IAS 2011 Ranker Rohit Shukla Shares Strategy for IAS Prelims

Jun 10, 2013, 12:07 IST

IAS 2011 Ranker Rohit Shukla in an interview to jagranjosh.com shares strategy for IAS prelims. He focused more on the basics of all subjects and tried to relate and interlink newspaper topics with basics.

IAS Ranker Rohit Shukla Shares Strategy for IAS Prelims

IAS 2011 Ranker Rohit Shukla in an interview to jagranjosh.com shares strategy for IAS prelims. He focused more on the basics of all subjects and tried to relate and interlink newspaper topics with basics.

jagranjosh.com: What was your preparation strategy for the Preliminary examination?

Rohit Shukla: I focussed more on the basics of all subjects and less on remembering factual data.I Focussed on core text books more. I considered Revision most important. For aptitude paper I practiced using standard aptitude books to increase my speed.

jagranjosh.com: How much time do you think should be devoted by an aspirant to prepare for the exam?

Rohit Shukla: One should start serious preparation at least 6 months before the preliminary exam.

jagranjosh.com: General Studies is a very vast section. How did you prepare for it?

Rohit Shukla: I focussed on core text books first. For example NCERT books for economics, Bipan Chandra book for History, NCERT Geography and India Year Book for other topics. I daily read newspaper and analysed the important topics.I tried to relate and interlink newspaper topics with what I had read in the standard text books.

jagranjosh.com: What do you think on the changed trend of the UPSC Civil Services Exam? Is it good about the whole selection process now that there is no optional paper in the IAS Prelims?

Rohit Shukla: It is a step in the positive direction.Preliminary exam has become more indicative of the actual qualities needed in an ideal civil servant.Removal of Optional has, meant that all aspirants have nearly equal chance when they start.

jagranjosh.com: The new syllabus of preliminary examination has introduced CSAT in place of optional paper. Do you think that it will help in selecting civil servants with right aptitude?

Rohit Shukla: Definitely, CSAT questions on decision making, mathematical skills, comprehension etc will help in selecting the right candidates.

jagranjosh.com: What is your opinion about self study for prelims? Also tell us if you think that group discussion is helpful for the exam.

Rohit Shukla: Self study can be sufficient for prelims if one is dedicated and consistent over a period of time. I did not find group discussion very helpful at later stages of preparation although it can help during initial preparation.

jagranjosh.com: What is your advice for candidates who did not do well in prelims?

Rohit Shukla: It is very important to undertsand the nature of the paper. Questions these days are more analytical. Cramming is not effective and there should be more focus on key concepts to be studied from standard text books. There should be more focus on Science and Technology, Environment etc.

jagranjosh.com: Is the Prelims the toughest or the easiest part of the whole exam?

Rohit Shukla: No stage can be considered easy in this exam. Prelims is very important since it opens the door for further stages.

jagranjosh.com: Given the extensive nature of contents asked in the preliminary exam, did you apply any specific method for the preparation?

Rohit Shukla: Yes, considering the diversity of topics I used to make a mental map or summary of key topics and revised mentally to make sure I remembered.