Namaste!

I am Anil Basak
I am from Kishanganj, Bihar.
I have done my Schooling from Kishanganj.
I gave 2 attempts in IIT- JEE.
I got AIR 2016 in my second attempt, i.e., in 2014.
I have done B.Tech in Civil Engineering from IIT Delhi (2014-18)

My UPSC CSE attempts:

I started my formal UPSC CSE preparation in August, 2016 (3rd Year- First Semester)

2018: Couldn't clear Prelims.

2019: Got AIR 616 and got IRS IT (Joined at NADT, Nagpur on 28th December, 2020 and my
UPSC CSE Mains 2020 was on 8th January, 2021. So, I immediately took Extra Ordinary Leave
for the period 28th December, 2020 to 29th November, 2021. I resigned from IRS IT on 3rd
December, 2021. )

2020: Got AIR 45 and got IAS (Bihar Cadre).

My two cents on Mathematics, GS and Personality Test + Analogies between The Holy

Constitution of India and UPSC CSE:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_PHHhKwEjA&t=2s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1806VTr1XbY&t=2952s

1. Constitution of india
2. https://legislative.gov.in/constitution-of-india

From where to start:

You may start with the subject you were most interested in school or college. e.g. , Geography,
Economy, History, Polity (Constitution) etc.
If you are not interested in any of the Social Sciences subjects then you can start with any of the
subjects of UPSC CSE. However, I recommend you may start with Economy or Polity as they
are the foundational pillars for CSE as well as key to understanding the newspaper or Current
Affairs.
Hence, you should start newspaper reading when you have sufficiently covered the Polity and
Economy part. If you are a beginner then you can start reading the newspaper 1 year before the
Prelims Examination.

For Motivation:

It's perfectly normal to feel demotivated during the preparation. But you need to come back to
the preparation. Even I don't know how to keep oneself motivated throughout the journey. But
these might be helpful:

1. See motivational videos/quotes on YouTube or Google 😅.

e.g.

2. Think about why you started the preparation in the first place.
3.
Remember the motivation should be internal. External motivation works in the short term only.
e.g. A car can be run for long only on diesel/petrol/CNG/battery etc. and it cannot be run for long
by external push/pull. External forces can only make it run for a short duration. So, try to find out
your internal fire/motivation.

Allah Ke Bande:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ered22Xy4E

Most of the aspirants face difficulty in deciding what and from where to study a particular topic
during UPSC CSE preparation. In order to clear the air regarding such doubts and to help
aspirants, even the absolute beginners, who find it difficult to navigate through the endless
ocean of available resources for CSE preparation, here's our two cents!!

This google doc has been compiled by me with inputs from Shrestha Anupam (AIR 19, UPSC
CSE-2019). We hope that it will benefit the aspirant community at large:

https://bit.ly/PrelimsPlan
https://bit.ly/CrackingCSE

Going through Previous Year Questions

(PYQs) is probably the most important thing to
get an idea of what exactly is the demand of
the examination.
Links:
1. https://mrunal.org/prelims (For topic wise prelims PYQs. Note that the 2015 Prelims
analysis is missing in Mrunal. But the remaining years analysis is good enough.
For Drive link click here.

2. https://mrunal.org/mains (For topic wise mains PYQs)

3. https://freeupscmaterials.org/category/previous-question-papers/
4. Google searches. E.g. Google “UPSC CSE Prelims Paper 2015”

Note: CSE syllabus changed in 2013. So it would be better to give more priority to the PYQs of
2013-2021.
If you have less time then see PYQs of 2017-2021.

Analysing PYQs is not a one time exercise. PYQs should be revisited again and again during
your preparation phase and a week before the actual exam date.

PYQs not only give you an idea of the actual demands of the CSE preparation but also help you
know which topics are more important and how the type of questions asked from a particular
topic differs from the others.

Remember that Syllabi should always be read in conjunction with the PYQs, i.e., analyse
the PYQs by looking at the topics given in the syllabi (as done by Mrunal Sir)
#Prelims:

Helpful videos for UPSC CSE Prelims-

Videos:

1. http://bit.ly/LHFPre
2. http://bit.ly/SoDPre

https://bit.ly/PrelimsPPT

Sources that can be followed:

https://bit.ly/PrelimsPlan

#Prelims CSAT:

https://youtu.be/MVZ9s6jS2jU

#Mathematics Optional:

For Mathematics optional and other stuff:

http://demystifycse.in/author/kanishakkataria/

🙌🙏
http://atul1994.blogspot.com/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1806VTr1XbY&t=2952s

What I did (will update this section soon):

1. I tried to follow IMS notes for Linear Algebra, Analytic Geometry (But the Conicoid
portion was done from a book. I will update the name of the book), Ordinary Differential
Equations, Partial differential equations, Dynamics & Statics, Vector Analysis, Algebra
(Modern Algebra), Calculus and Real Analysis, Complex Analysis, Linear Programming,
Numerical Analysis and Computer programming.
2. I followed standard books for Mechanics and Fluid Dynamics selectively. (For important
chapters go to:
http://atul1994.blogspot.com/2018/06/maths-paper-2-pointers-book-list.html )
 3. Gave around 12-14 IMS Tests. Gave the test in 3 hours (5 questions) then solved the
remaining 3 questions in 1.5 hours. Finally, I tried to analyse my copy from the answer
key given by IMS. I also discussed those questions with my friends where the answer
key was missing or it was inadequate.
4. Kept practising at least 1-2 questions (50 marks each) till 4 days before the mains exam,
i.e., Essay paper.
5. Disclaimer: I am sharing my revision notes. Unless there is paucity of time, do not read
from my notes directly. If you make your own notes, they will serve you much better:
Kanishak Kataria Sir’s notes in a modified form: Click Here. This might be helpful
in knowing which all topics/proofs are important from IMS notes / standard books.
6. If stuck at a question one may find this useful: https://math.stackexchange.com/

