do you start to debate
wherever you go? Would you start a debate right here if I provoke you.
(big smile)
me: (smile) No sir, I was part of debating team in my college time.
cp: Did you win any competition?
me: Yes sir, I won prizes in IIT Kanpur and IIT Delhi in inter-college
cultural festivals.
cp: What kind of topics were there when you won those debates?
me: Sir, there used to be many rounds in debate competitions. As I
recall when I was in IITK, there was a topic on the emerging patterns
in electoral politics of UP. This was right after 2007 election in UP.
cp: Can you tell us few trends emerging in recent election without
naming any party or person?
me: Sir, first I would tell about +ve then -ve trends.
cp: Yeah, go ahead.
me: Sir, positive trends are, number one, election are violence free,
they have higher voter turnout. Then sir, people are giving clear
mandate. So the hung assemblies are becoming a thing of past. Then
sir, most important trend is that shift is taking place towards
developmental politics… (interrupts)
cp: So you mean issue like bijli, sadak, paani are main issues now.
me: Yes sir, however the traditional caste politics is still there but
emphasis is shifting. Then sir, negative trends that I could think of,
is related to communalizing the election un-necessarily. There was
also a tendency to confront EC on various issues.
cp: You are from UP, you must know what is social engineering?
me: Sir, social engineering is a political concept where political
parties try to form a coalition of social groups based on caste or
religion and then use that as a vote bank.
cp: Alright (points to next lady member)
m1: Tell me name of any musician from south India?
me: A R Rehmaan, ma’am
m1: Right. Anyone older?
me: M S Subbalaxmi, but she is more famous as singer.
m1: Chakresh, why is kannauj famous in modern time?
me: Ma’am, Kannuaj is famous for ittra industry.
m1: Tell me the detail of this industry? Is it being exported?
me: Ma’am ittra is made in kannauj from the locally produced rose,
chameli and other such flowers. Factories for this are located in
every street of kannauj. Then the products are exported, mostly to
middle east and south-east asian countries. The local consumption is
very small, if I recall it correctly.
m1: What are the main problems of this industry these days?
me: Ma’am, most important problem is related to the marketing and
competition from products of other countries. In today’s globalized
world this industry is not able to compete properly. In Kannuaj, the
technology used is still very old and there is no organized efforts to
increase the sell of ittra.
m1: Can govt do something to face this situation?
me: Ma’am, govt can provide basic infrastructure and can take care of
supply chain. It can provide training for latest technology. Other
than that, in today’s competition based economy, survival in dependent
on market mechanisms only.
m1: Do you know anything about co-operative moment in India? Tell us
whether it is successful or a failure?
me: Ma’am, this movement started at the time of national struggle for
freedom. Co-operatives are formed by forming a group of small scale
producers, farmers etc. They were very much popular in 70s and 80s,
but now the influence of these co-operatives is reducing. One famous
example of co-operative is Amul.
m1: So, what is the main difference in a company and co-operative?
me: Ma’am co-operative is formed by a community and profit is shared
among members. While company is profit oriented organization. Co-
operatives are mostly in rural areas, while companies are urban
centered… (interrupts)
m1: co-operatives are in cities also.
me: Yes ma’am, but mostly in rural areas.
m1: Okay, How do they work?
me: Ma’am companies have a board of directors and CEO as its head. Co-
operative are a mutual election based organization. I do not know much
details about this ma’am.
m1: Okay, how are they formed?
me: Sorry ma’am, I do not understand the question.
m1: I mean, under which act?
me: Companies are formed under company act and co-operative under co-
operative act (smile)
m1: Good guess, was it a guess? (smile)
me: No ma’am (smile)
m2: Which country in Africa is famous for its co-operative movement?
me: Sorry sir, I don’t know, but I can take a guess.
m2: Yeah yeah go ahead.
me: I recall faintly, It is Kenya.
m2: (laughs loudly) nahi, galat zabab, it is Tanzania.
me: Thank you sir (smile)
m2: What is the full form of NHRC?
me: sir, National Human rights Commission.
m2: Who is the chairman?
me: ex-CJI K G Balakrishnan.
m2: Okay chakresh, you must have read about nuclear disaster in japan.
