The biggest thing that makes me sad here is, I don't where did I fault. Where should I improve? There are no answers to that. We don't know at all what to do next year if we want to improve. Makes me very sad. You can glorify it the institution as much as you want, but this is not smart. The questions did not require smart guesses, you couldn't deduce it from your understanding I am pretty sure in most of the questions. It is more around tricks and guesses there. Call me a candidate who has had a bad exam and is ranting but this is NOT about smart guesses and testing understanding. This is Random. Purely random. I can't digest the fact that we don't have an answer to What should one do to improve. (I am done with that generalist answer, that Improve understanding of world around you. You should live current affairs. This was NOT a current affairs heavy exam. Looks like UPSC is taking some revenge from coaching wallahs and in turn students and to fulfill that, they'll make sure randomness increases to the extent that it is not current affairs anymore. )
Like someone mentioned earlier, it makes the ground equal for someone who has studied x sources with y revisions, to someone who has studied 5x sources with 10y revisions.
On the topics from which questions were asked,
Just to be sure I did(Because I thought the UPSC wants to test contemporary knowledge rather than just few months, want to know smart candidates) I did PTs of 2 years for Science-Tech and Environment Ecology. Nothing out of that. Not more than 2-3 protected areas from last 2 years news. Are we supposed to remember 550 WLS and 104 national parks? May be I faulted there. Did all tiger reserves, biosphere reserves, elephant reserves because they were doable. Nothing from there. Did all Sci-tech from last 2 years both years PT, but hatred of UPSC for vision (all coachings actually) costed me my year.
No GI tag question, No folk music, art, paintings. How much of it did I do expecting they repeat every year.
Wireless technology, I don't remember any proper wireless tech question.
Transfer of Power 1940-47 I don't remember any question.
No indexes, No PVTGs/tribes as far as I remember.
Switched to world rivers from Indian rivers.
The Repeatedly asked question thread was gold, I followed it, revised all those topics on the last day but the yield is bound to be less.
Don't know do ignore I am writing my random rant, in the end I am just a stupid student who found the paper not doable and obviously who am I then to tell UPSC something. UPSC will still be the glorious institution which is capable of testing if I person knows world around him well or not. I did glorify the institution and exam similarly for the last 2 years, I pay the price today by feeling today that I may really not know anything about world around me. But with the small voice I have, I'll repeat this is not how you test understanding. There are multiple other ways.
We would keep hailing UPSC and find something in this exam the UPSC, specially wanted to test here. I myself would do it in 10 days I can assure you. But for today this is my voice and this is how I feel.
P.S Random Rant, with no structure, can be ignored.
That is what I have been observing for the past few years, sat for mains for 2years straight till 2017 and then came the era of randomness since 2018. All the books, all the tests, all the devotion, all the backpain and swollen eyes, for nothing! Just to be left at the whims and fancies of randomness even at prelims level. This marks an end for me. Months of pain, keeping myself confined ,revision and everything. Just to be slapped with idea of *generalist* aka randomness in the face .
as strange as it might seem this could well be on minds of people in UPSC. That is they want to frustrate candidates so much that candidates start moving for demanding CSAT to be made evaluatory. All this anyway is the direct repercussion of CSAT being obstructed.I think upsc will relent only after people start protests to include csat in the exam.
UPSC doesn't have much on its mind anyway. When they can't even give a thought on the methodology to select people for mains,which is out of pure randomness. It doesn't have anything else to do. Just a recruiting agency which has lost its sheen
I am not clearing the prelims this year but even if I top someday, I won't be proud of myself. UPSC has lost all respect of being the most coveted exam and test of intelligence. All it checks is ones guessing skills and that too not intelligent guessing but random chance.
True, with the best of anyone's ability with most of the questions, one can eliminate two options, with intelligence and knowledge, the rest is all about damn luck ! Those on the right side of the origin start pouring gyaan as if there is a definite way, and on the left are stranded thinking what they did wrong! Eulogizing the institution and selected people as if you had done something wrong and they didn't. When for the past 2-3 years the examat the prelims level has turned into a game of luck,throw a die and see whether you are in or not. Doesn't matter whether you read all the newspaper,wrote answers for mains, doesn't matter if you heard all the debates on RSTV or AIR discussions, or you had views on all the topics of CA for last 2 years. First play a game of luck called prelims- then you will be given the chance to write the coveted mains exam
Also in Aadhar question answer should be C 3 only. It is very well explained by Dipin sir of forumias. Also GS score has given the same answer.
I have been silently noticing the over analysing mania going on in this forum from last 7 days..
Bhai.. NALSA will be A and B.. Senior citizen will not be considered by UPSC. I marked senior citizen but i know how u0ac is... They dont overanalyse... And thats why they ask us to mark the MOST APPROPRIATE choice and NOT the COORRECT option.
This discussion also reminds me of where many candidates go wrong wrt prelims...
And why many are not selected year after year.. Sorry for being blunt, but thats true
And why the exam is overrated! With its fair share of randomness rather than difficulty
@mandeepsngh123 if it is so random I could not fathom the reason of why same set of people keep clearing it.
