UPSC Civil Services Geography Exam Syllabus

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Here is the syllabus for the UPSC Civil Services Geography Exam which you are looking for .

Principles of Geography

Physical Geography

i) Geomorphology : Factors controlling landform development; endogenetic and exogenetic forces; Origin and evolution of the earth's crust; Fundamentals of geomagnetism; Physical conditions of the earth's interior; Geosynclines; Continental drift; Isostasy; Plate tectonics; Recent views on mountain building; Vulcanicity; Earthquakes and Tsunamis; Concepts of geomorphic cycles and Landscape development ; Denudation chronology; Channel morphology; Erosion surfaces; Slope development ;Appl ied Geomorphology: Geohydrology, economic geology and environment

ii) Climatology : Temperature and pressure belts of the world; Heat budget of the earth; Atmospheric circulation; atmospheric stability and instability. Planetary and local winds; Monsoons and jet streams; Air masses and fronto genesis, Temperate and tropical cyclones; Types and distribution of precipitation; Weather and Climate; Koppen's, Thornthwaite's and Trewartha's classification of world climates; Hydrological cycle; Global climatic change and role and response of man in climatic changes, Applied climatology and Urban climate.

iii) Oceanography : Bottom topography of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans; Temperature and salinity of the oceans; Heat and salt budgets, Ocean deposits; Waves, currents and tides; Marine resources: biotic, mineral and energy resources; Coral reefs, coral bleaching; sealevel changes; law of the sea and marine pollution.

iv) Biogeography : : Genesis of soils; Classification and distribution of soils; Soil profile; Soil erosion, Degradation and conservation; Factors influencing world distribution of plants and animals; Problems of deforestation and conservation measures; Social forestry; agro-forestry; Wild life; Major gene pool centres.

v) Environmental Geography : Principle of ecology; Human ecological adaptations; Influence of man on ecology and environment ; Global and regional ecological changes and imbalances; Ecosystem their management and conservation; Environmental degradat ion, management and conservation; Biodiversity and sustainable development; Environmental policy; Environmental hazards and remedial measures; Environmental education and legislation.

Human Geography

i) Perspectives in Human Geography : Areal differentiation; regional synthesis; Dichotomy and dualism; Environmentalism; Quant i tat ive revolut ion and locat ional analysis; radical, behavioural, human and welfare approaches; Languages, religions and secularisation; Cultural regions of the world; Human development index.

ii) Economic Geography : : World economic development: measurement and problems; World resources and their distribution; Energy crisis; the limits to growth; World agriculture: typology of agricultural regions; agricultural inputs and productivity; Food and nutrition problems; Food security; famine: causes, effects and remedies; World industries: locational patterns and problems; patterns of world trade.
iii) Population and Settlement Geography : Growth and distribution of world population; demographic attributes; Causes and consequences of migration; concepts of over - under-and optimum population; Population theories, world population problems and policies, Social well-being and quality of life; Population as social capital. Types and patterns of rural settlements; Environmental issues in rural settlements; Hierarchy of urban settlements; Urban morphology: Concepts of primate city and rank-size rule; Functional classification of towns; Sphere of urban influence; Rural - urban fringe; Satellite towns; Problems and remedies of urbanization; Sustainable development of cities.
iv) Regional Planning : Concept of a region; types of regions and methods of regionalisation; growth centres and growth poles; regional imbalances; environmental issues in regional planning; planning for sustainable development.
v) Models, Theories and Laws in Human Geography : System analysis in Human Geography; Malthusian, Marxian and Demographic Transition models; Central Place theories of Christaller and Losch; Von Thunen's model of agricultural location; Weber's model of industrial location; Rostov's model of stages of growth. Heart-land and Rimland theories; laws of international boundaries and frontiers.
Note : Candidates will be required to answer one compulsory map question pertinent to subjects covered by this paper.

PART II
Geography Of India
1. Physical Setting:
Space relationship of India with neighboring countries; Structure and relief; Drainage system and watersheds; Physiographic regions; Mechanism of Indian monsoons and rainfall patterns, Tropical cyclones and western distur - bances; Floods and droughts; Climatic regions; Natural vegetation; Soil types and their distributions.

2. Resources:
Land, surface and ground water, energy, minerals, biotic and marine resources; Forest and wild life resources and their conservation; Energy crisis.

