How to Prepare Current Affairs for UPSC?

Current Affairs’ importance in Civil Services Examination is evident in the fact that bulk of Current Affairs-related questions are asked in the UPSC Prelims and Mains examinations. Many UPSC candidates often get confused on how to Prepare Current Affairs for UPSC. So today, we are going to solve your problem.

With the change in the UPSC Exam format and curriculum in 2013, current events play a significant part in the preparation, and the exam demands knowledge of national and worldwide events.

The UPSC prelims curriculum includes a section on “Current events of national and international significance,” referred to as current affairs.

It is true that UPSC has incorporated current affairs in its exams, but there is no set curriculum; therefore, all an applicant needs to do is read major newspapers every day and take notes, or they may refer to any Comprehensive News Analysis, which includes all the important news that is pertinent to UPSC Current Affairs. Y

ou can also join a good IAS Coaching Institute for UPSC preparation. They have expert faculty for current affairs as well as other subjects. This will save a good amount of your time. 

Thus, in this post, we will discover how to prepare current affairs for UPSC Civil Services Exam. For UPSC candidates, the current affair is a significant source of concern.

It is a very active part of the UPSC curriculum that requires ongoing revision. A well-thought-out strategy for Current Affairs may offer you a significant competitive edge.

Bear in mind that there is no one-size-fits-all approach for success. It is entirely up to you how you adapt a plan to your circumstances.

How to Prepare Current Affairs for UPSC?

Current affairs play a significant role in the Civil Services examination as many questions from national and international current affairs are asked at each level of the UPSC examination.

Current Affairs is a fluid and ambiguous subject that leaves everyone perplexed as to how to approach it. You must develop a plan for preparing for the current affairs for UPSC preparation.

However, you must first read past year question papers to get a broad knowledge of the kind of topics often posed in the current affairs segment.

Current Affairs encompasses all events of international and domestic significance, and success requires constant effort.

Here is the list of things that you need to keep in mind to prepare for current affairs for UPSC:

1. Limit Your Sources

The flood of reading material is a basic issue with current affairs. There is a lot of study material available in the market related to current affairs. Aspirants often get perplexed and amass a variety of materials.

They subscribe to Pratiyogita Darpan, EPW, Yojana, and Chronicle, among others. Some of them are never examined and, if they are, they are never updated.

As a result, keeping a lot of study materials is pointless. Purchase just high-quality materials that you can read properly.

Additionally, avoid a perfectionist mentality that encourages you to purchase a perfect remedy. There is no one-size-fits-all source. You may choose from the following:

● Newspaper-The Hindu

● Daily Summaries are accessible through the internet.

● One monthly magazine devoted to current events like Yojana

● Spotlight on All India Radio

● The Big Picture on RSTV

● PRS India’s official webpage

2. Set a Time Limit

The issue with most candidates is not that they ignore newspapers but that they exaggerate their significance.

Some people read newspapers for almost three to four hours a day, leaving little time for additional reading.

Current events are important; newspapers are critical, but not to the extent that you spend excessive time in them. In an ideal scenario, one should complete reading the day’s current events in 1-2 hours.

3. Analyse the News Properly

UPSC has always placed a premium on the analysis of current events. As a result, a comprehensive examination of the news is needed.

You may find it under Daily news analysis. For instance, if Chabahar Port is in the news, you should concentrate on bilateral ties between India and Iran, China’s participation, and Asian geopolitics. Generally, while analysing news, you should use the following strategy.

● The news context: Why is something in the news?

● Facts about the Situation: For instance, if maternal mortality is a topic of discussion, you may research India’s MMR statistics, determining which state has the highest MMR rate, and so forth.

● Initiatives by the Government: These are the efforts made by the government to address the problem. For instance, consider the Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana (PMVVY)

● Advantages, Concerns, and Obstacles: Analyze the benefits of these efforts in this section. Additionally, search for different flaws in government programmes and efforts. For instance, PMVVY did not reach at least 49% of all women who would have given birth to their first child.

● The way Forward: In this section, you must address the problem by proposing actions that may be done to remedy it.

4. Make Proper Notes

If you are not writing, you are squandering your time. Writing aids in the retention of knowledge. Additionally, it is beneficial from a revision standpoint.