There is a huge set which doesn't, goes into oblivion because everyone loves to celebrate and eulogize institutions. And the randomised version has started since 2018, where even well prepared students who have sat for mains are left at the mercy of intelligent guesswork
Meri alag hi samasya ho gayi hai. Answersheet me count koya tha to 79 bubbles the, aur question paper me 83 dikh rahe. Samajh me nahi aa raha ki sahi wale miss huwe hain ya galat wale? Aur naye calculation se marks me ab aur variation ta gayi. Ab 91-102 ghoom raha marks. Khararnak anxiety hai, considering it’s my last attempt.
I am already 31. Was in a well paying job. Quit kiya in 2018, to dedicate more time to preparation, after successive close failures in prelims. Score 114 in prelims last year. Couldn’t clear mains.
And this year again, I am stuck at God knows where.
Have rejected good job offers from
abroad last year for preparation.
And when I quit my job, and took this course, people close to me abandoned me, including my fiance.
I have paid a huge price for this journey, and cannot recall when I slept for 6 hours last time.
And after all this, UPSC throws this lottery selection system paper.
I question all rhe wisdoms now like “Hardwork pays off”, “Sacrifices pay off”, and “Upsc sets paper for selecting civil servants”.
I lost 4 years, a job, family life, fiance, self confidence, socially vibrant life, and trust in the system.
I will do something good for sure, but the dream of be the part of policy making, and implementation is at God’s mercy now.
Sorry, I made it a sad story. But there is a reason for it.
Those who are reading it, must know that this exam is not just about hardwork, but about strong luck factor too. When all things are in place, then only you will get through. It’s our duty to work hard, but that alone won’t get you through. There are things beyond that too. Much like Nepolean. He was not just brilliant, but extremely lucky too, and he always made sure he chose his commanders who were invariably lucky people.
Anyways fingers crossed.
I wish luck to everyone. Everyone has worked hard here.
Take a vow whn u get selected u ll nt glamorise ur success or advertise how u successed etc in tiktok , fb, instagram, quora or utube.. u ll just live ur life happily contained So that another innocent soul does nt loose his/her precious time in all these . People go in to so much show off these days .. over glamorisation nd considering it something equal 2 nirvana (i have seen such meme) , larger than life.. higher than himalaya etc is a big hurdle .
Was going through comments all these days,
How people take UPSC to be sacrosanct, how they raise fingers on the ones who have failed or someone questioning this random selection procedure rather than these kind of sham papers who put people who have devoted years, nights, sacrificed so much for a dream at equal pedestal with a newbie who hardly has toiled much!
Not taking away anything from anyone, but if it's all about hard work, upsc is surely not the exam for that. If it's about toughness , upsc is again not the exam, but glorifying randomness. Of late it has turned more into picking any 10-12k to write mains thanserious aspirants. Firstly it was converting 2 papers to 1 in prelims, then randomising the questions asked in prelims and then justifying them through detailed Google search. Have been in the same boat, devoted way more hours than I ever did while writing mains. To avoid falling prey to prelims like 2018 , went through everything for months with sincerity. And at the end of it, this is what you get. But it is what it is. It would be better if people stop falling prey to those glorifying videos and articles here and there, surely the way system is working, spineless bureaucracy is one big reason! How the ethics paper is torn to pieces once people get into services. But well, could be just one of the many rants to dissolve into the noise and eulogy
@Osho well more than half of the people in this forum after giving their exam were of the opinion that prelims is now largely based on guess work. Hence the argument.
Educated guess or plain guess, it's still a guess, you can eliminate two options and then mark it as per your gut feeling. Surely not a way to select people! How prelims has turned into a gamble for the past few years than a wayto select serious aspirants for mains! Holier than thou UPSC won't be blamed, but the aspirants' preparation mistakes!!
*Don't take the exam and the ones selected as some ultra elite people* maybe many of those selected don't even know or can write better essays or comprehend things better than you! This exam is just a game/gamble, play it with the same effort you used to play sports as a child, but if you lose, move on! At the end, your life can always be happier than being dictated by ministers and losing your ethics and spine in the process. The world has many facets to look at!
Let the words be the guiding light, there is still a life to live, in this blip of your existence in an indifferent universe! So don't wither away in your body and mind in pursuits which define your entire effort based on an uncertain examination! You might be way more happier if you seek knowledge, new music, new cultures and what not. Keep moving, keep hustling
Is this Optimus Prime’s narration?😮
Man! What a voice. What a voice. 🙌🏼👏🏼👌🏼
Yes! The depth in the voice! instilling ! The mountain speaking itself!
Just checked the video’s description.
This is narrated by some Shane Morris.
OP is voiced by Peter Cullen.
But both of them sound so similar to me.
Thanks for sharing. God bless.
In this mundane life of daily struggle,anxiety and what not. Words of wisdom are where we seek solace! And with the voice, these words from bukowski and the voice with an impact! You would love to keep both of them in your library!
