NCERT books form the basic study in most of the subject preparation of the UPSC examination.

WHY?

• Simple to understand the basic concepts clearly.
• The tables are easy to memorize the facts.
• The contents are highly reliable.

Must-Read Books for the UPSC Exam:

How to read :

• Read by keeping your UPSC Syllabus in hand. Study subject-wise rather than grade-wise completion.
• First time just read the book and understand the concepts
•  Before proceeding to the second read, go through the previous year’s question papers to get a glimpse of the questions asked in the topic.
• Now in the second read, highlight the important ones.
• Make notes in the third read
• Make sure you reduce your time each time you read the same topic.

Notes from NCERTs:

• t is recommended to take notes as per the topic in the syllabus. Divide notes only as per the syllabus topics.
• Each subject and topic needs a different note-making style to make it easy to remember.
• Like, many topics in Geography need Mnemonics, most of the history notes need a flow chart with simple factual data in them, etc.
•  So maintain notes according to the need.
• Rephrase the notes in such a way that you need not look back to your book again for the same topic after a year or so.
• Also, use digital notes like Evernote, etc whenever needed. This will ease your preparation.

Tips:

• Never study without your syllabus!
• Do not divert or get attracted to unnecessary topics from any books