GS Paper 2 Syllabus: Polity, Governance, International Relations

GS Paper II is one of the seven UPSC Mains papers that count towards your final rank. In UPSC's numbering it is Paper III of the mains, titled General Studies-II: Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations. It carries 250 marks and you get three hours to write it.

The notice prints its syllabus as 20 points. Here they are in UPSC's words, then in plain words, followed by where the paper sits in the mains and how to prepare from it.

The syllabus, as UPSC prints it

What the paper covers

The paper's title lists five subjects, and the 20 points group into four parts.

Constitution and polity (9 points)

• The Constitution: its historical background, how it evolved, its features, amendments, important provisions and basic structure.
• Federalism: what the Union and the States do, the problems of the federal structure, and how powers and money are passed down to local bodies.
• The separation of powers between the organs of government, and the mechanisms and institutions that settle disputes.
• How India's constitutional scheme compares with other countries'.
• Parliament and the state legislatures: structure, functioning, business, powers and privileges.
• The executive and the judiciary, ministries and departments, and the role of pressure groups and associations.
• The main features of the Representation of the People Act.
• Appointments to constitutional posts, and the powers and duties of constitutional bodies.
• Statutory, regulatory and quasi-judicial bodies.

Governance (4 points)

Government policies and interventions for development, and the problems in how they are designed and carried out; the development sector, including NGOs, self-help groups, donors and charities; transparency, accountability, e-governance and citizens' charters; and the role of the civil services in a democracy.

Social justice (3 points)

Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population and how well they perform, with the laws, institutions and bodies set up to protect them; the social sector, meaning health, education and human resources; and poverty and hunger.

International relations (4 points)

India and its neighbours; bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements that involve India or affect its interests; how the policies and politics of developed and developing countries affect India's interests, and the Indian diaspora; and important international institutions, agencies and fora, with their structure and mandate.

Where GS II sits in the mains

GS II is the second of four General Studies papers. With the Essay and your two optional papers, they make up the 1,750 marks that decide your written rank.

Links with other papers

• Prelims. The prelims line on Indian polity and governance names the Constitution, the political system, Panchayati Raj, public policy and rights issues, all of which reappear here in more depth. Prelims syllabus
• GS IV. Both papers name citizens' charters, and GS IV's probity in governance covers transparency and the right to information. One set of governance notes can serve both. GS Paper 4
• Optional subjects. The PSIR syllabus has a section on Indian government and politics and another on India and the world, and the Public Administration syllabus has a paper on Indian administration. PSIR, Public Administration

The subject guides for polity and international relations follow each subject across the prelims and mains.

How to prepare from the syllabus

• Read the Constitution alongside your textbook. Points on provisions, amendments and constitutional bodies are easier to answer precisely when you know the articles themselves.
• Keep one current example for each point. A recent bill, judgment, scheme or report makes a governance answer concrete.
• Build a table of bodies. List each constitutional, statutory, regulatory and quasi-judicial body with its legal basis, how its members are appointed and what it does. The syllabus names all four kinds.
• Organise international relations by region and grouping. Follow India's neighbours, its groupings and its agreements in the news, and file what you read under the four points.
• Practise taking a view. The notice says the GS papers test your ability to analyse and take a view on conflicting socio-economic goals. End answers with a balanced conclusion, not a summary.
• Write against the clock. You get three hours for the whole paper, so practise full papers in that time. Mains answer writing