UPSC has released the notification for the Civil Services Examination, 2014. Check out the notification here. The UPSC IAS Prelims(CSAT) would be conducted on August 24, 2014.

Before talking about the best books to prepare for UPSC Civil Services Examination, let’s talk about the paper pattern of both CSAT and Mains exam. Gone are the days when you can’t clear UPSC Civil Services Exam without coaching. Now with the help of internet and good books, it is possible to clear this exam. Though you need rigorous study at home.

The Civil Services Examination is one of the most toughest and a competitive exam in which candidates prepare very hard by studying rigorously. Check out the selection process of Civil Services Examination conducted by UPSC.

Stage 1- Preliminary Exam. This examination is also known as Civil Services Aptitude Test (CSAT). Candidates who will pass this examination will be eligible for the Civil Services Mains Examination.
CSAT has two papers – Paper 1 (General Studies & current affairs – 200 Marks). It is generally very tough.
Paper 2 (General Aptitude- 200 Marks). It is relatively easy. Both the papers are of 2 hours each and objective type. Generally, a combined score from both the papers of around 55-60% is good enough for general category candidates to qualify for the Mains Exam.

Stage 2- Civil Services Mains Examination. The candidates who clear the CSAT Exam are allowed to appear for the Mains Exam. In this examination, there are a total of 9 papers that you have to take! These papers include:
1 Essay type Indian Language Qualifying Paper [You have to select your preferred language out of 22 languages] (300 marks)
1 English Qualifying Paper (300 marks)
1 General Essay type paper [In the language medium you select] (200 marks)
2 General Studies papers (300 marks each)
4 Optional Subjects papers (300 marks each)[ 2 Optional subjects will be chosen by the candidate and each will two papers of 300 marks]
Total = 2,000 Marks

Visit www.upsc.gov.in to check out the result of Civil Services Mains Examination 2013 and interview schedule.

Stage 3– Interview(In the medium you opt for) and Personality test. (300 Marks)

Read the complete details about UPSC Civil Services Exam.

Best Books for UPSC CSAT(Prelims) Exam:

1) General Studies Manual Paper – 1 by Arihant(Manohar Pandey): The best book available in the market to prepare for CSAT Paper 1(General Studies). For current affairs part, you need to constantly follow The Hindu newspaper and also follow our Facebook page to get regular updates about current affairs.

2) Cracking the CSAT Paper – 2 : Civil Services Aptitude Test: Another great book by Arihant. You can also get Lucent’s General English book and Arihant Fast Track Mathematics for more command on various topics of Maths and English.

Best Books for UPSC Mains Exam:

1) The Indian Economy : For UPSC and State Civil Services Preliminary and Main Examinations:

2) Indian Polity:

We will update this section with more good books. Keep visiting here.