Your objective is to retain the information so that you can write well in Mains. You continue to jot down answers for daily practice in addition to taking notes.

The most critical point to remember while preparing current affairs notes should be concise and to the point.

You will be limited to 250 words (maximum) per question on the UPSC exam. You must also present all relevant aspects of the topic and a suitable solution to the issue that you believe would justify the issue.

It would be best to make notes using pointers, flow charts, and mindmaps, among other tools. These aid in idea clarification and also assist in remembering things.

Therefore, you should compose the note subject wisely and practise online or offline, whichever is most convenient.

5. Concentrate on Keywords

After reading a subject many times, write down brief notes to assist you in identifying the keywords. This is another critical approach to the problem of how to prepare current affairs for UPSC.

Therefore, keep an eye out for keywords since they are critical in current events when preparing a subject. P

repare by writing down all the keywords associated with a particular topic in one location so that you can subsequently connect a term directly to a current event.

It makes it easier to write the exam; for example, if you see a keyword in the question, you attempt to recall relevant news/topics to recall everything and quickly answer the question.

Each question has a tag associated with it, which is the same term you need to research while preparing for a current affairs subject.

6. Choose Quality rather than Quantity 

You may come across individuals who do extensive research on the finest sources accessible for studying, such as the best website/newspaper for current events, but who do not read them thoroughly.

You may also come across voracious readers, consuming information from all accessible sources and creating massive notes for the exam to study.

These items, on the other hand, do not function at all. The more of these things you do, the greater the likelihood that you will fail.

Spend a day or two researching, deciding on your sources, and sticking to them, i.e. reading everything from the source you selected, so choose carefully. You’ll be alright.

Not everything in the newspapers is relevant to the UPSC exam; you should always ignore news on political parties, in-depth data about the stock market, entertainment, and sports news unless reading them is a pleasure. Thus, you must study just what is necessary for the UPSC exam; simply reading everything would not suffice.

7. Avoid Trying to Mug Up

When it comes to accomplishing an exam, we all attempt to mug up. Some UPSC sections can pass by mugging up; however, you cannot use the same mugging up technique while studying for the Current Affairs portion.

Therefore, if you are stumped on how to prepare current affairs for UPSC, follow the steps above but do not memorise everything; this will not help at all. As a result, you need to remember the dates and particular names associated with the current event.

8. Revision

Mark Twain once stated that nothing beats rewriting. Nothing beats revision for civil service preparedness.

The techniques outlined above will guarantee that you cover 90-95 per cent of current events in a way that is relevant to this test.

However, current events are an ongoing and developing subject that continues to accumulate material daily. The most effective method of retaining information is via continuous review.

As we have already discussed the things to keep in mind to prepare for current affairs for UPSC, all you need to do is follow this with utmost dedication.

Though you can prepare on your own, it is always advisable to join a coaching centre. Sorting out important news, analyzing them, choosing what is relevant and not requires a lot of time.

Additionally, it is also possible that you might miss out on something or you invest a lot of time on this that you may have little time left for other subjects. In this case, it is always advisable to join a coaching class.

The Thought Tree is one of the best coachings that discusses current events in-depth, including The Hindu, Indian Express, PIB, Yojana, and government papers.

They have highly qualified faculty who provide you with everything you need to know about UPSC exams and prepare current affairs for the UPSC exam.

Additionally, they do not just suggest reference books for you to read once the course is completed; they cover those books throughout the course and conduct mock tests to evaluate your understanding.

Some FAQs

1. How many months of current affairs preparation is needed for the IAS (UPSC CSE) Mains examination?

From the conclusion of the previous year’s preliminary examinations to the start of the current year’s preliminary examinations, current events throughout the whole year are critical. However, current events six months before the test are critical since most questions are centered on them.

2. Exactly what sort of questions are asked in the IAS (UPSC CSE) Exam?

General knowledge questions are often focused on politics, economics, art and culture, government plans, policies, and development, the yearly budget, and research science and technology.

3. How can I strengthen my static GK in preparation for the UPSC?

Recognize the key parts from which GK questions often arise. While preparing, place a greater emphasis on these subjects.

Establish daily objectives and mock exams to ensure that you cover the bulk of the critical questions. Finally, keep an eye on daily publications for the latest news.