India Year Book is published by Publication Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India and is considered a “raam-baand aushadhi” for UPSC Preparation. It is actually named as Indialike India 2011, India 2012. India 2011 was published at the end of year 2010 or at the starting of 2011, so it covered everything that happened in and until 2010. The complete name is India ABCD – A Reference Annual, where ABCD is the year of publication.
It has lots of data and it is really hard to read it and the question of remembering anything doesn’t comes up. 😉 So how to crack such a tough nut. Here is what I did? It is a very silly way but this is how I did it.
There is one book available in the market called India ABCD At A Glance (based on India (Pub. Divn’ India mentioned above)) published by New Vishal Publication. It is again one book that you cannot read as it can be termed as notes of India YB. It throws so much data at you without any references that it becomes even hard to read it. So, this cannot be the solution either.
Here is what I did to read India YB. As New Vishal’s India (henceforth known as NV) is a copy of India YB (Henceforth known as IYB), I tried to mix them both. So, here are the steps that I followed:-
First Sitting — Take the points from NV and find the same line in IYB. Mark all such points in I using a Marker.
Second Sitting — Now start reading IYB and put away NV. Mark any extra points you thing would be relevant. Also, keep unmarking those points that you had marked from NV, if you think that information is redundant or not required.
Third Sitting — Read only the markings from IYB in this sitting. Definitely you will be reading some lines here and there but that is okay.
Fourth Sitting — Yahan tak agar pahunch gaye…to apne charan yahan post kar dena!! Hum natmastak ho jaaayenge!! 😉 In this reading you will be referring only the markings alone
You have to do all this one after another without switching to any other subject or book. This is how I managed to read India Year Book.
I have read your way to understand India IB..I think its better way to read this book..thanks
All the best!!
It is only in first siting that candidates must underline all the year book. Once its done read only these underlined lines. NO matter how times you read. Frequency of reading and revising increases near exams. But this India Year Book cannot be ignored as it contains all important facts and most of the times questions are directly asked from this book.
Yeah, India Year Book is very important one. I thanks thos blog owner for writing the significance of this book. We have also provided free Synopsis of India Year Book for all the candidates preparing for civil services exam.
Hi
will u plz tl me
if i skip mking notes from newspaper dn how to cope up it ……is there ny magzine or special issues availabl fr it
Hi Mansi,
Please do not use sms kind of language. Form proper sentences. I do not feel comfortable with sms-lingua.
Regards,
Palak Mathur
Your reply made my day. There’s still hope for humanity.
There are only 3 months left for upsc prelims 2013. Is it enough time to cover up everything and revise ?
Three months I think is enough for revision if you have prepared for the exam. If you are starting fresh, then do not take the exam.
sir,
2013 will be my first attempt and i have just started preparing for the exam. do you think one can cover the syllabus for prelims and do the necessary revision. considering one spends around 10-11 hrs a day seriously. also for the fact that i have no problem with paper2 of csat and been consistently scoring on an average 170+ from the test booklet of TMH publication(CSAT Paper 2).
It will make no sense if you don’t focus on Mains as well. You will in the same situation once the Prelims are over with none of your optionals complete.
sir,
i have completed paer 2 of both my optional(s). i have taken commerce and accountancy and public administration as my optional.
That’s great. You can certainly prepare for the prelims in the given time and clear it. So start preparing for it. Sit for an hour and make a schedule/time-table for the preparation. Give time for revisions as well.
it is also like when i read a topic which i have read earlier also i find new things in the same article and then start reading it from the scratch.
Prepare notes and revise them. When you are reading the topic again, match with what you remember and what is in notes. Don’t worry it happens with almost everyone.
last year i gave my 1st attempt and i was selected for main exam.i find difficulty in sci and tech. section and general issues . i am not join any class. so please tell me how to prepare for that section
For S&T resources check the Books list that for GS that I have shared on this blog. You can subscribe to course like that from UPSC Mantra for GS. IT covers S&T fanstastically.
hey..are you the same mrunal guy…or you copied from it
Anil, Please read the articles completely on Mrunal’s blog from top. You will get your answer.
India 2013 was released on 6th Feb.. So by when can we expect the New Vishal’s India 2013 at a Glance? And do we require India 2013 if we already have the India 2012?
It should be out within 15 days or even less. If you already have India 2012 then don’t buy 2013. Almost everything will remains same. You can purchase India at a Glance for any new additions.
