BPSC Syllabus 2024, Download PDF for Prelims & Mains
The BPSC Syllabus 2024 forms an integral part of the candidate's preparation strategy. With the release of the BPSC 70th notification, candidates who are keen on cracking the exam should check out the latest BPSC exam syllabus. BPSC is one of the most reputed State Level Civil Services Exams conducted for recruitment to the posts such as Sub Divisional Officer, Rural Development Officer, District Sanapark Officer and other PCS level Officers etc. The BPSC Syllabus is set by the Bihar Public Service Commission for Prelims and Mains exams. Download the latest BPSC syllabus PDF.
BPSC Syllabus 2024
The BPSC Syllabus 2024 has been released by the Bihar Public Service Commission for the 70th BPSC exam 2024. The candidates who will be taking the exam should know the BPSC syllabus. The syllabus is composed of Prelims, Mains and Interview. The Prelims exam is objective while Mains is descriptive. The Prelims syllabus of BPSC has a single paper which is the General Studies paper. The Mains, on the other hand, has four papers General Hindi (Qualifying), General Studies Paper 1, General Studies Paper 2, Essay, and Optional Subject. Candidates can download the BPSC syllabus PDF from here as well as know the important topics from here.
BPSC 2024 Syllabus
It is important to know the current BPSC syllabus so that it becomes clear for the candidates what needs to be studied. Though, it is understood that syllabus does not change every year yet there are some minute changes in it that the candidates need to know.
Changes in BPSC Syllabus
The BPSC Syllabus has undergone some important updates, as per the latest notification. The integrated BPSC exam will now feature four answer choices for each question, with a one-third negative marking for incorrect responses. The Preliminary Exam will consist of a single General Studies paper worth 150 marks.
The BPSC Main Exam will include the following five papers:
- General Hindi (Qualifying)
- General Studies Paper 1
- General Studies Paper 2
- Essay
- Optional Subject
Both the General Hindi and Optional Subject are qualifying in nature, each carrying 100 marks. The Optional Subject will have multiple-choice questions (MCQs).
BPSC Prelims Syllabus
The syllabus for the BPSC Prelims Exam is the same as that of the previous exams of the BPSC. It covers the aspects of General Science, Polity, Economy, History and the National Movement. The candidates have to go through the syllabus and prepare themselves well because the exam will have the questions of good standard. Here is a detailed syllabus of the BPSC Prelims Exam:
| Topics | Details |
|---|---|
| General Science | Basic understanding of science, its everyday applications, and general scientific principles. Covers Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Environmental Science. |
| Current Affairs (National/International) | Current events and updates related to significant political, economic, social, and environmental issues at the national and international levels. |
| History of India and Bihar | Overview of Indian history with an emphasis on Bihar's history. Focus on major events, personalities, movements, cultural heritage, and key developments. |
| Geography of India and Bihar | Questions on the physical, social, and economic geography of India, including Indian agriculture, natural resources, and important geographical features of Bihar. |
| Geographical Division of Bihar and Major River Systems | Focus on the geographical layout, divisions, climatic features, and major rivers in Bihar like Ganga, Kosi, Gandak, and Son. |
| Indian Polity | In-depth knowledge of India’s political system, including constitutional framework, Panchayati Raj system, community development, and governance in Bihar. |
| Indian Economy and Economy of Bihar Post-Independence | Overview of Indian economic policies, reforms, and key sectors post-1947, along with Bihar's economic growth, agriculture, and industries post-independence. |
| Indian Movements and Bihar’s Contribution | Focus on India's national movements like the 1857 revolt, the Non-Cooperation Movement, and Bihar’s role in freedom struggles, with key figures and movements. |
| General Mental Ability | Questions aimed at testing logical reasoning, analytical ability, problem-solving skills, and decision-making capabilities. |
Studying well and solving some mock papers will help the candidates deal better in preparing for the BPSC Prelims Exam. Since, there is no negative marking in the BPSC Prelims Exam so the candidates can mark as many questions as they can without worrying about the negative scoring.
BPSC Syllabus for Mains
Candidates who will qualify the BPSC Prelims exam will be eligible to appear for the Mains exam. The Mains exam is descriptive in nature.
Qualifying Paper: General Hindi
The paper of General Hindi will be qualifying in nature. The syllabus for the qualifying paper is of the level as that of Bihar School Education Board (BSEB). The paper will be of 100 marks and subjective in nature; and the distribution of the marks is as follows:
Essay: 30 Marks
Grammar: 30 Marks
Syntax: 25 Marks
Summarisation: 15 Marks
Out of the 100 marks, candidates are required to secure the qualifying marks in the paper. For this qualifying paper, a good book of school standard is enough.
General Studies Paper
Until now, every paper that the candidates have appeared is of qualifying nature. The BPSC Prelims Exam and the General Hindi paper are just qualifying in nature. It does not matter how well the candidates have fared in these exams. The actual BPSC exam starts now with the General Studies Papers and the Optional Paper. There are two Papers for the General Studies and one for the Optional. Each Paper carries 300 marks making the total marks from all these papers to be 900.