So do you know any nuclear summit taking place on this issue?
me: sir, I know there is a international meeting, but i don’t remember
the details of this meeting.
m2: Actually it is taking place in this month itself and our PM is
also going there. What in your opinion would be the most burning topic
in this meeting in context of japan incident?
me: Sir, right now major issue is the security of nuclear reactors
from the natural disasters and terrorist activities. There is a
growing fear in public worldwide about the security. I think, the
strategy to face this challenge would be the major issue in any such
meeting.
m2: Go on. How to remove these fears from mind of people?
me: Sir, in my opinion, people must be made aware of the technical
details of such reactors. New cutting edge technologies should be
imported in developing country like India so that our reactors can be
made with best security features in the world. Then the publicizing
these security measures can remove fear from people’s mind.
m2: Good, have you heard about 2G scam?
me: Yes sir, It was a scam … (interrupts)
m2: Wait wait, have you read anything similar in today’s newspaper?
me: Yes sir, there is a news report about allocation of coal fields to
private and public companies without following the proper procedure.
CAG has estimated a loss of more than 10 lac crores. But I think sir,
it would be pre-mature to comment on this issue without reading
further about the issue.
m2: That’s alright.
m3: You have mentioned that you worked for tsunami relief fund in your
college days.
me: Yes ma’am.
m3: What could be done in the field of disaster management in our
country?
me: Ma’am, disaster management involves four steps, mitigation,
preparedness, response and rehabilitation. The most loss of life
occurs due to lack of pre-warning system and the diseases in aftermath
of disaster…(interrupts)
m3: Okay, lets go one by one. What should be done for preparedness?
me: Ma’am we can face such disasters better if we follow certain steps
such as installing pre-warning systems in case of tsunami, earthquake,
floods. General public can be trained for such disasters by mock
drills similar to one in delhi few weeks back. Then a important point
is to establish the alternate, more secure mode of communication from
districts to central national disaster management authority. Training
special task force to face such disaster is also a good step.
m3: Okay, what is mitigation?
me: Ma’am mitigation is process by which we try to avert a natural
disaster even before it takes place. Like banking of rivers, coastal
area management to avert the effect of tsunami.
m3: Okay, so what is the difference in leadership at the time of
disaster and normal time?
me: As in public administration theories ma’am, at the time of
disaster leadership should be centralized and top-down, while in
normal times it should be participative and bottom-up.
m3: Why centralized?
me: Ma’am at the time of crisis, time is most important factor and
there is a need of quick decision making. This can be done in
centralized leadership only.
m3: Hmmm, okay tell me what is difference between aptitude and
attitude?
me: May I think a bit ma’am.
m3: Yeah sure sure.
me: (5-10 sec pause) ma’am aptitude is the technical and educational
suitability of a person for a job and attitude is the trait of
personality, which we showcase towards others in any normal condition.
I am not sure ma’am how this definition match to the psychological
definition (smile)
m3: (smile) no no, its quite close. Attitude is this only, but
definition of aptitude is wrong.
me: May I try again ma’am?
m3: No, its alright (points to m4)
m4: What is CNG?
me: Sir, CNG is compressed natural gas, it is used as fuel in
vehicles.
m4: Is it better than others?
me: Sir, it is better in terms of pollution but it can be used for
short distance only. So it is good for metropolitan cities as Delhi
because distances are small here, but not so good for longer travel.
m4: What are the other fuels used in transportation.
me: Sir, other than CNG, petrol, diesel, coal, organic fuels are used.
