The UPSC Prelims are scheduled for 27th June. Here is how to strategise your history preparation for the exams.Let’s face it: History isn’t a very popular subject among students, thanks to its vastness. However, it is a very important subject while it comes to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Prelim and Main exams. In fact, almost 15 percent of the questions in the 1st paper (General Studies) of UPSC Prelims, are from history, art and culture.
A civil service aspirant is going to be one of the top administrators of the country and a sound knowledge of national and world history is a must for taking critical administerial decision. That is precisely the reason behind the importance of this subject in civil services exams. So, whether you like it or not, you have to study history thoroughly if you want to come out with flying colours in the UPSC exams. In these exams, the syllabus for this subject is divided into three segments: Ancient India, Medieval India and Modern India. As the date for UPSC Prelims comes closer (27th June), you need to put your act together and brace up for a lot of hard work to ace the exam. As you burn the midnight oil to become the best administrator, follow our history preparation plan to boost your UPSC score.
Ancient India: What to focus on
The 8th Century AD marks the end of ancient period and it includes eras like Stone Age, Palaeolithic Age, Mesolithic Age, Neolithic Age and Chalcolithic Age, Indus Valley Civilisation, Vedic Period. Here is what you need to concentrate on:
• Stone Age, Palaeolithic Age, Mesolithic Age, Neolithic Age and Chalcolithic Age: Important incidents
• Indus Valley Civilisation: Socio-economic cultural aspects, scripts, art and construction
• Vedic Period: Religion, politics, economics, literature and philosophy
Medieval India: What to focus on
Medieval Indian History spans from 8th to 18th century AD. The UPSC exam papers don’t pay much importance to this segment. However, you can’t skip it altogether. Limit your preparation to the following areas:
• Socio-economic and political regimen during the Sultanate, Mughal and Vijayanagar Empire
• Sufi and Bhakti religious movements, their sequence and socio-economic impact
• Art and culture of the period
Modern India: What to focus on
This segment covers the time period from the rise of foreign power in India to the country’s struggle for freedom. Majority of the history questions in UPSC prelims come from this section. While studying modern Indian history, organise the topics chronologically and unit-wise. Special emphasis should be laid on:
• The rise of East India Company
• Surrender of Indian provinces to the British and the country’s reactions against it
• Economic policies adopted by the British administration
• Key incidents of the Indian freedom struggle
• Socio-cultural effects of the freedom struggle
• Political and administrative policies of the British administration: Permanent settlement, acts, reports, and committees set up during this time.
Refer to the right books
This is crucial for your success in the UPSC prelims exams. These suggestions will be helpful for you.
Ancient India
• NCERT Class VI: Ancient India (Old Version)
• NCERT Class XI: Ancient India (Old Version)
Medieval India
• NCERT Class VII, XI: Medieval India (Old)
• NCERT Class IX: Story of Civilization Part-I (old edition)
• NCERT Class X: Story of Civilization Part-II (old edition)
Modern India
• India’s Ancient Past: R.D. Sharma
• Indian Art and Culture: Nitin Singhania
• India’s Struggle for Independence: Bipan Chandra
Learn to memorise the facts and dates
Make short notes of the facts, names, places and dates that you struggle to remember. Go through the notes time and again. This will enhance your recall capacity.
Make history interesting
As a civil service aspirant, you always run against time. But taking short breaks can improve your productivity if use them judiciously. Once in a while, make time for watching a periodic movie based on any topic included in your UPSC history syllabus, or read a historical fiction. Browsing through the biographies of historical personalities is also a good idea. All these can go a long way in helping you grasp history as a subject.
Source:Hindustan Times, 10/03/21
