Section-wise Preparation Tips for WBPSC Exam

Due to Covid-19 pandemic, the West Bengal Public Service Commission (WBPSC) has postponed its State Civil Services (Mains) Examination 2020. The recent examination that took place was of West Bengal Civil Services (WBCS) Prelims 2020 on 9th February. The commission, meanwhile, has released the exam date of WBCS Prelims 2021 which is 7th February 2021. Hence, candidates preparing both for prelims and mains examination need to know the section-wise syllabus topics and respective preparation strategies. This article will elaborate on broad subjects and the tips one can follow to complete the WBCS syllabus. 

One of the important things aspirants should realize is that the West Bengal Civil Services Examination is competitive. Hence, it is important for them to thoroughly understand the WBPSC Syllabus which details the topics asked in all the stages of the examination. 

Brief About the WBPSC Civil Services Exam

What are the important subjects in the WBPSC Examination?

The West Bengal Civil Services Examination occurs annually. The important details of the examination are mentioned in the table below:

Important Information about West Bengal PSC Exam

Name of the Examination	WB Civil Services Exam
Which exams are taking place?	WBCS 2019, 2020 and 2021
Prelims Examination Date	WBCS Prelims 2019 – 9th February 2019WBCS Prelims 2020 – 9th February 202WBCS Prelims 2021 – 7th February 2021
Mains Examination Dates	WBCS Mains 2019 – 25th August 2019 onwardsWBCS Mains 2020 – 24th April 2020 onwardsWBCS Mains 2021 – Yet to announced
Prelims Result Dates	WBCS Prelims 2019 Result – 9th February 2020WBCS Prelims 2020 Result – 16th September 2020
Mains Result Dates	WBCS Mains 2019 Result – Expected in December 2020WBCS Mains 2020 Result – Expected in June 2021

There are three stages to the examination:

1. Prelims
2. Mains, and
3. Interview

Prelims has only one paper and mains has six papers. There are 8 topics in WBCS prelims:

1. English Composition
2. General Science
3. Current Events of National and International Importance
4. History of India
5. Geography of India (More focus on state-specific Geography)
6. Indian Polity and Economy 
7. Indian National Movement
8. General Mental Ability 

As mentioned above, there are six compulsory papers in mains, which are;

1. Paper 1 – It consists of any one language from Bengali, Hindi, Nepali, Urdu, or Santhali. 
2. Paper 2 – It is an English language paper
3. Paper 3 – General Studies-I which includes Indian history and geography of India and West Bengal
4. Paper 4 – General Studies-II includes science, technology, environment, general knowledge and current affairs. 
5. Paper 5 – It consists of topics like Indian Constitution, Indian Economy.
6. Paper 6 – Arithmetic and Reasoning are included in this paper. 

History Preparation for WBCS Examination

History is one of the most common subjects found in almost every competitive examination. The good part is that the syllabus of this subject too remains very similar to other examinations including that of UPSC-conducted Civil Services Examination. Let’s see how one can prepare History, in points:

1. Read West Bengal State Textbooks for state-related history information. 
2. For Indian history, one can form the basics with Old NCERTs books. 
3. One book for each section of history can be referred to:
   
   1. Ancient History – Old NCERT Class 11th
   2. Medieval History – Old NCERT Class 11th
   3. Modern India – Rajiv Ahir’s Brief History of Modern India
      
4. Separate notebooks should be managed for state-specific historical information and Indian history respectively. 
5. Revision of history topics is a must as the syllabus is vast and it is full of facts and stories. Hence, chronology must be remembered with multiple revisions. 

Polity Preparation for WBCS Exam

Indian Polity is one of the important subjects for the examination. The subject is static and dynamic both. The static part can be covered by reading M.Laxmikanth’s Indian Polity textbook while the dynamic part can be supported by the current affairs reading. The following points must be noted while preparing Indian Polity subject:

1. The basic understanding of the Indian Polity should be understood, for example, one must know how the Indian democracy works, Indian Constitution, Executive, Legislative and Judiciary. 
2. Important constitutional articles and amendments must be noted down and revised often.
3. Constitutional bodies in the news should be given more importance; for example, if there is a coverage on the governor’s power w.r.t some state; one must know each and every detail about the office of the governor. Similarly, it goes for all other bodies like CAG, President, Prime Minister, Election Commissioner of India, etc. 

Geography Preparation for WBPSC Exam

Indian and the state geography can be easily covered by referring to the following two/three sources:

1. NCERTs Geography Textbooks from class 6-12
2. West Bengal textbooks on Geography from class 6-12.
3. Majid Hussain’s Geography of India or Arihant’s Magbook on Geography. 

Aspirants should also put focus on the important places that are in the news. Like, recently, Tigray region is in the news over a civil unrest in Ethiopia. Hence, it is important to know where it lies, the neighbouring regions, any water bodies surrounding, etc.

Economy Preparation for WBPSC Exam

Indian Economy most of the times scares candidates. They mistake Indian economy with a lot of numbers and facts. However, from an exam point of view, Indian economy is more about the growth and development of the country and the government and central bank’s initiatives to boost the economy. Hence, candidates should emphasise on the:

1. Basic economic keywords like – GDP, Inflation, Poverty, FDI, Repo Rate, Budget, etc. 
2. Government schemes to boost the citizens’ livelihood. 
3. Various international indices that reflect on sectors concerning Indian Economy like Global Hunger Index, Ease of Doing Business, Human Development Index, etc. 

General Science and Current Affairs Preparation for WBCS Exam

One the following sources have to be religiously followed to stay updated with the events of national and international importance:

1. Newspaper
2. Monthly current affairs magazine, and
3. Test series

General Science can be referred to by the state textbooks of class 6-10. Previous years’ questions papers too can be looked onto to get an idea how questions are framed. 

Conclusion

The examination is easier for all the candidates who successfully stick onto their strategies. The candidates who complete their WBPSC syllabus can confidently give the upcoming state civil services examination.