Now a days new technologies are coming with use of hydrogen and
electricity also. Some vehicles use LPG cylinders also.
m4: What is the main gases in pollution?
me: Sir, pollution is caused by oxides of nitrogen, sulfur, carbon
particles, ozone
m4: Ozone!
me: Sir, there is nascent oxygen present in pollutants which forms
ozone.
m4: So, do you think Delhi is very polluted?
me: Sir, Delhi has high level of pollution compare to other cities in
world. But level of pollution has come down after metro and use of
CNG.
m4: How many percentages of pollution is caused by transportation
sector?
me: Sir, I don’t know the exact figure, but I read an estimate in
newspaper that it should be around 15%.
m4: Hmmm, may be in rural areas, but in cities it is around 25%.
me: Thank you sir.
m4: So, tell me few factors that cause air pollution and few for water
pollution?
me: Sir, air pollution is caused by traffic, industrial units, rice
cultivation. Water pollution is caused by industrial waste, dead
bodies in rivers, fertilizers etc.
m4: Okay, what is water harvesting?
me: Sir, rain water harvesting?
m4: Yes yes, the same.
me: Rain water harvesting is a method of collecting water locally for
use in irrigation and drinking etc.
m4: (smile) what you mean by locally?
me: Sir, rain water is collected in reservoirs or tanks locally before
it can go to the river. Then it is used locally
m4: Okay, water level is going down in whole of our country, do you
agree?
me: Yes sir.
m4: Why?
me: Sir, main reason is the excessive use or wastage of water in daily
activities. Then there is lack of proper management of rain water…
(interrupts)
m4: Alright, good good, you are from UP?
me: Yes sir.
m4: okay, have a nice day. That’s it from my side.
me: Thank you sir, nice day.
cp: (with a cunning smile) Okay chakresh, answer my last question then
you can go. Who was the most famous king of Kannauj?
me: (smile) Sir, king Harsha Vardhan
cp: (smile) Okay, interview is over, you may leave now.
me: Thank you sirs, Thank you ma’am.
Candidate : Anju RK
yep...im done with my interview too...was the 2nd one..and ws
interview by Prof. Purushottam Agarwal's board. It was a very cordial
affair. Bsids the chairman, there was 1 lady member and 3 male
members. I'm not 2 sure of th time it took, but must have been around
20-25 mins. I do not remmber all my answers,but I could share th ques
with u.
First a brief biodata:
-from kerala
-did schooling abroad(in Bahrain to be exact)
-Btech in ECE in NIT,Calicut
After all the formalities were over,and after they hurriedly asked me
to take a seat.
C:So, you graduated in 2010. what have you been doing for the last 2
years.
A:I was preparing for the civil services sir.
C: So I hope you have been keeping yourself updated. What do you know
about the recent NCTC contrversy.
A: (told the whole story bout coordinating intelligence,and oppn sayin
ut violates federal structure.)
C:OK,so do you think we are a federal nation. Are we tilted too
heavily to the centre.
A: (i sed something bout the centre having 2 take a strong stand in
case the issue concerns national security, and bout the states and
other stakeholders taken on board in case it is a matter which
concerns the states. he seemed satisfied. He asked a quick question on
the sch 7 n the 3 lists. amd then passd 2 the next member)
M1:So do you have any role models from the political leaders of our
long history.
A: I admire certain char of some of the leaders,but no role model in
particular.
M1k who r some of them then?
A: said about Gandhiji(and about his values like honesty,his
leadership skill to mobilise the nation,and nonviolence to the extent
possible) as well as EMS Namboothiripad(kerala's 1st cm,who was
communist and led many labour and land reforms)
C: Since you talked about EMS, what is nokkukooli?
A: (mallus wud b the only ones who need kno this,and im sure they
would. its 'looking wages' and i tried 2 explain it in the subtlest
possibl way!)
M2: Since you are an engg student please tell me why did the 2g scam
occur at all.?
A: (told bout the FCFS and auctioning etc. and the change in th
policies since it was realised 2 be a very scarce resource and should
be auctiond)
M2k,im a layman. explain spectrum 2 me in plain english.
A: (it was a lil diff....i didn think i answered proprly,but he went
on 2 th next q)
M2:how are thes diff operators allocated spectrum
A: (from what i have read, it had sumthn 2 do with the 2g being in
900/1800 MHz range with a bandwidth of around 100MHz...and they r
given the spectrum in bundles within this bandwidth.....i hope im
rite...he didn argue anyway!)
