💥Join UPSC 2027,2028 Mentorship (July Batch) + XFactor Notes & Microthemes PDF

Author: Root

  • Interview transcript – Promoth P

    Board: Smita ma’am

    Chairman

    – What are the problems a civil servant faces while in office?
    – What kinds of resource crunch? (Follow up )
    – Give an example where officers have worked out these problems?
    – Why do national law university students prefer working in corporate sector?
    – Have national law universities failed in their mandate?
    – Lawyers bill a lot so why not practice law?

    M1

    – Female models being used in auto expo. Views
    – Should we bring in a law to ban such practices
    – Define son of the soil doctrine
    – Which indian state never had such a doctrine

    M2

    – Will the us japan help india if China attacks us today
    – Should CJI accept posts after retirement
    – Transparency and public office holders

    M4

    – Measures taken by government to curb black money in real estate
    – Amendments to benami act
    – Why was IT act not amended to achieve the same ends as benami act
    – Is retrospective tax good
    – What was the nature of the 1024 obsolete laws repealed, name any 3.

    M5

    – What is medical tourism
    – Why is it called tourism
    – What is surrogacy
    – Should it be allowed
    – What is the legal status of single parent family
    – Legality of police encounters
    – What will you do if you were sp and what will you do to reduce police encounters.

  • Gear up for This week’s Samachar Manthan lecture on 7th April Sunday

    Why Samachar Manthan?

    We understand that the UPSC exam is a generalist exam. It’s more important to cover more issues than to cover one issue in more depth. Hence, through Samachar Manthan, we are trying to maintain a fine balance of covering many important news items and having a detailed discussion on selected topics which require the same. On a daily basis, the news gets repeated multiple times. Scattered knowledge is not adequately useful when you have to write a 200 words answer within 6-7 minutes. To handle this, Samachar Manthan covers such issues in a comprehensive and consolidated manner which is the smart strategy.

    Benefits of Samachar Manthan

    • Packed 3 – 3.5 hours Weekly videos will focus on news and its importance from both prelims and mains perspective.
    • This program will also help you understand how to utilize current affairs in all your prelims and mains papers.
    • This ideology makes this course the best utilization of your time.
    • Detailed coverage would mean analysis from all the angles like background or history, features, significance, challenges and way forward. Also, multiple sources like epw, diplomat magazine etc will be referred to in the video lectures.
    • Such an approach will help in writing multidimensional answers.
    • Also which part of the topic is important from mains and prelims perspective will also be discussed.
    • Audio Visual Learning is more impactful than simply glancing through the material. So that you are able to retain information for long also interlink with any new information you get.
    • 4 stage structure of Video->Notes->testing->review to perfect your preparation
    • The sequence of video->Notes->testing->review is the best way to ensure maximum retention and a rock solid preparation. Each component of the program has been meticulously crafted.

    For example this week, we will be covering the following issues;

    Economics

    Ind AS (Indian Accounting Standard)

    [op-ed snap] A sour taste

    Global Energy Transition Index

    Regulatory Sandbox for Fintech firms

    Time to have an institutional mechanism like Fiscal Council to enforce rules: NK Singh

    GI Certification for five varieties of Indian coffee

    Enviro & Biodiversity

    Urban areas cooler than non-urban regions during heat waves

    Rising sea levels to affect water table along Chennai’s shoreline

    Galapagos Islands

    How rocks in Meghalaya cave connect Northeast monsoon to El Niño

    India’s carbon dioxide emissions up 5%: IEA Report

    Arctic warming may lead to prolonged droughts: Study

    Island Protection Zone (IPZ), 2019

    Hump-backed Mahseer

    [op-ed snap] A stop sign

    Governance

    Young Scientist Programme (YUVIKA)

    Govt. notifies new rules for drugs, clinical trials

     

    [op-ed snap]A bridge to nowhere

    Global Multidimensional Poverty Report 2018

    [op-ed snap] Slow on sanitation

    Centre should address States’ concern on GST transfers

    [op-ed snap] The shape of an urban employment guarantee

    NYAY scheme

    International Relations

    [op-ed snap]Parallel tracks on trade ties

    World Food Programme

    Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS)

    GAZA issue

    Polity

    Fiscal council

    Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) Survey

    [op-ed snap]The point of having democracy

    Article 370 issues

    Art Culture

    Sharda Peeth Corridor

    How researchers used science to show Bengal famine was man-made

    Science Tech

    Young Scientist Programme (YUVIKA)