Sir i am doing self study, and i have completed NCERT books from VI to X.
Please tell me how to examine my self that i am doing right study.
Try to solve previous year question papers and get them peer reviewed. If possible join a test series.
sir i will write the exam in 2014… then should I prepare India 2013 with notes this time and update in 2014… or I should read India 2014 at that time only.
You don’t need to create Note for India Year Book. You can read it anytime you want. Information won’t change much.
Sir, I too am preparing for 2014 exam, so should I just keep marking in the India 2013 book, or make notes about it in a copy?
No need for notes. Try to do what I have told in the post. It will be much easier. Anyway, IYB is not the end of the learning. You will get plenty of information from other sources as well.
Much of the data from IYB is not important so you need not worry about it. If you are reading 2013, then stick with it.
What would be the best way to prepare “rights issues” part of GS paper-I for 2014 mains?
Hi Aastha,
There are many sources – one is India Year Book. Also, visit the websites of each ministry to know what they are working on – schemes, acts, etc. There is one book called Governance in India by Laxmikanth.If you want to know what to read in that, then visit Mrunal’s blog at http://mrunal.org/2012/04/studyplan-rights-issue-and-public.html
Sir new vishal’s publication book is not available in my locality or online ..so will It be a good idea to stick with only India year book ….and one more thing as I am appearing for CSE2014 so I should Go with India year book 2014( which is not out in market yet) or go with 2013 edition
There are many other versions available like from Wizard, Arihant, etc. You can use them. You can stick with the old edition of the IYB as not much will change. However, visit the website of each ministry mentioned in the IYB to keep yourself updated with any new relevant data like formation of committees, new schemes, Acts, etc.
sir can you please tell me when the 2014 version of IYB will be available in market ..
and Thank you for your valuable suggestions
INDIA 2014/BHARAT 2014 to be released on 12 FEB 2014 (http://www.publicationsdivision.nic.in/)
Sir , can i get india year book2014 in hindi. And when it will available in market???
Check this website: http://www.publicationsdivision.nic.in/catalogB.asp. As per this, the book is going to be released soon. But why are you waiting for the 2014 version. Go for 2013 and read the book. Most of the information will not change.
From now on approximately 6 months are remaining for prelims, i haven’t studies much…just completed most of the polity(though i don’t remember it as of now), economy, geog, hist->still stuck on NCERT. Science not yet started; Environment a bit. so according to you should i make up my mind for this 2014 attempt or try next year..i haven’t enrolled myself in any coaching. if not then what do you suggest. I havn’t attempted UPSC exam yet.
If you are good with your NCERTs, then you can take the exam.
Hello Sir,
Even after all those eliminations, a lot is still left to be read.How long does it take to reach upto step 3?
Hi,
It depends. Since I was working at the time I tried myself, it took a little over a week. You may take lesser time. The key is that you don’t want to get bored reading and repeating same book.
What I experienced from the exams is that IYB is important but not essential. Try to prioritize the stuff that you want to read and work accordingly.
sir, what is the meaning of NV ???? i have prepare from hindi language is it right????
Check the post again.
These books are available in Hindi as well.
i started my prep in feb 2014 seriously…shoul i go for exam but i am well acquainted the topics and also joined test series of vaji..
If you are confident, then go ahead. What about preparation for Mains?
sir, i am preparing for kas exams how can i start to prepare with seriously and how much time take for it
Hello sir,
I have completed my 2nd year of engineering and wants to crack d upsc exam from what I can started my study what can I exactly do……
I am preparing For MBA entrance exams which have gk sections. So will this book be helpful? Also for The interview rounds?
IYB is filled with too much of data. Leave it aside and concentrate on newspapers, magazines and other sources. This book is not worth the effort.
sir i m an ips aspirant which is my only ultimate dream in life , i recently graduated in electrical engineering with hons.and now i am in a dilemma to go for civil services next year or not of course it’s the toughest choice for one to make at this point of life and if u think i should go then i will be grateful to you if u could please provide me your valuable suggestions and necessary guidance on this.
Reply awaited!!
Sir,
right now m in 12,, i want to clear ias exams,, without coachings can you suggest some methods to prepare for ias exams?
India Year Book is very important book. Cannot be ignored. Only time it takes during first reading when you are highlighting the main points. After that you should read only these marked lines. Revision increases when exams approach. Moreover revision is necessary to retain facts. Questions do come directly from India Year Book in IAS Prelims Exam.