M3(lady member): so since you were abroad 4 so long wat is the basic
diff u find b/w wat u have learnt there and ur cousins here.
A: (talked bout teaching being more or less the same since im also
cbse. talked bout bahrain having better infrastructure facilities. and
sed that the basic diff was tht v were taught 2 be indians first, and
were brought up wid no discrimination of gender,caste,race
etc......they all agreed on tht 1 an nodded)
M3:so will you work in other states...even NE?
A:Sure i will
M3:what do you think must be done to make NE ppl feel less alienated.
A: (talked bout topography being main issue...need to step up
road,rail,air links....provide economic security and political
freedom.)
M3: ohh...like even if they say they want independence.
A: (said tht they r also an integral part of india.just as other
states' issues find favour with the centre, their probs must also be
brought into th limelight in the centre.)
M3: yes thts true. also we can bring in more ppl 2 interact.
A: (told bout increasing tourism in th area. refered 2 th various ads
being seen these days)
M4:Recently Arab spring was spread 2 Bahrain as well. why did it
hapen.
A: (talked bout religious sectarian discrimination.he asked me
specificaly, so i said bout shia majority-sunni rulers.then contined
talkin bout unemployment and slow pace of democratization.he was
constantly interuptin and askin me details bout each point and i
answerd)
M3: and what is being done now?the ruler is al faleh isnt it.
A: (told bout various reforms by the king shaikh hamad bin isa al
khalifa)
C: OK Thank you.
A: thank you sir. thank you ma'm thank you sirs.
Yep..it finished pretty fast,and wasnt asked 2 many confusing things
hope they were happy wid it!
all th best guys!
Candidate: abhikrt
Hmm , pheww done with interview.
Mine board was I.M.G Khan and i was 4th person to be interviewed. I
was taken to interview room and before i knew i was in front of panel.
I almost forget to wish the panel and was asked to take the seat.
After some basicinquiry about my form (there were some discrepancies)
interview started.
Questions were started by lady member.
M1 - IP rights act in field of agriculture.
Me - Seeds act ,
M1 - Close but still think about it.
Me (after some thinking) - Sorry mam, i cant remember.
M1 - Told about some protection of traditional knowledge of farmers
and asked me if i knew of that.
Me - I kept on nodding and told about protection of traditional
knowledge of farmers about seeds, farmingtechniques.
M1 - IP regime favorable to India ?
Me - (2 mins of extempore)
M1 - IP regime in medicine ?
Me - (Again 2 mins of extempore)
Passed to M2
M2 - Asked about LTTE ?
Me - LTTE as of now is defeated and dont exist.
Passed to third member
M3 - Asked about FDI in retail, supply chain management and in the end
if i will still favor ?
Me - Said benefitable to farmer, will eliminate intermediaries in
supply chain and problem of monopoly, should ensure competition. And
in the end said i will like to prefer farmers over intermediaries. (He
insisted on making a choice).
amit kumar - Mar 20
interview questions this year..
interview 2012..
I M G Khan board
questions asked ----
1. are we treating children badly in our society.. opinions.
( context- Falak)
2. what did u read in english literature that u later on also found in
political science?
3. implication of economic relations in international relations?
4. role of wto in international relations?
5.anti defection law- implications?
6. is india a case of democracy or oligopoly?
7. what is oligopoly?
8.why did u opt art stream as u had done ur 12th with splendid marks
in science stream :)
9. news paper reading hobby.. well, " budget this year came with a
whisper not with a bang" do u agree.. give reasons?
10. what was in the budget that disappointed you?
11. bipolarity, multi polarity, uni polarity in international
relations?
12. present world order..?
13. india's role in it?
14. what is RTE?
15. well u r in customs,excise.. tell us changing trends in customs
and excise over the years?
16. what is the rationale behind service tax, how would u convince
layman about service tax as u urself are a tax man?
17. what is better - GDP growth rate or Equitable distribution, why?
1-2 questions miss ho rahe hai.. yaad nahi aa rahe.