Below is the detailed syllabus for the GS Papers and the Optional Paper:
Syllabus of GS Paper 1
- Modern History of India and Indian culture (History of the country with special reference to Bihar in the middle of nineteenth century, the introduction and expansion of western and technical education, Bihar’s role in the Indian freedom struggle, the Santhal Uprising in Bihar, Birsa movement, Champaran Satyagrah, the Quit India Movement, chief features of Mauryan and Pal art, Patna Qulam painting, Roles of Gandhi, Tagore and Nehru)
- Current events of national and international importance
- Statistical analysis, graphs and diagrams ( Questions to test the ability to draw conclusions from statistical, graphical or diagrammatical information and to point out deficiencies, limitations or inconsistencies)
Syllabus for GS Paper 2
- Indian Polity ( Questions based on the political system in India including Bihar)
- Indian economy and Geography of India (Questions on planning in India and the physical, economic and social geography of India and Bihar)
- The role and impact of science and technology in the development of India (Questions to test awareness of the role and impact of science and technology in India and Bihar with special reference to applied science)
Optional Paper for BPSC Mains Exam
In Optional Paper, a candidate is required to choose any one subject. This paper will be of 300 marks and it will have a time limit of 3 hours. There are 34 Optional subjects in the Main exam. The syllabus of the Optional Paper will be same as that of the Three- Year Honours Paper of the respective subject of Patna University. Here is the list of the Optional Subjects:
1. Agriculture
2. Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science
3. Anthropology
4. Botany
5. Chemistry
6. Civil Engineering
7. Commerce & Accountancy
8. Economics
9. Electrical Engineering
10. Geography
11. Geology
12. History
13. Labour and Social Welfare
14. Law
15. Management
16. Mathematics
17. Mechanical Engineering
18. Philosophy
19. Physics
20. Political Science & International Relations
21. Psychology
22. Public Administration
23. Sociology
24. Statistics
25. Zoology
26. Hindi Language and Literature
27. English Language and Literature
28. Urdu Language and Literature
29. Bangla Language and Literature
30. Sanskrit Language and Literature
31. Persian Language and Literature
32. Arabic Language and Literature
33. Pali Language and Literature
34. Maithili Language and Literature
Keeping the BPSC syllabus in mind, students should make a schedule for their studies. The syllabus is vast and it requires dedicated effort. Also, there should be constant practice so that things get easier for the students in the exam.
BPSC Exam Pattern 2024
There will be a written exam consisting of Prelims and Main Exam followed by an Interview. The BPSC Prelims Exam is qualifying in nature. Candidates who clear the BPSC Prelims Exam will be called for the main exam. The Main Exam comprises 900 marks. If a candidate qualifies the BPSC Main Exam then he is called for the Interview which is of 120 marks. So, the merit is prepared out of 1020 marks.
| Stage of BPSC Exam | Type of Exam | Mode | Total Marks | Duration |
| Prelims | Objective | Offline | 150 | 2 Hours |
| Mains | Subjective | Offline | 900 ( 3 Papers of 300 marks each) | 3 Hours for each Paper |
| Interview | 120 | ----------------- | ||
BPSC Prelims Exam Pattern
The BPSC Prelims Exam will be of 150 marks and qualifying in nature i.e. the scores will not be considered in the preparation of the final merit. It will be of two hours. The change that is seen in the last year’s examination is that there were 5 options to each question which earlier used to be 4. Candidates need to be careful in choosing the suitable option. The candidates are advised to score enough to stay in the competition as the cut-off keeps on varying every year.
| Stage of Exam | Area of Testing | Total Marks | Duration |
| Prelims (Objective) | General Studies General Knowledge Current Affairs | 150 | 2 Hours |
- The questions will be in Hindi and English language both.
- This stage is qualifying in nature.
- There is no negative marking.
- There will be 5 options to each question.
BPSC Mains Exam Pattern
The candidates are called for the BPSC main exam only if they qualify in the BPSC Prelims Exam and secure the required cut-off marks as decided by the Commission. Since, the BPSC Prelims Exam is qualifying in nature so it does not matter what one scores. The pattern of the BPSC Main Exam has been changed too. Now, the BPSC Main Exam will have a qualifying paper General Hindi. Apart from this, there will be General Studies Paper 1 and General Studies Paper 2 carrying 300 marks each. There will be an Optional Paper that the candidate has chosen earlier while filling the Application Form. The Optional Paper carries 300 marks. The list of the 34 Optional Subjects has been given in this article.
| Stage of Exam | Name of Paper | Total Marks | Duration |
| Main Exam (Subjective) | General Hindi (Qualifying) | 100 | 3 Hours |
| General Studies Paper 1 | 300 | 3 Hours | |
| General Studies Paper 2 | 300 | 3 Hours | |
| Optional Paper | 300 | 3 Hours |
- Candidates have to qualify in General Hindi.
- Questions of General Studies are available in Hindi and English both.
- The score will be arrived at by considering the total of 900 marks in GS Paper 1, GS Paper 2 and Optional Paper.
- The candidates who are placed suitably in the merit are called for the interview.
BPSC Interview
The candidates who qualify the BPSC Main Exam are called for the final stage of the exam i.e. Interview. The interview carries 120 marks. The final merit list will be prepared out of 1020 marks (900 for Mains + 120 for Interview). Interview judges the personality aspect of the candidates. The members of the Interview Board want to know the administrative aptitude and decision making ability of the candidates through interview. After the interviews, comes the final BPSC result.
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