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UPSC essay topics -Mains 2019
SECTION A – 125 marks
Write any one of the following essays in 1000-1200 words.
- Wisdom finds truth
- Values are not what humanity is, but what humanity ought to be
- Best for an individual is not necessarily best for the society
- Courage to accept and dedication to improve are two keys to success
SECTION B – 125 marks
Write any one of the following essays in 1000-1200 words.
- South Asian societies are woven not around the state, but around their plural cultures and plural identities
- Neglect of primary health care and education in India are reasons for its backwardness
- Biased media is a real threat to Indian democracy
- Rise of Artificial Intelligence: the threat of jobless future or better job opportunities through reskilling and upskilling
UPSC essay topics- Mains 2018
SECTION – A – 125 marks
Write any one of the following essays in 1000-1200 words.
- Alternative technologies for a climate change resilient India
- A good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge
- Poverty anywhere is a threat to prosperity everywhere
- Management of Indian border disputes – a complex task
SECTION – B – marks
Write any one of the following essays in 1000-1200 words.
- Customary morality cannot be a guide to modern life
- “The past’ is a permanent dimension of human consciousness and values
- A people that values its privileges above its principles loses both
- Reality does not conform to the ideal, but confirms it
UPSC essay topics- Mains 2017
SECTION – A – 125 marks
Write any one of the following essays in 1000-1200 words.
- Farming has lost the ability to be a source of subsistence for majority of farmers in India.
- Impact of the new economic measures on fiscal ties between the union and states in India.
- Destiny of a nation is shaped in its classrooms.
- Has the Non- Alignment Movement(NAM) lost its relevance in a multipolar world.
SECTION – B – 125 marks
Write any one of the following essays in 1000-1200 words.
- Joy is the simplest form of gratitude.
- Fulfillment of ‘new woman’ in India is a myth.
- We may brave human laws but cannot resist natural laws.
- Social media is inherently a selfish medium.
UPSC essay topics- Mains 2016
SECTION – A – 125 marks
Write any one of the following essays in 1000-1200 words.
- If development is not engendered, it is endangered
- Need brings greed, if greed increases it spoils breed
- Water disputes between states in federal India
- Innovation is the key determinant of economic growth and social welfare
SECTION – B – 125 marks
Write any one of the following essays in 1000-1200 words.
- Cooperative federalism: Myth or reality
- Cyberspace and internet: Blessing or curse to the human civilization in the long run
- Near jobless growth in India: An anomaly or an outcome of economic reforms
- Digital economy: A leveller or a source of economic inequality
UPSC essay topics- Mains 2015
SECTION – A – 125 marks
Write any one of the following essays in 1000-1200 words.
- Lending hands to someone is better than giving a dole.
- Quick but steady wins the race.
- Character of an institution is reflected in its leader.
- Education without values, as useful as it is, seems rather to make a man more clever devil.
SECTION – B – 125 marks
Write any one of the following essays in 1000-1200 words.
- Technology cannot replace manpower.
- Crisis faced in India – moral or economic.
- Dreams which should not let India sleep.
- Can capitalism bring inclusive growth?
UPSC essay topics- Mains 2014
SECTION – A – 125 marks
Write any one of the following essays in 1000-1200 words.
1.With greater power comes greater responsibility.
2.Is the growing level of competition good for the youth?
3.Are the standardized tests a good measure of academic ability or progress?
4.Words are sharper than the two-edged sword.
SECTION – B – 125 marks
Write any one of the following essays in 1000-1200 words.
- Was it the policy paralysis or the paralysis of implementation which slowed the growth of our country?
- Is sting operation an invasion on privacy?
- Fifty Golds in Olympics: Can this be a reality for India?
- Tourism: Can this be the next big thing for India?
UPSC essay topics- Mains 2013
Write an essay on any one of the following topics, in NOT MORE than 2500 words. (250 marks)
1. Be the change you want to see in others – Gandhi.
2.Is the Colonial mentality hindering India’s Success?
3.A Compilation of Essays | Year Wise Question Trend Analysis GDP (Gross Domestic Product) along with GDH (Gross DomesticHappiness) would be the right indices for judging the well- being of a country.