GAURAV PRAKASH - Mar 22
Vijay Singh Board: 19th march , first person in afternoon session.
1.      M1-You like watching television, what you watch on tv?2.
M1-What is your current source of information, if you don’t watch TV?
3.      M1-What sites you browse on internet?4.      M1- who you will
rate as the number 1 civil engineer? 5.      M2- how will your
knowledge of civil engineering will help you as an administrator?
6.      M2-what is your opinion on interlinking of river project?
7.      M2-We can protect environment if we guide it along the road?
8.      M2- Who is the professor at IIT Delhi who teaches meditation?
9.      M2- What is the difference between the type of yoga taught by
patanjali and those taught by ramdev & ravishankar?10.   M3-what type
of education system should we have in India? 11.   M3- do you like
reading books?12.   M3-which one was the last book you read .
13. M3-what is the name of the main protagonist?14. M3-what you learn
from his character?15. M4-tell about any one good project you did as
an NSS Secretary?16. M4- was there no map of campus from before? 17.
M4-what is spic macay? 18. M4-what is the name of IIT delhi prof who
heads it?19. M5- what is there in the budget this time? 20. M5- Is
service going to affect poor, how?21. M4-what qualities of
Visvesvaraya should an administrator have?22. M1- have you been to
Bihar recently?23. M1- what change you see in Bihar?24. M1-what about
roads?25. M1- do you believe that if political will is there
transformation can be brought about in a very short span of time? 26.
M1- what lesson does it have for the people?
xyz . - Mar 22
 Socha na tha!!!!:
PLS share ur experience with us if possible ...thks
These are the questions that I was asked - (My background - Mech Engg,
currently a scientist in Ministry of New and Renewable Energy,
optionals - Pub Admn and socio)What is your name?
You are from Delhi?
What is Bernoulli's Theorem?
What is "new" in new and renewable energy?
What are the different parliamentary committees?
What are the different ways in which parliament can hold the executive
responsible?
What is "cut motion"?
What is traditional medicine and what policy steps do you envisage so
as to promote and strenghten this sector?
How can traditional medicine be of economic importance?
IP related issues with traditional medicine? What do you propose?
Why has solar energy not picked up in India and Africa in all these
years?
What is the money required for setting up solar plants?
What is the area requirement for setting up solar plants?
what do you know about BRICS ?
When and where is the BRICS summit scheduled to be held?
What interdependence do you see in the process of automobile and
textile industry?
What do you understand by culture?
what is wider culture?
What do you know about M.N. Srinivas?
What do you understand by westernization and sanskritization?
Which states have a high wind power potential?
What are the problems faced while connecting wind power to grid?
Why are solar pumps not being used for pumping underground water in
rural areas?
What is fuel cell technology? What are the by products?
What are the efficiencies of solar plants and how do you envisage the
future scenario to be?
Situational question - there is a sincere and erudite CEO who is very
hard working but is unable to avoid the failure of the company. There
is a cunning CEO who is corrupt and practical and brings success for
the company and himself. The first is fired and second is rewarded -
Do you agree with the management's decision? What would you do?
Abhishek Yadav - 6:01 PM
My Interview - 23.03.2012
K.K. Paul Board
(2nd to go in)
The Board was very cordial, and contrary to what I have read or heard
about KK Paul, I found him to be a nice guy. No grilling, but yes, no
smiling either :). As you would see below, I found that quite a lot of
it, stemmed from my bio-data and very few were absolutely un-related
to me personally in some way.
My Background
Electrical Engineer (2008)
Hobbies: Watching movies (fiction), Reading books (fiction)
Extra-Curricular: Chief Coordinator of the Literary Society..
K.K. Paul
1. You are an electrical engineer. What is Plant Load Factor and what
is efficiency of a power plant.
2. If efficiency is ultimately the only thing that matters, what is
the use of Plant Load Factor.
3. You are from Our Lady of Fatima Secondary School, what is this Our
lady of Fatima...
4. You have the hobby of watching movies, fiction? What is this
fiction. Aren't all movies fiction.