    GRAPES-3 Experiment

    PSLV-C45/ Emisat Mission

    Mission Shakti (Anti-Satellite Missile Test)

    Humans can detect the earth’s magnetic fields

    Security Issues

    The government sets up group to monitor terror sympathizers

    CH47 Chinook heavy-lift Choppers

    And these issues will be covered in detail

    • Fiscal council
    • Gaza issue
    • Urban heat island issue
    • IEA report
    • Global multidimensional poverty report 2018
    • Fiscal federalism
    • ADR survey
    • Article 370
    • Mission Shakti
    • GRAPES 3 experiment

    So to be thorough in your preparation and to have an integrated approach toward prelims and mains, join Samachar Manthan here.

  • Interview transcript – Shubham Soni

    Board – Manoj Soni

    Background- Punjab, civil engineering, Anthropology
    Hobbies- Squash, Bhangra, Rubik’s cube

    Chairman

    – Are you comfortable in talking about census? What is census? Who does it? – – When started? How is the exercise done?
    – Have u read the latest census?
    – What are the key takeaways?
    – U r missing imp point about youth.
    – Demographic dividend?
    – Is situation of skilling up to mark?
    – Make in India, Digital India. What will they do if we don’t have skills?
    – 3 things that u have learnt from 2015 to 2018 during prep time?
    – Were these things not there in u before?

    M1

    – Women are only proxies. Ur experience of reservation in PRIs? What needs to be done?
    – Drug problem in Punjab. Reasons, 2 most important steps that I’ll take after becoming DM of your dist. Since u r from Punjab. Which all regions were partitioned?
    – Only Bengal and Punjab? No other region in NE?
    – Was Burma partitioned from British India?

    M2

    – Why so many graduates unemployable?
    – What needs to be done?
    – D/B civil in IITD, DTU and any other state university?

    M3

    – why different colours on squash ball?
    – Name world class squash players of subcontinent.
    – Govt spending so much on IITs thinking that they need engineers. Don’t u think u’ll waste resources of govt by coming in civil services?
    – How will u use ur knowledge of engg. in indian postal services?
    – U have learnt only analysis in IIT?
    – So u think that it is right to come to civil services from IIT?
    – Radcliffe line? Macmohan line? Is macmohan line accepted? On what principle was it drawn?
    – Where all face-offs bw India and China?
    – Should we stop trading with China?
    – Any country where people voluntarily not buying products of another country?
    – Not heard of Japan and US?
    – Why Japan could rebuild it’s infrastructure after WW2?
    – Why India is not doing even having huge resources? Compare with Japan? Use ur analytical bent of mind.
    – Why Japanese so skilled?

    M4

    – Are new IITs and IIMs diluting the brand name of old IITs and IIMs?
    – Why so less skilled personnel in India?
    – What needs to be done?
    – Should we impose some restrictions on freedom of speech and expression? 1-2 follow up questions
    – Should we ban social media?
    – But There is so much misuse of social media. Shouldn’t we ban social media?
    – What can be done to reduce the misuse of social media?

    Chairman

    – If you are very senior bureaucrat and govt made a policy which u think is not good. That policy is against ur convictions and u think that policy is also against public interest and national interest.
    – Will u implement that policy?
    -Your interview is over. Thankyou

  • Interview transcript – Amit Punde

    Board : Bassi Sir

    Date of interview 27th February
    Background: B-Tech Production
    Hobbies: reading, trekking, travelling

    Chairman

    – so u r a production engg. What is mechatronix?
    – Applications?
    – As a shopfloor manager, what are your priorities?
    – Who will benefit with the increased efficiency?

    M1

    – He talked some 2 points about efficiency and then questions abt trekking.
    – Where do you trek recently?
    – Some discussion on Youth Hostel trek at Manali.
    – If anything happened where you could not complete the trek? I gave example of Alang fort.

    M2

    – Iran president visit to India and the message India gave through this in the light of various sanctions imposed by US?
    – Why farmers suicide in Maharashtra?
    – Dose present budget provisions would impact positively?
    – Maharashtra Karnataka boundary issue?
    – What can be done?