@mandeepsngh123 i hav lways wondered snt ths true tht we r alone(2 busy in i dividual pursuits)bcauz we hav left othrs alone and thn seek solace in not realistic things??Good bad all these things equally apply on every1 of us,why do we apply nly on othrs trying 2 show superiority while escaping our fault!!Whn say society sucks,rnt we part of same and shuld hav formality 2 ask othrs wht r u doing,if ask thn bad if not thn rude!!Must take time 2 ponder.
I don't get your context. But then if the entire thing is about blaming oneself only after you put in everything, then living will be a punishment. And if the entire human pursuit revolves around an exam (though no one talks about how shallow and hollow the entire system is), surely one needs to look within ,what and why you are seeking something.
If it comes to getting clicked with a baby in your office, or taking media everywhere with the basic most thing you are supposed to do as an officer, surely the priorities are misplaced! Everyone on his own gentleman!
2013-- without preparing 1st attempt scored 35 in GS1
2016-- 2nd attempt scored 113 in GS1
2017-- 3rd attempt scored 122 in GS1 (714 in fir mains)
2019-- 4th attempt 86in GS1
2020-- didn't clear prelims(was getting 87-95) from different keys..
Cracked CSAT everytime..
UPSC is now luck based exam, knowledge is the only one component of the paper. This uncertainty killing the future of so many candidate..
Purpose of sharing this post is only one
" jo Maine is journey mein jhela vo unknowingly koi or na jhele"
Now some of the mahatmas will pin that I was not enjoying the journey this is the reason why I have not cleared, this is the only one side of candidate, life has multifarious dimensions, and there are so many ups and downs on personal front which are'nt required to be shared on public platform. My motive to tell the aspirants pls secure yourself first and then jump to the wilderness of UPSC. It's lottery precisely 2018onwards.
The same journey since 2014, 3 mains and an interview. And then came 2018- kind of unsettling ! I was like, take a break! Recollect things. Dug out everything , read paper ritually every day, even when driving to work my car had rstv discussions playing instead of tracks (now I laugh at myself), had cervical problems but gave in everything - every detail, but at the end of the day, it was about sheer bloody luck! Candidates have been silent about this pathetic scheme of prelims which was an interim measure since the change was introduced, there are gyaanis clearing prelims of late and blabbering ways to clear it and asking people to blame themselves instead of this fallacious , outdated exam process to select decision makers who can't comprehend, can't do basic numbers, but are good with *intelligent* guesswork!
@mandeepsngh123 please suggest any other course of action. I have completed gs once. (Failed pre)
Go through it again till December, make short notes! Which you can revise over and over. Try top down approach, go through questions, and cover topics accordingly! Reading plain books is boring at times, and turns mundane after an hour or two. Keep going through daily paper and write one or two answers. Make a schedule and keep two months free for prelims and pray that it's not a matter of luck at the end of the day. Maybe plays song in your head before sitting for prelims to take lesser load for the *intelligent guesswork*
2013-- without preparing 1st attempt scored 35 in GS1
2016-- 2nd attempt scored 113 in GS1
2017-- 3rd attempt scored 122 in GS1 (714 in fir mains)
2019-- 4th attempt 86in GS1
2020-- didn't clear prelims(was getting 87-95) from different keys..
Cracked CSAT everytime..
UPSC is now luck based exam, knowledge is the only one component of the paper. This uncertainty killing the future of so many candidate..
Purpose of sharing this post is only one
" jo Maine is journey mein jhela vo unknowingly koi or na jhele"
Now some of the mahatmas will pin that I was not enjoying the journey this is the reason why I have not cleared, this is the only one side of candidate, life has multifarious dimensions, and there are so many ups and downs on personal front which are'nt required to be shared on public platform. My motive to tell the aspirants pls secure yourself first and then jump to the wilderness of UPSC. It's lottery precisely 2018onwards.
The same journey since 2014, 3 mains and an interview. And then came 2018- kind of unsettling ! I was like, take a break! Recollect things. Dug out everything , read paper ritually every day, even when driving to work my car had rstv discussions playing instead of tracks (now I laugh at myself), had cervical problems but gave in everything - every detail, but at the end of the day, it was about sheer bloody luck! Candidates have been silent about this pathetic scheme of prelims which was an interim measure since the change was introduced, there are gyaanis clearing prelims of late and blabbering ways to clear it and asking people to blame themselves instead of this fallacious , outdated exam process to select decision makers who can't comprehend, can't do basic numbers, but are good with *intelligent* guesswork!
imagine kind of effort we give.. if csat was included we wld have mastered aptitude and any other exam wld have been so easy to clear .
Not just that. You are required to crunch numbers in various services, you are required to read 100s of pages of report and extract the crux and put that on notesheets. If aptitude doesn't count ,surely there is something seriously wrong with this medieval selection process
https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/steel-frame-or-steel-cage/article26044269.ece/amp/
The last para aptly describes it:
This trajectory has a considerable lesson to offer. To begin with, it shows how modernity in India has not brought an adequate appreciation of the different roles a society needs to run itself well. Children and adults share the feeling that one or two roles are more important than all others. From childhood onwards, one learns this lesson both directly, from parents and teachers, and also indirectly, from socialisation. The chief guest culture, widely prevalent in schools, reinforces the significance of becoming an important person. The person invited as chief guest is often either a civil servant or a politician.