5. What kinds of books do you read. (Science fiction).
6. Favorite author.
7. There was a movie in 1966-67, a very famous one, a book had also
been written on it. What was it? (2001: A Space Odyssey - though I
didnt know it and Paul Sir told the name).
8. Who was the author of the book.  (After I said that yes, I know
about the book and the movie and that infact, the book had been
written after the movie).
9. Where did the author live. (Since, despite being an British, he
lived in Sri Lanka).
10. You graduated in 2008, are you working somewhere. (Since working
as Income Tax Inspector)
M1
1. Why is your tie red?
2. No no, I mean, why is it looking red? (Since, I had misunderstood
and said that I felt it would suit my shirt).
3. Why do we use red color as a warning sign?
4. What do you think is the difference between Indians in India and
Indians in America.
5. What is the difference between Red Indians and Indians.
6. Who settled America. (which people that is)...
M2
1. What is free press.
2. In light of the clarification in the papers today regarding CAG and
the coalfields issue, how do you see the freedom of press.
3. Shouldn't we do something about the sensationalising of news...
4. But the Press Council isn't doing anything. (Since I had mentioned
it).
5. Give me an example of his activism (Since I had talked about the
acitivism of Markandey Katju).
6. We find that kids in smaller classes, have these events like story
telling, drawing etc etc. Does it serve any purpose.
7. What did you do as the CC of your literary society.
M3
1. We have so much atmospheric pollution nowadays from thermal power
plants, what are we doing to curb it.
2. Where is this Coal Gassification being done. (Since I had mentioned
the technology)
3. Are we doing anything on the Waste treatment front.
4. What about Solar. (Since I mentioned Renewable but didnt expand).
M4
1. You mentioned solar energy. What mission do we have for it.
2. What incentives is the govt. giving for them.
3. Do you know about Renewable Energy Certificates (Since I had said
that I am unable to recall the specific provisions).
4. It is said, " The Sun is still clouded when it comes to the solar
industry" - What does this mean.
5. You said, you like Sci-fi books. Name some indian authors on Sci-
fi.
6. I am not talking about movies. (Since I had mentioned Satyajit Ray.
Thank God, M2 said that he did write sci-fi books as well, or M4 might
not have believed me :P)
KK Paul
1. Ok, one last question. Who was the director of 2001: A Space
Odyssey.
2. Any other film he made (after I named the director)
3. What happened to that movie (A Clocwork Orange)

One day a young IT professional came to me in late evening, as i was about to wrap up my days work, "May i know where I can meet Santosh Sir", he asked Politely, to help desk, I was there, i said "yes go ahead,Am Santosh" . He was #IIMKoziokodeIAS graduate, from #HimachalPradesh and placed with a handsome salary in CARE Ratings,Mumbai. He wanted to appear, as he said after general salutation talks, NOT JUST TRY for IAS. "Am going to do it, would u help me? " he asked confidently. By that time i had already helped a few others ,that time in #HinjewadiITPark,Pune. #orkut was the source from where he got my number. I couldn't say no. Days went by, and he became IPS in first attempt and IAS in his second attempt. He left job only 3 days ahead of his joining for #FoundationTraininginMussorie. I can say, he is a model for those who want to give #UPSCwhileworking. His work place was in #Sion,Mumbai and he stayed in #PrateekshaNagar. that effectively saved lot of his time in commuting. Working professionals may take this plan. Alternatively, #MadhukarAnand,now #IRS, was also working,but stayed distance apart. he used his time of commuting to listen his own voice-- he recorded his own reading books, this was my strategy that i give mantra to students. Following year same story was repeated. Smit Parmar, Jay Waghmare, Madhukar Anand, Kedar Gokhale also cleared exams- all in their maiden attempts, and that too with total preparation in Mumbai itself.. The saga continues ..this is beacuse of two persons, Prof Jyoti Ramdas , she is from JNU and teaches Sociology and Pol Sc, and is best for GS / ESSAY mentoring, please contact 7276021673 , the number is of the institute she teaches in… And am an officer and am taking some revision batches for regualr batch and for those who have studied before but not suceeded, in Mumbai, My friends who have been selected through exams have started a forum, Sankalp IAS Forum for proper guidance. in past few years the results have been amazing . proper mentoring, test series and feedback evaluation sessions have been helping aspirants in Mumbai & Pune . I am evaluating online test series too. Gtalk- santyrockspune@gmail.com ... , whatsapp: 9930075295 now where i teach i had gathers a great team, as you know officers cant be full time with the students,. So enjoy the company of intellectuals, Officers and mentors… please call 9930075267 for my schedule, alternatively, ping me on 9930075295(whats app) am from Pune, now working as officer in Mumbai. wish you a very happy study time, .