    M3

    – Role of Pune in 1857 war.?
    – What about other maratha sardars?
    – Rani of zansi and her relation to Pune.?
    – Love hate relationship of Pune with Rajneesh (Osho) in 1970s?
    – China’s policy in South Asia.?
    – Is china aggressive towards India?
    – Why China aggressive towards India.?
    – What do you think whether China become superpower?
    – Plus points of China and USA to become superpower?
    – US relations with South America states?
    – Impact of lower sex ratio?
    – After Nirbhaya case, what change do u find in Indian Society?

    M4

    – Indo Japan relations.? What are Japan’s interests in India?
    – In the present scenario what is the probability that India will win a war against Pakistan ? (He wanted answer in a mathematical probability range from 0 to 1)
    – Where is Tista river?
    – What is the issue?
    – What are the immediate benefits and to whom?

    Thank you.

  • Interview transcript – Mangesh

    Board: Dr P.K. Joshi

    Background: IIT BHU (Varanasi), Computer Science.

    Chairman

    – How many marks did you get in Maths Class XII?
    – Which force has you been allocated?
    – Why SSB?
    – When we have BSF as a border guarding force, why need SSB?
    – Suppose you are posted as a DM in a village school and asked to address students of Class VIII-XII, what would you speak about for promoting Maths which students don’t like?

    Maths Question 1

    Maths Question 2, 2(a)

    M1

    – Munger is famous for? (Came as a shocker for me because I am from Saharsa, Bihar)
    – Do you do Yoga?
    – What is the status of women in Bihar? Do you think women has been empowered in your state?
    – What is accountable governance?
    – How to ensure government accountability?

    M2

    – What was the project you worked upon in Samsung? Two follow up questions
    – What is the state of R&D in India?
    – What is the need of high end R&D when our basic skill needs are unmet?

    M3

    – Should we go for making strong laws to provide security to women?
    – Are laws against Dowry enough? Why are they being misused? What are recent changes in Dowry law?
    – Situational Question: Your domestic help comes to you and complains to you about her drunkard husband who comes from work and beats her under the influence of alcohol. What would be your step of action?

    M4

    – What was the earlier name of BHU?
    – Who founded it?
    – Who gave the money?
    – Who founded AMU and when?
    – Don’t you think that the British sowed the seeds of division by helping the setup of a Hindu University and a Muslim university?
    – Why is Varanasi named so?
    – Why is IIT BHU not doing too good? (Asked in Hindi)
    – What is Kashi famous?
    – What is 3rd Industrial Revolution, 2nd IR and 1st IR.

     

  • Mission Nikaalo Prelims – Keep the Josh High > 60 Day Revision Course with Prelims Spotlight and Free Tests

    Students,

    This is not the time to study new things but to consolidate and revise whatever you have studied so far. 

    Watch this lecture on how to make the most out of the 60 days you have.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2r-WiVIhmXM&feature=youtu.be

    As is the case with all our programs, we have spent an ample amount of time to define what we want to achieve with this revision program. 

    1. Prelims SPOTLIGHT

    This initiative is meant to help you revise details and facts that can be asked in prelims. They are simplified, synthesized and prepared using most authentic sources.

    These can easily slip your mind or you can easily confuse these. Continuous Revision for the same is required. Dare you to miss the updates!

    2. Static Subject Revision and Tests 

    The timetable for the static subjects is released. Tests will start on 5th of April. 

    Coverage and Relevance are the 2 Pillars of our Tests.

    We will try our best to provide

    1. The theme of the question
    2. The Year of matching previous year question  from the actual exam so you can assess the relevance
    3. Lengthy and elaborate explanations
    4. Question Type – Civilsdaily’s unique innovation
    • You appear for a test every 2nd day at 8 PM. We believe some breathing time is necessary to ensure consistency and efficiency. Besides, a good revision also requires quality time commitment.
    • Instant score after you submit your test with proper explanations for the questions. 
    • Top 10 Ranks will be announced for every test at the launch of the next test.  

    Please ensure you attempt the tests with utmost sincerity.

    Download PDF Time Table here – Time-Table-Mission-Nikaalo-Prelims

    Keep the Josh High !!!

  • Interview transcript – Aditya

    Board- Dr Manoj Soni

    Chairman

    – You are 23, so tell me about the challenges Youth face today?
    – Difference between Older and Younger generation?
    – Was 20th Century good, or 21st Century? – What do you do in your leisure time?
    – Tell me about the historic importance of Gwalior (my hometown)?

