The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) conducts the UPSC IAS exam, popularly known as the Civil Services Examination, once a year. Despite its reputation as one of the most difficult recruitment exams in the country, it is the most popular among today’s youth.
A well-thought-out plan and the right books/ study material can help an aspirant clear the civil services exam on the first attempt with flying colours. Out of a large number of books/study materials available both online and offline, it is a crucial step in the UPSC IAS preparation for beginners to select the best books.
List of Best Reference Books for UPSC Prelims
On that note, let’s discuss a few great books recommended by experts that you should consider besides NCERT books to get a strong base for clearing the Preliminary exam.
Tata McGraw Hill CSAT Manual
Tata McGraw-General Hill’s Studies Manuals are an established bestseller and one of the best UPSC general studies books for the civil services preliminary examination (Paper I & II) with a 27-year publishing history.
After analyzing the syllabus, trend, and type of the questions answered in the most recent question paper, the contents of General Studies Paper-II were designed and created. The work is focused on staying on track with the syllabus and providing just relevant theoretical and practice material while avoiding the unnecessary stuff.
Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning – RS Aggarwal
While maintaining the fundamental qualities and structure of the previous edition, this redesigned edition provides readers with more questions from a variety of competitive tests based on the most recent pattern and trends.
SSC, SBI, AFCAT, Banking exams, Railway exams, UPSC IAS, and other competitive examinations now have a portion on recent questions (based on memory) and their answers/solutions. The book includes a large number of solved examples with detailed explanations and practice questions with answers.
India’s Struggle for Independence – Bipan Chandra
India’s Struggle for Independence is one of the most comprehensive and detailed histories of the struggle for Indian independence ever written in the literary world.
The information in this book was compiled from oral and written sources, a variety of additional primary sources, and years of intensive investigation. It is a one-of-a-kind book that describes the nuances of the Indian Independence struggle very concisely.
Indian Polity – M Laxmikanth
This book is designed to satisfy the needs of students preparing to take the civil services examination and covers the entire syllabus. The background of the constitution, fundamental rights and duties, peculiarities of the constitution, parliamentary system, special provisions for certain states, the functioning of the central government, and more are covered in this book’s numerous sections.
Certificate Physical Geography – G C Leong
The fundamentals of most physical and human geography issues have been presented in simple language, with numerous images, drawings, and maps providing extensive explanations when needed.
This book contains a great deal of the necessary geographical knowledge, climate change, types of natural vegetation, minerals, or mountain ranges. For this reason, students appearing for UPSC CSE or a variety of government positions rely heavily on the book.
Oxford Student Atlas for India
The Atlas is based on the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education’s syllabus, making it extremely valuable for pupils who study under this board. The Atlas also includes a History component that provides pupils with a detailed picture of historical events.
Indian Economy by Nitin Singhania
Nitin Singhania’s book, Indian Economic, attempts to write down economic issues and the necessary actions by stakeholders. The contents have been organized in a logical and conceptually clear manner.
The concepts have been enhanced with flowcharts, tables, graphs, illustrations, and other visual aids to improve understanding and comprehension in a short amount of time.
Indian Economy by Ramesh Singh
Ramesh Singh’s Indian Economy is a thorough and current book on the subject, with detailed coverage of all topics mandated by the UPSC. This book has proven helpful to hopefuls for the UPSC and different State Civil Service Examinations, university students, academicians, and individuals with a strong interest in the subject.