What plan should I follow for one year to get a top 10 rank in the UPSC civil service exam? How do I crack UPSC CSE in the first attempt while being under any circumstances?  What mistakes did you do while preparing for UPSC CSE?   I am just an average student. Can I crack the IAS exam?  How did you clear the UPSC CSE in your first attempt? What are the tips for cracking the UPSC on the first attempt?  As a beginner, what should be my strategy for the UPSC CSE ?  So many questions are asked by students, do here's the answer by our mentor-Santosh Rokade Sir.  Why top 10……? Why not becoming topper…..? No no I just saying only…… this type of attitude is necessary for clearing this exam…… but all are same and put same efforts those who are in the final list. Never give up attitude. First I mention richest sources to clear this exam. 1. NCERT - this one for clear cut basics 2. Newspaper - finest source for current affairs and analysis and to form opinion which is useful for mains and interview. 3. Standard text books. 4. Answer writing practice - how much information we know is not at all required in mains, how much information we present in easiest and understandable manner. 5. Proper Evaluation and feedback of answers written- Since CSE is a personality test, and questions are of the type that test intre-conceptual linkages, with focus on seeking opinions and comments, one must be clear of his/her personality and this absolutely is personalized. 6. Revision Revision  and Revision 7. Test series and rectify our mistakes as mentioned in Point 5. BTW have you read the above book? Its by Amrutesh Aurangabadkar? To grab a copy, call 9987105552   Amrutesh Aurangabadkar made history of sorts and became an inspiration for other aspirants, as he stood first in Maharashtra and was ranked 10th in the country after cracking the UPSC Examination in 2012. Read about him here. lets Continue; 1.Allocate first three months for ncerts and develop reading and understanding of newspaper like habitual action. Study till you get perfection. 2.Allocate next five months for reading standard textbooks. Don't segregate prelims and mains. First see the syllabus and prepare in combined pattern. Only world history, ethics is major difference(these two only in mains). Try to complete ethics also during these five months of time. 3. You must complete NCERTs and Standard text books at any cost with answer writing and personalized evaluation. Talk to the evaluator, seek advice. A mentor is one who evaluates, rectifies you over a long period of time. Its not a matter of one -2 months. Like those aspiring for 2019, will have to evaluated / mentored for long 23 months, ie till April 2010, when results are out. Read and Understand, its not a class, its personalised target based study, and personal mentoring.  4.Reading newspaper daily without fail. Allot qualitvly   focussed two hours daily for this. Here itself try to understand and remember most of articles and issues (bcz continuously repeat important issues). 5.Follow Insights / IAS BABA/ Unacademy/ Byju or ANY ONE such website daily even though you read above mentioned sources. It provides so much important content like toppers strategy, motivation, daily CA, daily quiz, and enrich your answers in weekly tests (for mains). 6.Practice answer writing daily, I don't say from the start of your preparation. Atleast you start after three months. For this one follow Insights Secure. But they wont evaluate your answers or give you one-one feedback. Else join Sankalp IAS Forum’s personal mentoring program to get real-view picture of self-performance.  Allot 2 hours at night time. 7.Allot three months for optional. I think for 2019 you may start optional subject in October-January. Till December you must complete above GS targets. Then you have freely read optional without taking much stress in January. 8.Revision Revision Revision. Every week or atleast once in 15 days you revise what you study earlier. Otherwise you may forget over a period of time.            Now, the flow is like this- Based on revision-write answers-get personally evaluated- know what has gone wrong- rectify revision sources- rewrite- get marks enriched. 9. Attempt or Practice test series for prelims either you join offline or take Xerox copies and practice on your own. For mains part daily practice secure and after prelims you join test series. 