Vaibhav Rawat AIR 25 PSIR strategy This is my take on PSIR optional paper. Basic material is provided by Shubhra Mam class notes. I did not join her classroom course. Instead I ordered her notes from the Flavido website. Second source is politicsforindia.com website. They have rearranged those same notes and perhaps added a little content. These are enough to write good answers. First step is to develop a good understanding of all the topics. By good understanding we mean, to be able to critically analyze what great philosophers or other commentators have said. We should be able to correlate different thinkers who have talked on similar topics. Looking at topper's answer sheets from the test series could be helpful. Note down how they have interlinked different parts of the notes in their answer. Second step is to learn how to write good answers. Hands down Shubhra Mam is the best teacher in this regard. I joined crash course cum test series at SRIAS after prelim exam. Give ...
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Vaibhav Rawat AIR 25 UPSC CSE 2020 Optional - PSIR I will share my notes and experience of UPSC CSE here, for now. This post is addressed to all the repeaters. "What changes did I make this year?" "What made my score jump from 70 to 97 in GS3 and 111 to 121 in GS4?" "Why I scored only 122 in IR vs 143 in 2019?" I have shared my perspective on these questions in the session at InsightsIAS. Link of the video is pinned. Here, I will try to give more clarity over what I have discussed in the video. This was my assessment after the main exam and before the interview call came - Essay 130-140 GS1 105-110 GS2 95-100 GS3 90-95 GS4 110-115 PS 130-140 IR 140-150 | optional score ~ 280 After the final results came, my assessment became this - Essay ~ 140 GS1 ~110 GS2 ~100 GS3 ~ 95 GS4 ~ 115 PS ~ 140 IR ~ 150-160 | Optional score ~ 300 PT ~ 190 To my disbelief the score was only 122 in IR. I don't think I can ever agree to this assessment. Never mind. In GS1 I...
Kunal Yadav AIR -185 (CSE -2020). Will share answer copies, learnings, strategy, etc. Special focus will be on ESSAY and PSIR optional in which I have scored better. OPTIONAL - PSIR This optional needs no introduction to be honest and is one of the most popular one amongst candidates. Personally I felt interested after reading it for a few days. Being a Chemistry Hons. graduate I was looking for a non- science optional and few well wishers proposed PSIR. I was told it would overlap with GS-2 and help in ESSAY as well as ETHICS. It is true to an extent but not as much as one would expect. So few criterias in descending order of importance for opting of optional can be :- 1. Choose a subject which interests you or something you liked during your school days. It can be anything ranging from history, Geography or maybe polity. 2. Interest need not be deep as such but enough long lasting so that you can read the subject again and again. 3. If all subjects are same to...
DOCTRINE OF BASIC STRUCTURE Introduction doctrine of judicial review applied by judiciary to examine the validity of constitutional amendment bills difference between rewriting the constitution and amending the constitution parliament represents ' political sovereignty' , constituent assembly represents ' popular sovereignty /general will' evolved to determine amending power of parliament conflict between DPSP and FR FR are enforceable Cases Champaran Dorairajan vs State of Madras 1950 Shankari Prasad vs UoI case 1951 reservation policy challenged by Brahmin women on the basis of right to equality dilemma for judiciary: enforcement of FR is obligation under Art 32 art 13: no law which abridges any FR is to be given validity judiciary went for creative interpretation term 'law' excludes amendment response of govt 1st amendment act clause 4 in art 15- special provision for advancement of any socially or educationally backward classes of citizen or for S...
SECULARISM Introduction Secularism as Child of modernity contested concept european in origin based on experience of 30 years war child of christianity product of modernity reform in christianity: protestant movement rolling back of religion from public sphere constraining it to personal sphere rolling back of religion from public sphere is called as "Secularisation" TN Madan : securlarisation is pre-requisite for the success of secularism hence politics and state in south asia may not remain secular new basis for solidarity was required, hence nationalism and nations emerged hence in European countries: 'Secular Nationalism' became the basis rise to two practices universal citizenship: citizenship not on basis of religion Uniform Civil Code democracy, rights, liberty, equality, justice, human dignity are overlapping concept with secularism emerged in the ideas of Machiavelli who separated state from church Hobbes: church subordinate to state John Locke: ...