Geography Syllabus for UPSC: Download Geography Syllabus PDF

Geography Syllabus for UPSC Overview

The UPSC geography optional syllabus has two papers namely Paper 1, and Paper 2. Like every optional subject, each paper contains 250 marks and a total of 500 marks. As we have mentioned above geography syllabus is also a part of the general studies of UPSC prelims, and GS paper 1 of UPSC mains. 

So, candidates who have opted for geography as their optional will get an advantage to cover the geography section of both UPSC Prelims and Mains exams simultaneously. Let’s see the structure of the geography syllabus for UPSC below in the table.

Geography Syllabus for UPSC- Prelims

As you can see in the above table, most topics of the UPSC Geography optional syllabus overlap with the UPSC prelims syllabus. This is the reason why most candidates prepare for their UPSC prelims along with the Geography syllabus for UPSC. Preparing for geography in the prelims makes it easier to for the mains syllabus completion. Most of the questions from the UPSC geography optional syllabus will be asked in the prelims exam. According to the recent UPSC exam analysis, the difficulty level of geography in the prelims exam will vary from moderate to tough. Below we have mentioned the complete geography syllabus for UPSC prelims, and sub-topics covered in it.

• Physical Geography - Geomorphology, Oceanography, and Climatology
• Indian Geography - Physical geography of India, River systems, Climate, Agriculture of India, Natural vegetation and fauna, Minerals and industries 
• World Geography- Major natural regions, Regional geography of developed and developing countries
• Human Geography- Man & environment and their interrelationship and the growth and development, Population, tribes, migration, Economic activities – agriculture, manufacturing, industries, tertiary activities, Urbanization.

Geography Syllabus for UPSC- Mains

The topics covered in the geography syllabus for UPSC mains GS paper-1 are the distribution of key natural resources, geophysical phenomena, and salient features of the world’s physical geography. Candidates who have chosen geography as their optional can cover these topics under the UPSC geography optional syllabus and must check out the complete UPSC mains syllabus

UPSC Geography Optional Syllabus

The scoring ability and the ration nature of the UPSC geography optional syllabus make a popular choice among the candidates from both Arts and Science streams. Let’s understand the structure of the geography optional in the UPSC exam.

UPSC Geography Optional Syllabus- Download PDF

The geography syllabus for UPSC can be downloaded from the official website. However, to make this process simpler we have provided the direct link below

• UPSC Geography Optional Syllabus PDFin English
• UPSC Geography Optional Syllabus PDF In Hindi

UPSC Geography Optional Syllabus Paper 1

Paper of 1 of the UPSC geography optional syllabus includes Physical Geography and Human Geography. Paper 1 contributes a total of 250 marks.

UPSC Geography Optional Syllabus Paper 2

UPSC geography syllabus Paper 2 talks about the Geography of India, and it is further divided into sub-topics.

Geography Syllabus for UPSC- Preparation Strategy

Before gearing up the preparation for the geography syllabus for UPSC, candidates must take a strategic approach. Questions from the geography will be asked in all stages of the UPSC exam, and that’s why it is crucial to have a solid preparation and study it holistically. Here is a strategy to cover the geography syllabus for UPSC efficiently.

• Read NCERTs- candidates should start by covering the geography NCERTs from class VIII to XII. these NCERTs cover most of the geography syllabus for UPSC and help you to build a strong foundation.
• Basic Books- apart from reading NCERTs, candidates also need basic books to complete the geography syllabus for UPSC. these basic books include Geography of India by Majid Husain, and Certificate Physical and Human Geography by GC Leong.
• Previous year’s Question paper- glancing through the previous year’s paper would help you to understand the difficulty level of the exam, and identify the crucial topics that need to be revised.
• Current Affairs- along with the books, candidates should focus on the trending topics as it is also a part of the geography syllabus for UPSC.

Geography Syllabus for UPSC- Booklist

Following are the best books to complete the geography syllabus for UPSC

• India: A Comprehensive Geography by D R Khullar
• Human Geography by Majid Husain
• Models in Geography by Majid Husain
• Physical Geography by Savindra Singh
• Geographical Thought by R D Dixit
• Fundamentals of Geographical Thought by Sudeepta Adhikari
• Cities, Urbanisation & Urban Systems (Settlement Geography) by K Siddhartha