4. Science and technology is the panacea for the growth and security of the nation.
UPSC essay topics- Topic Wise Analysis
Economy and Development
- Is the criticism that the ‘Public-Private-Partnership’ (PPP) model for development is more of a bane than a boon in the Indian context, justified ?-2012
- Should a moratorium be imposed on all fresh mining in tribal areas of the country? -2010
- Are our traditional handicrafts doomed to a slow death? -2009
- The focus of health care is increasingly getting skewed towards the ‘haves’ of our society. -2009
- Special economic zone: boon or bane -2008
- Protection of ecology and environment is essential for sustained economic development. -2006
- BPO boom in India. -2007
- Globalization would finish small-scale industries in India. -2006
- Economic growth without distributive justice is bound to breed violence. – 1993
- Ecological considerations need not hamper development. -1993
- Multinational corporations – saviours or saboteurs -1994
- Resource management in the Indian context. -1999
- Urbanization is a blessing in disguise. -1997
Education
- Credit – based higher education system challenges -2011 – status , opportunities and
- Is an egalitarian society possible by educating the masses ?-2008
- Independent thinking should be encouraged right form the childhood. –
- “Education for all” campaign in India: myth or reality. -2006
- What is real education? -2005
- Modern technological education and human values. -2002
- Privatization of higher education in India. -2002
- Irrelevance of the classroom. -2001
- Value-based science and education. -1999
- Literacy is growing very fast, but there is no corresponding growth in education. -1996
- Restructuring of Indian education system. -19952007
Democracy, Society, Culture, Mindset
- In the context of Gandhiji’s views on the matter, explore, on an evolutionary scale, the terms ‘Swadhinata’, ‘Swaraj’ and ‘Dharmarajya’. Critically comment on their contemporary relevance to Indian democracy -2012
- Does Indian cinema shape our popular culture or merely reflect it? -2011
- Geography may remain the same ; history need not. -2010
- From traditional Indian philanthropy to the gates-buffet model-a natural progression or a paradigm shift? -2010
- globalization’ vs. ‘nationalism’ -2009
- National identity and patriotism -2008
- How has satellite television brought about cultural change in Indian mindsets? -2007
- Globalizations and its impact on Indian culture. -2004
- Responsibility of media in a democracy. -2002
- Indian culture today: a myth or a reality? -2000
- Modernism and our traditional socio-ethical values. -2000
- Why should we be proud of being Indians? -2000
- Youth culture today. -1999
- Mass media and cultural invasion. -1999
- The composite culture of India. -1998
- The Indian society at the crossroads. -1994
- Modernisation and westernisation are not identical concepts. -1994
- New cults and godmen: a threat to traditional religion -1996
- True religion cannot be misused. -1997
Women Empowerment
- Managing work and home – is the Indian working woman getting a fair deal? -2012
- Women’s reservation bill would usher in empowerment for women in India. -2006
- The hand that rocks the cradle -2005
- If women ruled the world -2005
- Whither women’s emancipation? -2004
- Empowerment alone cannot help our women. -2001
- Women empowerment: challenges and prospects. -1999
- Woman is god’s best creation. -1998
- Greater political power alone will not improve women’s plight. -1997
- The new emerging women power: the ground realities. -1995
- Men have failed: let women take over. -1993
Polity and Administration
- Creation of smaller states and the consequent administrative, economic and developmental implication -2011
- In the Indian context, both human intelligence and technical intelligence are crucial in combating terrorism -2011
- Evaluation of panchayati raj system in India from the point of view of eradication of power to people. -2007
- Justice must reach the
- Is autonomy the best answer to combat balkanization? -2007
- The country’s need for a better disaster management system. -2000
- Are we a ‘soft’ state ?-2009poor-2005
- Role of media in good governance -2008
- Judicial activism and Indian democracy. -2004
- How should a civil servant conduct himself? -2003
- What have we gained from our democratic set-up? -2001
- Urbanisation and its hazards -2008
- Food security for sustainable national development -2005
- Water resources should be under the control of the central government.2004
- The misinterpretation and misuse of freedom in India. -1998
- The language problem in India: its past, present and prospects. -1998
- Reservation, politics and empowerment. -1999
- When money speaks, the truth is silent. -1995
- Politics without ethics is a disaster. -1995
- Judicial activism. -1997
- The vip cult is a bane of Indian democracy -1996
- Need for transparency in public administration -1996
- Whither Indian democracy? -1995
- Politics, bureaucracy and business – fatal triangle. -1994
- How far has democracy in India delivered the goods? -2003
- What we have not learnt during fifty years of independence. -1997
- My vision of India in 2001 a.d. -1993
Science and Technology
- Science and Mysticism: Are they compatible ?-2012
- The march of science and the erosion of human values. -2001
- Increasing computerization would lead to the creation of a dehumanized society. -2006
- The lure of space. -2004
- Spirituality and scientific temper. -2003
- The cyberworld: its charms and challenges. -2000
- The modern doctor and his patients. -1997
- Computer: the harbinger of silent revolution. -1993
International relations and International Issues
- India’s role in promoting ASEAN cooperation. -2004
- The masks of new imperialism. -2003
- As civilization advances culture declines. -2003
- The implications of globalization for India. -2000
- My vision of an ideal world order. -2001
- India’s contribution to world wisdom. -1998
- The world of the twenty-first century. -1998
- Preparedness of our society for India’s global leadership role. -2010
- The global order: political and economic -1993
- Importance of Indo-US nuclear agreement -2006
- Good fences make good neighbours -2009
- Terrorism and world peace -2005
- Restructuring of UNO reflect present realities -1996
Philosophy and Ethics based
- Discipline means success, anarchy means ruin -2008
- Attitude makes, habit makes character and character makes a man. -2007
- There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so. -2003
- If youth knew, if age could. -2002
- The paths of glory lead but to the grave. -2002
- The pursuit of excellence. -2001
- Search for truth can only be a spiritual problem. -2002
- Disinterested intellectual curiosity is the lifeblood of civilisation. -1995
- Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds. -1995
- Youth is a blunder, manhood a struggle, old age a regret-1994
- Useless life is an early death. -1994
- He would reigns within himself and folds his passions and desires and fears is more than a king. -1993
- Compassion is the basic of all morality would -1993
- Truth is lived, not taught -1996
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Hemant Bhatt is a B. Tech from Pantnagar University and has studied Social Sciences at SciencesPo, Paris. He teaches at Oracle IAS, Dehradun. He has given 5 UPSC mains back to back along with 2 interviews.
He is a bibliophile,accomplished writer and a fitness enthusiast.
He is a bibliophile,accomplished writer and a fitness enthusiast.
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