UPSC Books

UPSC Books for Prelims [June 2022]

UPSC Prelims exam is an objective exam and is a qualifying round. It is crucial to
choose the best books for UPSC Prelims to ensure that you have covered the
entire UPSC Prelims Syllabus in a comprehensive manner. The UPSC Books for
Prelims include books for both Paper 1 and Paper 2 (CSAT). There are plenty of
books to choose from for the prelims exam therefore the best way to begin your exam
preparation is by completing the NCERT Books for UPSC for all the subjects.

• India’s Struggle for Independence – Bipan Chandra

• Indian Art and Culture by Nitin Singhania
• NCERT Class 11 & 12 for Ancient & Medieval
• Certificate Physical Geography – G C Leong
• NCERT - Fundamentals of Physical Geography
• Indian Polity – M Laxmikanth
• Indian Economy by Nitin Singhania

UPSC Books for CSAT

CSAT exam is designed to test the problem-solving, decision-making, and analytical

ability skills of the candidates. Below we have mentioned some CSAT Books for
UPSC that would help you to enhance these skillsets

• Tata McGraw Hill CSAT Manual

• Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning – R S Aggarwal

UPSC Books for IAS Mains

Those candidates who crack the Prelims stage of the UPSC Exam will have to appear
Mains. Here choosing the best books for UPSC Mains would give them a headstart
with their preparation. Below we will be covering the best UPSC books for the Mains
round subject-wise that would be helpful for the candidates.

Before choosing the right USPC Mains Books, it is important to understand the UPSC
Exam Pattern for the Mains exam as it contains numerous papers. We have
categorized the UPSC Book List for Mains subject-wise as per the GS Papers

1. UPSC Books for GS1 - History, Indian Art & Culture, Geography
2. UPSC Boos for GS Paper 2 - Polity & IR
 3. UPSC GS Paper 3 Books - Economics, Environment and Internal Security
4. UPSC GS 4 Books - Ethics

UPSC Books for History

There are two levels of Books for UPSC Prelims for History. Beginners must go
through the NCERT Books or NIOS books for Classes 11 and 12.

• NCERT XI (Ancient & Medieval)

• NCERT XII (Modern Indian History)

History Books for UPSC Prelims

After completing the basic books, you can move on to the following History Books
for IAS

• India's Struggle for Independence by Bipin Chandra & Others

• A Brief History of Modern India (2018-2019) Book by Rajiv Ahir
• History of Medieval India by Satish Chandra
• Ancient India by R.S Sharma

UPSC Books for History [Mains GS Paper 1]

The history section of UPSC Mains Syllabus includes History and Indian Heritage &
Culture. In the UPSC Mains exam, world history is also included. Check the selected
UPSC Booklist to complete the history section

• Indian Art and Culture by Nitin Singhania

• India’s Struggle for Independence by Bipan Chandra
• India’s Ancient Past by R.S. Sharma published by Oxford University Press
• A History of Ancient & Early Medieval India by Upinder Singh
• History of Medieval India (800–1700 AD) by Satish Chandra published by
Orient Longman
• India After Independence (1947 - 2000) by Bipin Chandra & Others
• From Plassey To Partition And After by Sekhar Bandopadhyaya

UPSC Prelims Books for Art & Culture

Studying the Indian culture and heritage for the Prelims exam would be a lot easier
with the following Art & Culture Books for UPSC Prelims.

• NCERT Class 11 – An Introduction to Indian Art Part-I

 • NCERT Class 11 – Living Crafts Traditions of India
• NCERT Class 12 – Craft Traditions of India
• Indian Art & Culture By Nitin Singhania

UPSC Booklist for Geography

Geography is asked in both UPSC Prelims and Mains. Go through the Geography
Syllabus for UPSC and choose the right books for IAS Exam

UPSC Prelims Books for Geography

Geography Books for UPSC Prelims include both Indian geography and world
geography, and the following are some recommended books for this subject.