    M1

    – What are foreign-funded NGOs?
    – What are Anti Nuclear Energy NGOs?
    – Is Nuclear Energy feasible for India’s energy security?
    – What is Nuclear Waste?
    – Should we go for renewable energy or Nuclear energy?

    M2

    – What is the civil engineer’s role in Smart city?
    – What are some of the current challenges of Urban development?
    – India produces so many engineering graduates, most of them are unemployed. Why?
    – What should we do to employ them?
    – You are a district collector if some newspaper writes a defamatory article against you? What would you do?

    M3

    – Should Delhi be given full statehood? Q2- What are simultaneous elections? Is it desirable?
    – List some electoral reforms we can undertake?
    – Is State funding of elections a desirable reform?

    M4

    – Why do we call Political Science as Science? What is ‘science’ in it?
    – How are India Iran relations going?
    – How are India Pak relations?
    – Who are non-state actors in Pakistan?
    – What is Track 2 diplomacy, and will it work with Pakistan?

    Chairman

    – If your junior doesn’t obey you, what would you do?
    – Should civil servants be terminated from services, if they don’t perform well despite repeated warnings?

  • Still not joined a crash course! Don’t waste time waiting. Get a headstart.

    Prelims Exam requires meticulous planning and preparation. You can expect very detailed not so direct questions from popular topics and broad based questions from topics that have not been that frequent in news.
    To be honest, preparing all by yourself is possible but its more exhausting and painful. Ensuring that you have enough knowledge about a certain topic to be able to attempt the question in Prelims requires more than just reading daily newspapers or covering few other sources.
    Our SIP Program is the Crash Course you need. It will help you develop a grip on Current Affairs. Ensuring that you memorize every small item of our SIP Material will definitely help you clear the first hurdle.
    Its tagline says it all Everything that is important, nothing that is not.
    This year it’s even better. The program has 4 components.
    1. Current Affairs Previous Years – (Prerecorded June 2016-May 2018)- 40 hours
    2. Current Affairs – 40 hours
    3. Budget + Eco Survey – 15 hours
    4. Static Lectures – 60 hours
    Total – Over 150 Hours of lecture
    Broad Time Table (Detailed Time Table will be shared later)
    February – Current Affairs Previous Year and Economic Survey + Budget
    March – Current Affairs – 1st phase – Till December 2018
    April – Current Affairs – 2nd phase – After December 2018
    On popular demand a variant on discount is as follows –
    Old Student Discount Applicable
    Prime TS and SM students get 20% discount – *Please ensure you are enrolled in those courses first*
  • Interview transcript – Harisha B C

    Board: P K Joshi

    Interview Date : 27/02/2017

    Chairman

    – You studied in Bangalore, you are from Tumakuru. How many KMs is Tumkur from Bangalore?
    – What is one nation one election? Do you support ?
    – How the challenges can be addressed ?
    – Why engineers are not getting jobs in India ?
    – What can be done to address this ?
    – What is skill India ?
    – What is NAAC?

    M1

    – what is communication?
    – Give example for communication?
    – Why did you choose Sanskrit as one of the languages ?
    – What is the script of Sanskrit called? (Sanskrit is one of the languages in school)
    – Can you tell me the varnamalas of Sanskrit?
    – What is a to aha is called?
    – What is ka to la is called?

    M2

    – so how did you get this listening to songs as your Hobby?
    – What is the league of kabaddi is called?
    – Is kabaddi popular in your region?
    – What are folk games played in Karnataka which is not popular in other parts of the country?

    M3

    – Why Hyderabad has a better entrepreneurial culture than Bangalore? ( I took an opposite stand here )
    – Why Bangalore has less engineering colleges than your neighbouring states, say TN. ( Indian Express ran a series of articles on this last month)
    – Why did you leave Cognizant? It’s a good company.

    M4

    – what is a dispute between your state and your neighbouring state Tamil Nadu?
    – What is the recent verdict on the dispute?
    – What are your priority areas as a DM?
    – How natural resources like Land should be allocated?

  • [Video] Refresher – Tips to ensure you don’t waste a year

    In what would become one of the most discussed videos,  Sajal Sir has analyzed some basic mistakes committed by the first attempters (and probably the more mature aspirants too).

    Please take these tips very seriously to ensure you get the most out of your preparation in this year.


    Prime TS -> To view the schedule and join – Click2Join

    Click here for admission in our most recent batch