3. Agriculture:
Infrastructure: irrigation, seeds, fertilizers, power; Institutional factors: land holdings, land tenure and land reforms; Cropping pattern, agricultural productivity, agricultural intensity, crop combination, land capability; Agro and socialforestry; Green revolution and its socioeconomic and ecological implications; Significance of dry farming; Livestock resources and white revolution; aqua - culture; sericulture, apiculture and poultry; agr icul tural regional isat ion; agro-cl imat ic zones; agro- ecological regions.

4 . Industry :
Evolution of industries ; Locational factors of cotton, jute, textile, iron and steel, aluminium, fertilizer, paper, chemical and pharmaceutical, automobile, cottage and agro-based industries; Industrial houses and complexes including public sector undertakings; Industrial regionalisation; New industrial policies; Multinationals and liberalization; Special Economic Zones; Tourism including eco -tourism.

5. Transport, Communication and Trade:
Road, railway, waterway, airway and pipeline networks and their complementary roles in regional development; Growing importance of ports on national and foreign trade; Trade balance; Trade Policy; Export processing zones; Developments in communication and information technology and their impacts on economy and society; Indian space programme.

6. Cultural Setting:
Historical Perspective of Indian Society; Racial, linguistic and ethnic diversities; religious minorities; major tribes, tribal areas and their problems; cultural regions; Growth, distribution and density of population; Demographic attributes: sex-ratio, age structure, literacy rate, work-force, dependency ratio, longevity; migration (inter-regional, intra- regional and international) and associated problems; Population problems and policies; Health indicators.

7. Settlements:
Types, patterns and morphology of rural settlements; Urban developments; Morphology of Indian cities; Functional cla ssification of Indian cities ; Conurbations and metropolitan regions; urban sprawl; Slums and associated problems; town planning; Problems of urbanization and remedies.

8. Regional Development and Planning:
Experience of regional planning in India; Five Year Plans; Integrated rural development programmes; Panchayati Raj and decentralised planning; Command area development; Watershed management; Planning for backward area ,desert , drought prone, hill, tribal area development; multi-level planning; Regional planning and development of island territories.

9. Political Aspects:
Geographical basis of Indian federalism; State reorganisation; Emergence of new states; Regional consciousness and inter state issues; international boundary of India and related issues; Cross border terrorism; India's role in world affairs; Geopolitics of South Asia and Indian Ocean realm.

10. Contemporary Issues:
Ecological issues: Environmental hazards: landslides earth quakes , Tsunamis , floods and droughts, epidemics; Issues relating to environmental pollution; Changes in patterns of land use; Principles of environmental impact assessment and environmental management; Population explosion and food security; Environmental degradation; Deforestation, desertification and soil erosion; Problems of agrarian and industrial unrest; Regional disparities in economic development ; Concept of sustainable growth and development; Environmental awareness; Linkage of rivers; Globalisation and Indian economy.

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[Arun Vats]

As you are looking for the UPSC Civil Services Main Geography Exam Syllabus , here I am providing same for you .

Paper-I
Principles of Geography
Section-A

Physical Geography
i) Geomorphology : Factors controlling landform development; endogenetic and exogenetic forces; origin and evolution of the earth's crust; physical conditions of the earth's interior; geosynclines; continental drift; isostasy; sea-floor spreading; plate tectonics; mountain building; volcanicity; earthquakes; concepts of geomorphic cycles; landforms associated with fluvial, arid, glacial, coastal and karst cycle; groundwater; Applied Geomorphology.

ii) Climatology : Temperature and pressure belts of the world; heat budget of the earth; atmospheric circulation; planetary and local winds; monsoons and jet streams; air masses and fronts; temperate and tropical cyclones; types and distribution of precipitation; Koppen's and Thornthwaite's classification of world climate; hydrological cycle; climatic change.

ii) Oceanography : Bottom topography of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans; temperature and salinity of the oceans; ocean deposits; ocean currents and tides; marine resources-biotic, mineral and energy resources; coral reefs; sea-level changes.

iv) Biogeography : Genesis of soils; classification and distribution of soils; soil profile; soil erosion and conservation; factors influencing world distribution of plants and animals; problems of deforestation and conservation measures; social forestry, agro-forestry.

v) Environmental Geography : Human ecological adaptations; transformation of nature by man; environmental degradation and conservawtin; ecosystems and their management; global ecological imbalances-problems of pollution, global warming, reduction in bio-diversity and depletion of forests.