• Certificate Physical Geography – G C Leong

• NCERT VI – X (Old)
• NCERT XI, XII (New)
• World Atlas (Orient Black Swan)

Geography Books for IAS Mains [GS Paper 1]

UPSC Books for Geography include all topics such as Indian Geography, Physical
Geography, etc. The best way to cover Geography for the UPSC Mains GS Paper 1 is
by covering the NCERTs first before moving on to advanced books. It is fair to
assume that aspirants must have covered the basic NCERTs for the UPSC Prelims
exam.

Check the best Geography Books for UPSC Mains below.

• Geography of India by Majid Husain

• World Geography by Majid Husain
• World Atlas (Orient Black Swan)
• Certificate Physical and Human Geography – G C Leong
• Fundamentals of Physical Geography NCERT Class 11 & 12
• Indian Geography by D. R. Khullar

UPSC Books for Polity

Polity is asked in both prelims and mains exam. In the Mains exam, polity is asked in
form of polity, Governance and IR in GS Paper 2.
Polity Books for UPSC Prelims

Books for UPSC Prelims Polity cover the basic and in-depth understanding of
Parliament, Union States, Local Administrations, Constitutions, etc. Following are
some recommended books to cover these topics.

• NCERT Class XI – Political Science: Indian Constitution at Work (New)

• NCERT Class XII – Political Science I: Contemporary World Politics(New)
• NCERT Class XII – Political Science II: Politics in India since
Independence(New)

Above mentioned Polity Books for UPSC are for building the foundation. Below we
have mentioned some standard books for covering Polity.

• Indian Polity for Civil Services Examinations – M. Laxmikanth

• Important Acts that Transformed India – Alex Andrews George
• Important Judgments that Transformed India – Alex Andrews George

UPSC Books for GS Paper 2 [ Polity & IR]

Books for UPSC Mains GS paper 2 include sections that cover polity, governance,
and IR. It is important to note that current affairs play a huge part in the GS Paper 2
section. The Best Books for IAS Polity are mentioned below.

• Constitution of India at Work (Class XI) NCERT

• Indian Polity by Laxmikant
• The Hindu or Indian Express Newspaper
• Yojana Magazine
• Introduction to the Constitution of India by DD Basu
• International Relations: Pushpesh Pant

Economics Books for IAS

Check the complete UPSC Book List for economics for both UPSC Prelims and
Mains. You can also go through the Economy Notes for UPSC to value add and level
up. Download the economics syllabus for UPSC to understand the total topics to be
covered using the books.
UPSC Prelims Books for Economics

UPSC Prelims Books for Economics would give you an in-depth idea about the issues
associated with society, economic growth, and development, demographics, poverty,
etc. here are the best books you can refer to cover these topics.

• Indian Economy by Nitin Singhania

• Economic Development & Policies in India – Jain & Ohri
• NCERT XI

UPSC Books for Economics [Mains GS Paper 3]

The Economics books for IAS Mains focus on conceptual clarity and understanding
of everyday economics. Along with the UPSC Mains books for Economics, aspirants
must supplement their preparation with the Annual Budget and Economic Survey.

• Indian Economic Development NCERT Class 11

• Indian Economy by Sanjiv Verma
• Indian Economy – Nitin Singhania
• Introductory Macro Economics NCERT Class 12
• The Hindu or Indian Express Newspaper

UPSC Books for Environment

The environment has become important for the UPSC Exam in recent years. To
ensure good marks in Prelims and UPSC GS Paper 3, go through the following
Environment books for IAS

• Class 12 NCERT Book on Biology (Chapters pertaining to Ecology)

• India Year Book (Chapters on Environment)
• The chapter on Climate Change from Economic Survey
• The Hindu or Indian Express Newspaper

You can also check Environment and Disaster Management – Tata McGraw Hill. The
above listed books are useful for both Prelims & Mains GS Paper 3

UPSC Booklist for Internal Security [Mains GS Paper 3]

Check the best books for UPSC Preparation to cover the Internal Security section of
UPSC GS Paper 3.

• India’s Security in a Turbulent World by Jasjit Singh

 • Challenges to Internal Security of India – Ashok Kumar
• The Hindu or Indian Express Newspaper

Ethics Books for UPSC Exam 2022

Check the complete UPSC Booklist for Ethics to complete the UPSC syllabus for
ethics. The ethics paper consists of case studies therefore candidates must ensure that
they are covering the books in the right manner.

• Ethics in Governance, ARC Report

• The Book on Ethics, Integrity & Aptitude by Lexicon by Chronicle
Publications

UPSC NCERT Books

The most important resource for your UPSC Exam preparation is NCERT Books for
UPSC, not only these books would help strengthen your concepts, but the beginners
would be highly benefitted from these books.

Subject UPSC Book List

Ancient History - R. S. Sharma (Old NCERT)
Medieval History - Satish Chandra (Old NCERT)
Modern History - Bipin Chandra (Old NCERT) selective reading
History
World History - Arjun Dev
Note: Though Old NCERTs are mentioned, new ones can also be referred. What matters
conceptual clarity.
Class 11: Sociology: Understanding Society
Indian Society
Class 12: Indian society
Class 11: An Introduction to Indian Art
Art & Culture Class 11: Living Craft Traditions of India (Chapters number 9 & 10)
Class 12: Craft Traditions of India
Class 6: The Earth: Our Habitat
Class 7: Our Environment
Class 8: Resources and Development
Class 9: Contemporary India - I
Geography Class 10: Contemporary India - II
Class 11: Fundamentals of Physical Geography
Class 11: India - Physical Environment
Class 12: Fundamentals of Human Geography
Class 12: India - People and Economy
Class 10: Understanding Economic Development
Economics Class 11: Indian Economic Development
Class 12: Introductory Microeconomics
 Class 12: Introductory Macroeconomics
Class 11: Indian Constitution at work
Class 11: Political Theory
Polity
Class 12: Contemporary World Politics
Class 12: Politics in India since Independence
Sociology Class 12: Social change and development in India
Class 12: Biology: Last four chapters i.e chapters no.13 to 1
Chapters on Biotechnology
a. Class 12: Ecology (Unit 10)
Environment and
b. Chapter 13: Organisms & Population
Ecology
c. Chapter 14: Ecosystem
d. Chapter 15: Biodiversity & Conservation
a. Chapter 16: Environmental Issues·
Class 6 - 10 (All the books)
Science and Class 11 and 12 (Selective)
Technology Class 11: Chemistry (Unit 14) Biology (Units 4 & 5)
Class 12: Chemistry (Unit 16) Biology (Units 8,9 and 10)

Many aspirants often face problems because there is a huge amount of UPSC study
material to complete in a limited period of time. Reading too many books for IAS
would confuse you. That’s why we have prepared this simple strategy that would help
you to read the books efficiently.

• Start picking up only a unit from the UPSC syllabus and choose a book as per
the content of that unit. It would be a wise decision to pick one standard book
for a particular subject and build a basic understanding.
• If you are a beginner then you should start with NCERT books as the content is
written in simple language, and explain the concept with ease.
• After that start making notes from the book. Make sure you are covering all the
topics of that subject while creating notes.
• Highlight the important points so that you can glance through them in the
revision period.
• UPSC exam requires purposeful reading, so make sure you are reading the
books for IAS dedicatedly.

Importance of Best UPSC Books for the IAS Exam

The UPSC CSE Exam is considered to be the toughest exam in the country. One of
the reasons is the elaborate UPSC syllabus for both prelims and mains. To
comprehensively cover the IAS syllabus one needs to have proper guidance &
resources.
• The first step to successful and productive preparation is choosing the right and
best books for UPSC Preparation.
• The correct books for IAS allow you to have good conceptual clarity and
enable you to answer all levels of questions
• A good UPSC Books is credible and structured in such a manner that you are
able to comprehend a vast amount of info in a systemic manner.
• Refer to expert and toppers' recommended UPSC books and select the ones that
suit your need.