PSIR Optional Syllabus PDF Summary
Hey Users, today we are going to upload the PSIR Optional Syllabus PDF to assist you all. Political Science and International Relations or PSIR is the most popular UPSC optional because the UPSC PSIR optional syllabus is huge overall with the GS syllabus. Candidates who have decided to take the UPSC exam with PSIR must go through the detailed political science and international relations curriculum to understand the topics covered.
Download the UPSC PSIR course to get started as it allows you to build your preparation framework. The UPSC Political Science curriculum (optional) mainly covers topics related to political theory, international relations, Indian politics, comparative politics, and much more.
Download the UPSC PSIR course to get started as it allows you to build your preparation framework. The UPSC Political Science curriculum (optional) mainly covers topics related to political theory, international relations, Indian politics, comparative politics, and much more.
PSIR Optional Syllabus PDF- Exam Pattern
| Mains Papers | Subject | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| Paper VI | Optional Subject Paper 1 | 250 |
| Paper VII | Optional Subject Paper 2 | 250 |
| Total | 500 | |
| Time duration | 3 hours (180 minutes) | |
Syllabus of Political Science for UPSC
The syllabus of PSIR optional for UPSC consists of certain topics such as freedom struggle and Indian Politics, the Constitution of India, International economic system and trade, International organization, India’s foreign policy, peacekeeping, etc. Certain topics in Political Science optional overlap with the GS syllabus of UPSC Mains. The candidates can check the previous year’s question papers to know about the types of questions asked.
PSIR Paper 1 Syllabus
Political Science Optional Paper I subject is mainly divided into two components namely Political Theory and Indian Politics, and Indian Government and Politics.
Political Theory and Indian Politics
The PSIR optional syllabus consists mainly of Political Theory, State theories, Justice, Equality, Rights, Democracy, etc. The detailed topics are given in the table below.
| Topics | Subtopics |
|---|---|
| Political Theory | Meaning, Definition, and Approaches |
| State Theories | Liberal, Neo-Liberal, Marxist, Feminist, Postcolonial, and Pluralist |
| Justice | Concept of Justice with special reference to Rawl’s theory of justice and its communitarian critiques |
| Equality | Social, political, and economic. Relationship between equality and freedom. Affirmative action. |
| Rights | Meaning and theories. Different kinds of rights. Concept of Human Rights |
| Democracy | Classical and contemporary theories. Democracy models like participatory, representative and deliberative. |
| Concept of Power | Hegemony, ideology, and legitimacy |
| Political Ideologies | Liberalism, Marxism, Socialism, Fascism, Gandhism, etc. |
| Indian Political Thought | Dharmashastra Arthashastra and Buddhist Traditions. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Sir Aurobindo, MK Gandhi, BR Ambedkar, and MN Roy. |
| Western Political Thought | Plato, Machiavelli, Locke, John S. Mill, Marx, Aristotle, Gramsci, Hobbes, Hannah Arendt. |
Indian Government and Politics
| Topics | Subtopics |
|---|---|
| Indian Nationalism |
|
| Making of Indian Constitution | Legacies of British rule. Different social and political perspectives. |
| Features of Indian Constitution | Preamble, Fundamental Rights, Fundamental Duties, DPSPs, Parliamentary System, Judicial Review, Amendment Procedure, and Basic Structure. |
| Organs of Union Government | Role and actual working of Executive, Legislature, and Supreme Court. |
| Organs of State Government | Role and actual working of Executive, Legislature, and High Court. |
| Grassroots Democracy | Panchayati Raj Institutions. Municipal Government. Significance of 73rd and 74th Amendments. Movements at Grassroot level. |
| Statutory Institutions/Commissions | Election Commission of India. Comptroller and Auditor General. Finance Commission, UPSC. National Commission for Scheduled Castes. National Commission for Scheduled Tribes. National Commission for Women. National Human Rights Commission. National Commission for Minorities. National Backward Classes Commission. |
| Federalism | changing nature of center-state relations, regional aspirations, and inter-state disputes. |
| Planning and Economic Development | Nehruvian and Gandhian perspectives. Role of planning and public sector. Green revolution. Land reforms. Agrarian relations. Liberalization and economic reforms. |
| Party System | National and regional political parties. Ideological and social bases of parties. Patterns of coalition politics. Pressure groups. Trends in electoral behavior. Changing socio-economic profile of legislators. |
| Social Movement | Civil liberties and human rights movements. Women’s movements. Environmentalist’s movements. |
PSIR Paper 2 Syllabus
Comparative Politics and International Relations
The UPSC Mains syllabus of Comparative Politics and International Relations component of PSIR optional consists mainly of Comparative Politics, Participation, and Representation, Globalisation, International Relations, etc. The detailed topics are given in the table below.
| Topics | Subtopics |
|---|---|
| Comparative Politics | Nature and major approaches. Political economy and political sociology perspectives. Limitations of the comparative method |
| State in Comparative Perspective | Characteristics and changing nature of State in capitalist, socialist, advanced industrial, and developing societies. |
| Politics of Representation and Participation | Political parties. Pressure groups. Social movements in advanced industrial and developing societies. |
| Globalization | Responses from developed and developing societies |
| Approaches to Study of International Relations | Idealist, Realist, Marxist, Functionalist, and Systems theory. |
| Key Concepts in International Relations | National Interest. Security and power. Balance of power and deterrence. Transnational actors and collective security. World capitalist economy and globalization. |
| Changing International Political Order |
|
| Evolution of International Economic System | Bretton woods to WTO. Socialist economies and Council for Mutual Economic Assistance. Third World demand for new international economic order. Globalization of the world economy. |
| United Nations | Envisaged role and actual record. Specialized UN agencies – aims and functioning. Need for UN reforms. |
| World Politics Regionalization | European Union, NAFTA, ASEAN, and APEC, etc. |
| Contemporary Global Concerns | Democracy, Human Rights, Environment, Gender Justice terrorism, and nuclear proliferation. |
You can download the PSIR Optional Syllabus PDF by clicking on the link given below.
