Monthly Current Affairs for UPSC: October 2020 Daily Current Affairs Booster
In recent years the importance of current affairs has proportionally increased with the analytical trend of questions as well as with the enhanced weightage of environment and science. There is no particular trend in which UPSC has asked questions from current events. Its unpredictable nature can be sensed from last year’s paper where many direct questions from current events were picked. There are many sources and compilations of current affairs that a candidate can go through daily as well as monthly for example the compilation of all relevant current affairs from October to November.
Importance of Daily Current Affairs for UPSC Preparation
Current Events play a key role in all the three stages of UPSC preparation, especially in the Mains and Interview. It covers a wide range of topics that overlap with the core subjects like Geography, Polity, Economics, History, and Dynamic subjects like environment, science, and technology. Henceforth, it is hard to classify questions under a specific heading/topic.
Current Events-based questions range from Government Initiatives/ Policies, Policies of India which has international ramifications – Look East Policy, International Institutions – IMF, WB, UNSC, etc., International Agreements – Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)Wassenaar Arrangement, START treaty, etc., Good Governance measures taken by the Government, Rights Issues, Social sector initiatives, Sustainable development, etc. Hence it has always been suggested to candidates, Core subjects should be substantiated with the recent current events which will help you in all the stages (Prelims, Mains, Interview) of your preparation.
Also Read: Best Apps For Current Affairs UPSC Preparation
Most Important Sources for Daily Current Affairs for UPSC (Newspapers)
- The Hindu: One of the best sources to prepare for socio-economic and political issues. An elaborative account and view on government programs and policies. Thursday Edition is quite handy for everyday scientific developments. Issues and policies at national and international level. Economic developments and policies
- The Indian Express: Articles on International Relations are one of the best as compared to other newspapers. Written and recommended by IFS officers and good for International Relations.
Most Important Sources for Daily Current Affairs for UPSC (Journals and Magazines)
- Press Information Bureau: Selective articles on important personalities and their contribution. Also, you will find important historical accounts. Written by government officials- added authenticity.
- Yojana and Kurukshetra: Published by GOI and comprises of articles on diverse topics- from social to the economic domain. Also covers social issues and policies affecting vulnerable sections.
- Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha Debates: Discussions on various socio-economic and political discourses. It gives you various opinions on such topics from experts who are many times government officials or subject experts. It is seen that unearthing dimensions become difficult while reading articles but when we see live discussions, get loads of quality information and dimensions in less time.
UPSC Current Affairs Apps as an Important Source
Current Affairs is a vast section in the entire UPSC syllabus. Preparation for this section is a bit difficult as aspirants have to do vast research and have to stay updated on a day-to-day basis with worldly affairs. An analysis of the previous years’ question papers shows that the number of questions related to current affairs has been on an upward trend. Questions are asked directly on current affairs and general knowledge related topics, or as part of subject related questions. In such a scenario, staying up to date on current affairs becomes imperative. This is where a current affairs app for UPSC comes to help the most. Examples are UPSC Guru, Civilsdaily, Insights on India, etc.
Also Read: How To Study Current Affairs For UPSC CSE?
UPSC Guru Your One-Stop App for All Your UPSC Problems
The app serves as a virtual guide for your UPSC Preparation:
- Get regular updates on Current Affairs, with relevant UPSC related information. Reduce your dependency on going through multiple newspapers.
- Get daily quizzes on current affairs and mock tests from time to time to keep your preparation cutting edge.
- Get important information like notifications for various exams, schedules, results, etc; all in one place.
- Get free tips, motivational articles, information for the UPSC exam to prepare you in the best possible manner.
A Few Important Tips on How to Read News
- Never focus on political news.
- Never read political remarks
- Always focus on socio-economic issues like Women issues, Education or Health-related issues, Issues or policies affecting vulnerable sections, etc.
- Always focus on issues of national and international importance.
- The focus should be on political issues related to the Indian Constitution, Legislative and Administrative processes
- Focus on Supreme Court or High Court verdicts
- Do not pay attention to deaths, awards, or sports section unless significant- Just a formal read
- Always read the syllabus of Prelims and Mains-Time and Again until you memorize it.
- This will make sure that you are not missing topics related to your syllabus.
- Make proper notes and substantiate the news by researching and updating it.
- Make use of mind maps, stats, case studies, flowcharts and bullets and numberings. They are hassle free and easier to remember.
A Few Important Current Affairs Topics In 2020-2021
- The new education policy 2020
- Coronavirus and its effects
- 5G Technology
- Vaccine development
- ICMR
- PPE kit and it’s working
- COVID 19 testing techniques
- Farmers bill
- Rail roko agitation
- Change in the world of sports due to the C-19 pandemic
- Aarogya setu app
- Underwater connection to Andaman and Nicobar island
- India- China situation
- Amendments in Companies ACT
- India- Nepal dispute
- Amendment in right to inform
- Banning of Chinese apps from Indian markets
- US Presidential election
- Indian PM speech at UN Summit
- Atma Nirbhar Bharat
Conclusion
This is all about How to prepare exam-related stuff from newspapers. For a beginner, it will take some time to learn and get used to how to extract relevant information from newspapers and you may find it difficult and annoying sometimes. But you will learn gradually and once you have mastered the basic concepts, your outlook towards this exam and preparation will change upside down. That will be the time when you will start loving your preparation process. Try to indulge in it as soon as possible because if you do it just for the sake of preparation it will become a burden and you will always find yourself sick of not following the endless timetables you have created and roam around the clock satiating yourself around a number of hours you have put. This is a stark reality and happens to almost every single aspirant at some point in time.
