5 Things Every IAS Aspirant Should Know About the India Year Book (IYB)

UPSC aspirants should know how to effectively read the India Year Book which is important for IAS Exam. However, the India Year Book is undoubtedly a bulky book that aspirants either cannot ignore or spend more time with.

This article will introduce the IAS candidates to India Year Book, and in the latter part, important chapters of this book will be provided.

1.Introduction to India Year Book

What is the India Year Book?

India Year Book (IYB) is an annual book that has ministry-wise or department-wise chapters, and it’s a compilation of information that is available on the relevant ministry websites. The book comprises 32 chapters, which is mentioned below.

Who publishes the India Year Book?

The India Year Book is issued by the publication division, which is a media unit of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India.

Why is the India Year Book important for UPSC Preparation?

For UPSC aspirants, this book comes handy for current affairs preparation of civil services exam. Aspirants are required to concentrate on current events of the previous year till the main examination of the current year (e.g. if a candidate appears for UPSC 2023 Exam then he/she has to start preparing for current affairs from June 2022 to December 2023. (The prelims 2023 is on 28th May 2023 and mains in September 2023).

This book is the one source that covers all the information needed regarding various programs and policies launched by the government, which is very helpful for civil services exam for both prelims and mains while writing descriptive answers.

2. Chapters of India Year Book Aspirants Must Read

If one analyses the UPSC Civil Services Prelims Exam previous years question papers then it can be seen that roughly around 10-15 questions are asked from this book, and those are majorly related to schemes and policies initiated by the government.

The table gives the chapters, one will find in India Year Book:

3. How to read the India Year Book for UPSC?

Especially for beginners who are first time reading this book for IAS Preparation, here are a few tips on how to read India Year Book for IAS exam:

1. Read directly from the book other than going to different sources where the gist of IYB is provided.
2. Important chapters of India Year Book should be carefully read as there can be questions asked from such chapters. The example given is a question asked in the UPSC Civil Services Prelims Exam 2016. Which one of the following is the best description of ‘INS Astradharini’ that was in the news recently?
   • amphibious warfare ship
   • nuclear -powered submarine
   • torpedo launch and recovery vessel
   • nuclear – powered aircraft carrier
3. The list of important chapters provided below should be followed, and notes from each should be made separately to revise them periodically.
4. Visit the ministry websites whenever any such topic is read to substantiate it with updated information

4. Important Chapters in India Year Book for UPSC

5. General Doubts related to India Year Book for UPSC

IAS aspirants frequently doubt on the cost-benefit ratio while reading this book and hence generate even more doubts. Some doubts are being cleared in the points below:

These are just a few tips to approach on how to read the India Year Book for UPSC Civil Services Exam Preparation. Hope, this would help the aspirants in their IAS Exam Preparation.

Every year this year book is released and candidates preparing for the upcoming examination must review the India Year Book 2022 and 2023 for further preparation.

You can refer to the important articles linked in the table below:

Related Links: