ABOUT UPSC CSE (IAS) 2019 EXAM
IAS exam is a national level exam and is considered as one of the toughest examinations. The Indian state has retained the civil service’s structure as was imparted by the British and envisioned to achieve integrity and unity across the nation via this steel framework. Established in 1926, the civil service was revamped in the post-independence era. It was Sardar Patel who advocated the adoption of an All India Services in a newly independent India for the smooth functioning of the government.
The service produces a rank of elite cadre of officers who enjoy wide range of perks and allowances and a high degree of respect. Regarded as the most difficult of all the competitive exam in India, the selection delivers you honour, prestige and status, all in one. It provides you with the opportunity to change the face of the country and the society and contribute a major chunk in building Nehru’s India of my Dreams.
| Exam Name | Civil Services Examination |
| Conducting Body | Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) |
| Exam Level | National |
| Official Website | www.upsconline.nic.in |
| Exam Periodicity | Yearly |
| Exam Mode | Offline (Pen-Paper Mode) |
| No. of Registration | NA |
| No. of Vacancies | NA |
| Events | Dates |
| Notification Released & Online Application Start Date | 19.02.2019 |
| Last Date to Apply Online Application | 18.03.2019 |
| UPSC CSE (IAS) Exam Date (Prelims) | 02.06.2019 (Sunday) |
| Download Link Activation of UPSC Admit Card | 15 days prior to the exam |
| UPSC CSE (IAS) Prelims Exam Result Date | After 45 days of the exam |
| UPSC CSE (IAS) Exam Date (Mains) | 20.09.2019 |
| Group A Services | |
| Indian Administrative Service | Indian Post and Telecommunication Accounts and Finance Service |
| Indian Audit and Accounts Service | Indian Postal Service |
| Indian Civil Accounts Service | Indian Railway Accounts Service |
| Indian Corporate Law Service | Indian Railway Personnel Service |
| Indian Defence Accounts Service | Indian Railway Traffic Service |
| Indian Defence Estates Service | Indian Revenue Service (Custom and Central Excise) |
| Indian Foreign Service | Indian Revenue Service (Income Tax) |
| Indian Information Service (Junior Grade) | Indian Trade Service (Gr. III) |
| Indian Ordnance Factories Service (Assistant Works Manager, Administration) | Assistant Security Commissioner in Railway Protection Force |
| Indian Police Service | — |
| Group B Services | |
| Armed Forces Headquarters Civil Services (Section Officer’s Grade) | Pondicherry Civil Service |
| Delhi, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Daman & Diu and Dadra & Nagar Haveli Civil Services | Pondicherry Police Service |
| Delhi, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Daman & Diu and Dadra & Nagar Haveli Police Services | – |
(b) Educational Qualification: The candidates applying for the UPSC Civil Services examination must have a graduation degree from a govt. recognized university.
Candidates those who are pursuing graduation and are waiting for their final results can also apply. But only on the condition that the result should be declared before filling the application for the mains exam.
(c) Age Limit: UPSC has a pre-defined age limit for the candidates who want to apply for the UPSC IAS 2019 exam. Below we have defined the required age of the candidates belonging to different categories:
| Category | Minimum Age | Maximum Age |
| General | 21 year | 32 year |
| OBC | 21 year | 35 year |
| SC/ST | 21 year | 37 year |
Age Relaxation: There is an age relaxation for the few candidates applying for the UPSC IAS 2019 exam as follows:
| Category | Age Relaxation |
| Schedule cast/ Schedule tribe | 5 years |
| Other backward classes (OBC) | 3 years |
| Defence Services Personnel | 3 years |
| Ex-servicemen including Commissioned Officers and ECOs/SSCOs | 5 years |
| Deaf, hard of hearing, low vision or blindness, ex-servicemen or candidates with any other locomotor disability or muscle disformity | 10 years |
(d) Number of Attempts (Category Wise):
| Category | Maximum No. of Attempts |
| General | 6 |
| OBC | 9 |
| SC/ST | No Limit |
Stage 1: Preliminary Examination
Stage 2: Mains Examination
Stage 3: Interview
Note: To participate in the next stage, it is important for the candidate to qualify the cut off marks in each stage.
UPSC IAS 2019 Exam Pattern & Syllabus
UPSC IAS Exam Pattern for Prelims & Mains is shared below. The total no. of questions asked in the UPSC IAS preliminary 2019 exam is 400, the description of the same is as follows:
| Name of Paper | No. of Qs. | Max. Marks | Exam Duration |
| General Studies- Paper-I | 100 | 200 Marks | 2 Hours |
| CSAT- Paper–II | 80 | 200 Marks | 2 Hours |
Note: In Paper-I marks will be counted to determine the merit list whereas the Paper-II will be of qualifying in nature (33% marks required).
Mains & Interview
| Paper | Name of Paper | Duration | Marks |
| Paper – A | Compulsory Indian Language (One of the Indian Language to be selected by the candidate from the Languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution) | 3 Hours | 300 Marks |
| Paper – B | Compulsory English | 3 Hours | 300 Marks |
| Paper – I | Essay | 3 Hours | 250 Marks |
| Paper – II | General Studies–I (Indian Heritage and Culture, History, and Geography of the World and Society) | 3 Hours | 250 Marks |
| Paper – III | General Studies-II (Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations) | 3 Hours | 250 Marks |
| Paper – IV | General Studies– III (Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management) | 3 Hours | 250 Marks |
| Paper – V | General Studies– IV (Ethics, Integrity, and Aptitude) | 3 Hours | 250 Marks |
| Paper – VI | Optional Paper– I (Candidates may choose anyone of the optional subjects) | 3 Hours | 250 Marks |
| Paper – VII | Optional Paper-II | 3 Hours | 250 Marks |
| Total | 1750 Marks | ||
| Personality Test/Interview | 275 Marks | ||
| Grand Total | 2025 Marks | ||
Note: Paper A & B is of Qualifying in Nature (25% i.e. 75 marks required). Whereas marks of Paper I to VII will be counted to determine the final order of merit.
UPSC IAS Cut off (Category-Wise)
Cut off are the minimum qualifying marks to be secured by the candidate in order to reserve a seat. Below is the UPSC Civil Services Examination Cut Off 2017 shared officially by UPSC:
| Category | Prelims | Mains | Final |
| General | 105.34 | 809 | 1006 |
| OBC | 102.66 | 770 | 968 |
| SC | 88.66 | 756 | 944 |
| ST | 88.66 | 749 | 939 |
| PH-1 | 85.34 | 734 | 923 |
| PH-2 | 61.34 | 745 | 948 |
| PH-3 | 40.00 | 578 | 830 |
| Book Title | Author/Publication |
| History of Modern India | Bipan Chandra |
| History of Medieval India | Satish Chandra |
| India’s Struggle for Independence | Bipan Chandra |
| India’s Ancient Past | R.S. Sharma |
| Indian Polity for Civil Services Examinations | M. Laxmikanth |
| Indian Art and Culture (Culture) | Nitin Singhania |
| Facets of Indian Culture | Spectrum |
| Our Parliament | Subash Kashyap |
| Certificate Physical and Human Geography | Goh Cheng Leong |
| Indian Economy | Ramesh Singh |
Usually, the results are declared within a month for both prelims as well as for mains. However, it is our advice to the candidates waiting for the results of their last year’s attempt should not wait in order to give the UPSC IAS examinations this year.
For other inquiries, you can contact officials through below resources:
Union Public Service Commission
Phone Number : 011-23098543, 23385271, 23381125, 23098591
Email : feedback-upsc[at]gov[dot]in
Official Site : https://upsc.gov.in/