My Mock Test Copies (Click Here):

#Mains Strategy:
UPSC CSE Mains Strategy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grL7-wfNwyQ

#Mains Copies

I am sharing some of my mains test series copies from 2019 and 2020 attempts.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/101JAmSS3CdGp9j0VzHyzDraEBjRF8ejG?usp=sharing

Notes:
1. I have written many of the tests in the name of my friends ( because they were not appearing
in the mains examination that year or because I exchanged some of the tests of my institute
with that of my friends' institutes).
2. Many of the comments in the copies are genuine. But please don't take all the comments
seriously. Take them as per your wisdom, i.e., take them with a pinch of salt.
3. Marks given in the test series should also not be taken seriously (It depends upon the
checker as well as the marking scheme, i.e., liberal, moderate or tough). The main goal should
be to incorporate comments (which you think are genuine) in your upcoming tests.
4. Marks for tests given on 10th and 11th September 2019 are inflated as Vision IAS tried to
follow a liberal marking scheme for these tests (as CSE mains exam was to start from 20th
September 2019, so they wanted to send us on a high).
5. In 2020 I couldn't write many tests as I was busy due to various reasons.

For better copies please go to : http://visionias.in/resources/toppers_answers.php

Keep writing and keep improving.

#Personality Test (PT) or the so called Interview:

One of my mock (practice) interviews (Personality Test) was on 1st August, 2021.
My real UPSC CSE 2020 Personality Test was on 06th August, 2021.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=9h4PK6E5xr4&t=118s

I wrote mains in English but gave my Personality Test in Hindi (which was mainly Hinglish) for
CSE 2020.

Finally, I got 187 (out of 275) marks in UPSC CSE 2020 actual Personality Test.

My UPSC CSE (2020 and 2019 Exam) Personality Test (Interview) Experience:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eENzE6cT2cBZK5czLMfXpL1SydW4uOGKnXdZnFybJW
k/edit?usp=drivesdk

For more go to: https://t.me/PTT2019

My UPSC CSE Marksheets:

2019:
2020:
My notes:

Disclaimer: I am sharing my revision notes. Unless there is paucity of time, do not read from
my notes directly. If you make your own notes, they will serve you much better.

https://bit.ly/GeographyNotes

https://bit.ly/MIHnotes

https://bit.ly/Notes_and_Books

Is coaching needed?
Whether coaching is required or not for UPSC CSE preparation is a perennial question. We
believe that it’s a personal choice of the candidate based on his temperament and availability of
resources( time, money, energy etc.). There are umpteen examples of successful candidates in
both the categories( those who took coaching and those who didn’t).
If you decide to go for self-study there are ample resources available in the market and on the
internet that can help you clear this examination. (e.g.
https://www.csewiki.org/Strategy:Toppers%27_strategy )

My Experience with Coaching Institutes:

I joined Vision IAS for General Studies (2016-17), IMS for Mathematics Optional (2017) and GS
Score for Essay (2020).

Rest of the coaching institutes which are publishing my name is because I appeared in their
mock interviews (e.g. Rau’s IAS). I did not join their classroom programme or any of their test
series.

The bottom line is: Figure out your strengths, temperament and availability of resources and
decide accordingly.

Remember more than 95% of your CSE knowledge (whether you take coaching or not) will
come from self study and discussions with friends and mentors!

Efforts needed:

Well the goal should be to complete your tasks for the day/week and then enjoy. So, the number
of hours spent for the exam per day doesn’t matter much. Some people do good by studying 6-8
hours daily while some read for 10-12 hours. So, the choice is up to you. Identify your strengths
and weaknesses and plan accordingly.

I used to study on average 5.5 to 8 hours daily. However, I had to increase it to 10-12 hours
when the Prelims/mains exam was round the corner. But I rarely crossed more than 12 hours of
studying in a day.

I believe the mind is like a machine. We should give it rest from time to time. So, keep taking
breaks throughout the day (e.g., going for a walk, playing sports, watching youtube videos,
meditation, talking to family / friends etc.). This way you will be able to keep the stress level
under control.

You may follow the Pomodoro Technique for better productivity:

https://todoist.com/productivity-methods/pomodoro-technique
P.S. We will keep updating this Google doc from time to time. So keep visiting this document.
For any query or suggestion please fill this Google Form.

Thank you for reading this. For your future endeavours all the best and leave out all the rest!
(https://youtube.com/watch?v=yZIummTz9mM)

Credits: Class XII Geography NCERT. For more NCERTs go to: Philoid NCERT Books App

Jai Hind!
Last but not the least:

1. Mat Kar Maya ko Ahankar-

https://youtube.com/watch?v=xtUaxscA6ZA
2. Ekla Cholo Re-
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=r94gSTyH2cM

सर्वे भवन्तु सखि

ु नः
सर्वे सन्तु निरामयाः।
सर्वे भद्राणि पश्यन्तु मा कश्चिद्दःु खभाग्भवेत।