Indian Society

Indian Society is one of the important subjects in the UPSC syllabus. The subject finds its mention in Prelims, Mains and Optional papers of the IAS Exam. This article will help you get an overview of the Indian Society syllabus, the right strategy to prepare for it and also relevant notes’ articles for UPSC preparation.

How to Prepare Indian Society Topic for UPSC?

Prelims Strategy:

The IAS candidates can take help of the points mentioned below before they start their preparation of GS 1 topic – Indian Society:

1. The topics related to Indian Society are not technical in nature rather general. Hence, aspirants should focus on:
   1. What is the topic?
   2. Why is it important?
   3. Has the topic been in the news?
2. Cramming the figures for the topics related to social issues is not very important from the exam perspective, rather aspirants should try to focus on the root causes of social issues. For issues like women’s safety, social empowerment, poverty, urbanization, health; an aspirant should know the background of such topics with the current initiatives taken up by the government (central or state) for the improvement of the same.

Mains Strategy:

While practicing Mains answer writing, aspirants should know what will make it easier for them when they write answers on questions related to Indian Society and its issues:

1. Focus on the crux of social issues like casteism, communalism, poverty, gender inequality, hunger issues and other similar Indian Society issues. An aspirant should be aligned with the development initiatives relating to these issues.
2. A general view on social issues is important rather than an extreme view. An aspirant should try to find answers to these issues by analysing the problems recurring in the Indian Society.
3. A holistic view of the social issue is desired in the UPSC exam by an aspirant. A candidate who knows what, where, why, which, who and how of a social issue, becomes a desirable candidate.
4. An aspirant should always keep in mind that his/her aim will be to crack the exam and not change the world that day; hence he/she should shy away from writing unfeasible and unrealistic solutions to the social issues in the Indian society.
5. A desirable candidate is who knows how to connect culture, society, polity, geography, and economics with the issues of the Indian Society. Hence, one should always try to read from different perspectives and try to form a balanced opinion.

To get the best books for the Indian Society, you can check the linked article. Here, you will get a list of books that are useful for both prelims and mains.

UPSC Questions related to Indian Society

What should one read for Indian society in UPSC?

NCERT Class 11 – Introducing Sociology.NCERT Class 11 – Understanding Society.

NCERT Class 12 – Indian Society.

NCERT Class 12 – Social Change & Development in India.

What is the social problems in India?

Poverty, Population, Pollution, Illiteracy, Corruption, Inequality, Gender discrimination, Terrorism, Communalism, Lack of Infrastructure, Unemployment, Regionalism, Casteism, Alcoholism, Drugs Abuse, Violence against Women are the major social problems in India.

What is Indian society and its types?

Indian society has been broadly divided into tribal, rural and urban societies on the basis of their geographical sumoundings and socio-cultural characteristics. On the other hand, rural societies are village societies, which are mainly based on caste, attachment to the past, as well as having agricultural economy.