Environment is included in the GS III paper in UPSC CS (Main) and in General Studies in Prelims. Since 2013, the Prelims for Indian Forest Services is combined with the UPSC Civil Services, which is why the weightage of the environment topic has increased. At times, as many as 33% of the questions in the General Studies paper are asked from the environment topic, hence it is important to prepare it extremely well.
Secondly, issues like global warming and climate change have become some of the most major issues of the 21st century, hence, a thorough knowledge in this area would enable the potential bureaucrats to ensure they are able to implement their knowledge in policymaking.
The teachers of EduRev, who have mentored thousands of students in the last 3-years, including Anudeep Durishetty AIR 1 UPSC CSE 2017, Monica Kishore AIR 41 2018, Swati Sharma AIR 18 2022 & others, and found one thing that was common among all the toppers is the strategy that they had to prepare for the exam. So, keeping that in mind, we wish to provide you with relevant information as a UPSC Aspirant, helping you to devise your strategy, which would save tonnes of your valuable and limited time and ensure that you get great marks in the exam by studying what actually matters in the preparation.
There is no defined syllabus for environment and biodiversity and aspirants have to limit and keep their preparation concise under proper guidance so that they are able to cover topics that are of maximum importance and weightage.Let us first check what the UPSC syllabus tells about this section:
1. UPSC Prelims: General issues on Environmental Ecology, Biodiversity and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialization General Science.
2. UPSC Mains: Paper-III General Studies-III 250 Marks (Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management)
EduRev team has explained the topics for your understanding researching from previous year papers & best books recommended by the toppers:
1. Conservation: What is Biodiversity?; Types of Biodiversity – Genetic, Species, Ecosystem, etc.; Importance of Biodiversity – Ecosystem Services, BioResources of Economic Importance, Social Benefits, etc.; Reasons for Loss of Biodiversity Conservation: In-situ & Ex-Situ; Eco-Sensitive Areas; Ecological Hotspots; National Guidelines, Legislations & Other Programmes; International Agreements & Groupings.
2. Environmental Pollution & Degradation: Types of Pollution & Pollutants; Impact of Pollution & Degradation; Ozone Layer Depletion and Ozone Hole; Greenhouse Gas Effect & Global Warming; Eutrophication; Desertification; Acid Rain Hazardous Waste, etc.; Causes/Sources of Pollution & Degradation; Prevention & Control of Pollution & Degradation; National Environment Agencies, Legislations and Policies; International Environment Agencies & Agreements.
3. Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA): What is EIA?; Indian Guidelines & Legislations; EIA Process; Need & Benefits of EIA; Shortcomings of EIA in India; Measures to Make EIA Effective.
4. Disaster Management: Types of Disasters; Management of Disasters; Community Level Disaster Management; Government Initiatives on Disaster Management
Once you’re through the syllabus, pick up the previous year's papers and skim through them to get an understanding of what is actually asked in the exam.
Attempt mock tests to understand your level of preparation and for self-evaluation. You can find subject-wise mock tests of Environment & Ecology in the UPSC CSE Prelims Mock Test Series.
EduRev has provided all the study material & tests which matters in your preparation for UPSC, compiled under multiple courses. You can refer to this document "How to study Environment for UPSC using the EduRev app?” to understand it better & ace the exam smartly.
Here are some tips for studying Environment & Ecology for UPSC-CSE:
1. EduRev also offers a course with summaries & MCQ Tests for the famous reference book including Shankar IAS for Environment.
2. Check-Out subject wise Syllabus, Booklist & Strategy from these links:
Happy Learning with EduRev!
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