10. If you follow above mentioned, definitely you will be in the top. Prepare daily, weekly, and monthly schedule by considering your strengths and weaknesses – get mentored- enrich performance- score well- go the top.  What UPSC Needs? - UPSC exams is the total story of how well you present yourself-your personality test-through answer writing and Interviews. So the crux is knowing your personality and writing answers . This should be evaluated by officers who have approached that path. Personalised feedback and inputs should be given and in such a way, incremental progress over a period of time must take place. What students do? -Joining a class OR self study- more focus on reading - some may be doing answer writing and may or not may not be getting them evaluated from some senior. Where do you get a personalized touch to this type of studies. What classes do? They will give you live videos, contents, notes and tests. Who evaluates the paper, how do they do scaling, is there any personal touch? NO, and given the commercial narrative that they follow, even the best of best faculty, class cant give that personal guidance. What Sankalp does is doing, is something for first time in India.  Personal mentoring/ group mentoring Targets for study every week or fortnight  Test based on targets with personal feedbacks. Throughout mentoring and hand holding. Total guidance about syllabus, sources, approach, analysis and personalized areas for scoring. How Sankalp IAS Forums Personal mentoring will help you? -✅ will save time by working with much more professional approach.  -✅ will give more effective and efficient orientation to your studies -✅ will help you keep motivated and inspired. -✅ you are definitely going to find qualitative and quantitative improvements in your studies-we assure you 55% more improvements than that you would have done on own or by coaching class.  -✅ will hugely improve your self-esteem and confidence to successfully appear for exams . join the 
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HE SAID, “HE COULDN’T BELIEVE AS IT WAS UNEXPECTED AS HE NEVER AIMED AT TOPPING THE EXAMINATION AS HE ALWAYS WANTED TO CRACK THE INDIAN ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICE (IAS) EXAMINATION, BUT NEVER THOUGHT HE WOULD TOP IN THE STATE”. Very early in my life he realized the importance of #CivilServices as his father was a #government officer. He had opportunity to meet #IAS officers which inspired him to think about Civil Services as career. His future goal was to implement government schemes effectively so that they reach the maximum number of people. Family Background His father Kalidas was deputy director at Ground Water Survey and Development Agency. His mother Raksha is a gold medalist in BA (Economics) and his sister Chinmaya is an IRS (Indian Revenue Service) officer. Educational Background #AmruteshAurangabadkar studied at Dr Kalmadi Shamarao High School, Ganeshnagar, Pune. He did his Bachelor in Arts (BA) course from #FergussonCollege, majoring in Economics. He also did a diploma in National Security and International Relations. #OptionalPaper He opted for #Sociology and #Philosophy as his optional paper. Being an economics graduate he did not have to work upon it much as he did diploma also. For Sociology social issues were covered there in but his focus was always on latest happenings. He said, “One should opt for subjects dear to one’s heart”. Overall Amrutesh Aurangabadkar Book Includes: Me- In the Words Of My Mentor-Sister Chinmaya about My Decision and General Perception List of Civil Services About CSE For CSE, Stream Of Graduation Starting Early Medium Of Examination Planning Preliminary Examinations Syllabus For General Studies Approach To General Studies Note Making Reading The India Year Book, NEWSPAPERS, Magazines Interpreting The Question For Main Examination Answer Writing (Approach To Main Examination) Booklist & Websites For General Studies Revise, Recollect And Reproduce Tips For Mains Examination Filling Up The Mains Form Essay Group Discussion Personality Test My Interview Transcript Full-time Business? Joining A Coaching Institute Mentor Frequently Asked Questions Action Plan UPSC CSE 2012 Final Result He Sets Best Example For Every Youth Who Dreams To Become An Ias Officer.