Section-B
Human Geography
i) Perspectives in Human Geography : A real differentiation; regional synthesis; dichotomy and dualism; environmentalism; quantitative revolution and locational analysis; radical, behavioural, human and welfare approaches; cultural regions of the world human and welfare approaches; cultural regions of the world; human development indicators.

iii) Economic Geography : World economic develpment-measurement and problems; world resources and their distribution; energy crisis; the limits to growth; world agriculture-typology of agricultural regions; agricultural inputs and productivity; food and nutrition problems; famine-causes, effects and remedies; world industries-location patterns and problems; patterns of world trade.

iii) Population and Settlement Geography : Growth and distribution of world population; demographic atrributes; causes and consequencies of migration; concepts of over-, under- and optimum population; world population problems.
Types and patterns of rural settlements; hierarchy of urban settlements; concept of primate city and rank-size rule; functional classificatipn of towns; sphere of urban influence; rural-urban fringe; satellite town; problems of urbanisation.

iv) Regional Planning : Concept of a region; types of regions and methods of regionalisation; growth centres and growth poles; regional imbalances; environmental issues in regional planning; planning for sustainable development.

v) Models, Theories and Laws in Human Geography : System analysis in Human Geography; Malthusian, Marxian and Demographic Transition models; Central Place theories of Christaller and Losch; Von Thunen's model of agricultural location; Weber's model of industrial location; Rostov's model of stages of growth. Heart-land and Rimland theories; laws of international boundaries and frontiers.
Note : Candidates will be required to answer one compulsory map question pertinent to subjects covered by this paper.

Paper-II
Geography of India

Section-A.
i) Physical Setting : Space relationship of India with neighbouring countries; structure and relief; drainage system and watersheds; physiographic regions; mechanism of Indian monsoons; tropical cyclones and western distrubances; floods and droughts; climatic regions; natural vegetation, soil types and their distributions.

ii) Resources : Land, surface and groundwater, energy, minerals, and biotic resources, their distribution, utilisation and conservation; energy crisis.


iii) Agriculture : Infrastructure-irrigation, seeds, fertilizers, power; institutional factors-land holdings, land tenure and land reforms; agricultural productivity, agricultural intensity, crop combination, land capability; agro-and social forestry; green revolution and its socio-economic and ecological implications; significance of dry farming; livestock resources and white revolution; blue revolution; agricultural regionalisation; agro-climatic zones.

iv) Industry : Evolution of industries; locational factors of cotton, jute, iron and steel, fertiliser, paper, drugs and pharmaceutical, automobile and cottage indusries; industrial complexes and industrial regionalisaiton; new industrial policy; multinationals and liberalisation.

v) Transport, Communication and Trade : Road, railway, waterway, airway and pipeline networks and their complementary roles in regional development; growing importance of ports on national and foreign trade, trade balance; free trade and export promotion zones; developments in communication technology and its impact on economy and society.

Section-B
i) Cultural Setting : Racial and ethnic diversities; major tribes, tribal areas and their problems; role of langague, religion and tradition in the formation of cultural regions; growth, distribution and density of population; demographic attributes-sex-ratio, age structure, literacy rate, work-force, dependency ratio and longevity; migration (inter-regional, intra-regional and international) and associated problems, population problems and policies.

ii) Settlements : Types, patterns and morphology of rural settlements; urban development; census definition of urban areas; morphology of Indian cities; functional classification of Indian cities; conurbations and metropolitan regions; urban sprawl; slums and associated problems; town planning; problems of urbanisaiton.


iii) Regional Development and Planning: Experience of regional planning in India; Five Year Plans; integrated rural development programmes; panchayati raj and decentralised planning; command area development; watershed management; planning for backward area, desert drought-prone, hill and tribal area development; multi-level planning; geography and regional planning.

iv) Political Aspects : Geographical basis of Indian federalism; state reorganisation; regional consciousness and national integration; international boundary of India and related issues; disputes on sharing of water resources; India and geopolitics of the Indian Ocean.

v) Contemporary Issues : Environmental hazards-landslides, earthquakes, floods and droughts, epidemics; issues related to environmental pollution; changes in patterns of land use; principles of environmental impact assessment and environmental management; population explosion and food security; environmental degradation; problems of agrarian and industrial unrest; regional disparities in economic development; concept of sustainable growth and development.