How to read the newspaper for UPSC IAS is an important question in any aspirant mind. Because your dynamic part of IAS preparation mostly depends on the daily newspaper reading. A newspaper is an important thing in our daily life in today’s world which publishes news daily to let the people know what is happening around them. Reading of newspaper is a good habit for everyone which is almost the first thing that wishes you in the morning.
It is a very important source for the people who are preparing for the government competitive exams and other private exams. But many of the people are often confused on how to read the newspaper to get successful in their upcoming exams.
Along with the study books, it gives important details for current affairs which are the frequently asked question in the preparation of IAS exam. Candidates should know it is not necessary to learn all the information in the newspaper as part of your preparation.
How to read the newspaper for UPSC | IAS | Competitive Exams?
There are some useful tips which may be useful to get succeed in your upcoming exams when properly followed while reading the newspaper.
First of all, get the most recommended newspaper for the IAS exam by discussing with people who have experienced in Civil Service Exam or other government exams. From our point of view, “The Hindu” newspaper is the most recommended one as the IAS exam Newspaper. Along with that newspaper also read other articles to get the complete picture of the news.
- Yojana Magazine
- Press Information Bureau (PIB)
- PRS India
- Websites of various ministries
- Try to read the newspaper within one hour. Some people spend 3-4 hours of time on reading it; even if they do it for a longer period it won’t work so try to finish it soon.
- At the same time, before reading the newspaper here are some useful tips we can suggest,
- Always have the syllabus in front of you.
- Keep the past year’s question papers with you to refer them and try to understand how questions are asked.
- Use the following websites, if you need more points for a particular topic.
http://pib.nic.in/newsite/mainpage.aspx
http://www.prsindia.org/theprsblog/
Websites of various ministries
What to read in the newspaper for your IAS Preparation?
Majority of the students, don’t know what to read in the newspaper. Freshers always use to tell, that he/she facing the issue on the news selection. That means they are unable to recognize which news is important for our syllabus and which is not important.
So, We have stated some points to make your newspaper reading little easier.
For Polity related news
Do focus on,
- Government press conferences where policies/schemes/reforms are announced
- Important announcement or bills in the Parliament
- You can also see the advertisements by the ruling party where they list their achievements. This will give you a list of the developmental schemes and their provisions. You will know which ministry deals with what schemes.
- Election-related news like reforms by the Election Commission
- News related to the Constitution, amendments, etc.
- Supreme Court/High Court verdicts are important
- Parliamentary’ formal discussion on a particular issue
- Also, if the news is related to polity/administration, you should read it
Don’t focus on,
- Press conferences by political parties
- Who defeated whom in the by-elections? Etc.
National News
News of national importance – Always focus on the conclusion of an event. For example, if there is any massive attack done on any matter, focus on why it happened and how the country is lacking in a way to solve it. Instead, you don’t have to memorize the number of deaths and all. The same thing goes as well for a natural disaster but learns about the geography behind the disaster.
News related to ISRO, any scientific developments in the country are important
Don’t focus on,
Political news like an X-party member blames a person of another party for taking bribes, etc.
Economy related news
- Government press releases related to any government institute, Planning Commission, RBI, banking reforms, reforms in the economy, agriculture, industry, etc.
- NASSCOM, ASSOCHAM – related news that affects business.
- Indicators like GDP, CPI, IIP, etc. –but its absolute number is not as important as because of some reason behind it
For International related News
- Visits of the Prime Minister and the President and the reason for the (make note of agreements and actions)
- International organizations like the UN, ASEAN, WHO, IMF, etc. and their reports/publications. India’s role in them should also be read.
- Major political events in other countries that have possible international ramifications like a military coup, uprisings, etc.
Other Important News
- Climate change news/global warming
- News related to environment and ecology
- Science and latest technology news like major developments in the science fields
- News about any endangered species, any species becoming extinct, etc.
What news to avoid?
- Entertainment news
- Sports news unless it is your hobby mentioned in your biography
- States’ news unless it has a larger national implication
- Regional news should be avoided unless you are preparing for the UPSC interview.
