OPSC OAS Syllabus

A recent notification from the Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC) provided information regarding the Odisha Administrative Service (OAS) 2023 exam. This exam will likely fill over 405 vacancies across various government services for Odisha residents.

As this exam aims to fill positions within the government civil services, its difficulty level will be high. Therefore, candidates need to begin preparations after knowing its detailed syllabus.

This article shall focus on the OPSC OAS syllabus 2023. A syllabus is essential, as aspirants need to know the important topics. Once they know it, they can be more confident about this exam.

Candidates can also visit the linked article and get details about the upcoming
government exams that comprise current affairs and general awareness as an important topic in the syllabus.

OPSC Prelims Syllabus

The prelims exam of the OPSC OAS will be divided into two parts, including paper 1 and paper 2. Each paper will contain 200 marks with 100 MCQs. Candidates will get 2 hours to complete each paper.

The syllabus for the first paper is described below.

• Current events of National and International importance;
• History of India and Indian National Movement;
• Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World;
• Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.
• Economic and Social Development-sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.
• General Issues on Environmental Ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change that do not require subject specialization, and
• General Science.

Candidates can download the NCERT books from the linked article.

Aspiring OPSC candidates are advised to read NCERT books and other important notes:

1. NCERT Notes: Ancient Indian History Notes
2. NCERT Notes: Medieval Indian History Notes
3. NCERT Notes: Modern Indian History Notes
4. NCERT Notes: Art and Culture
5. NCERT Notes: Geography Notes

For current affairs, it is highly recommended that candidates read The Hindu newspaper every day without fail. Here you can find Daily Video Analysis of the Hindu.

The syllabus for the second paper is listed below.

• Comprehension;
• Interpersonal Skills, including communication skills;
• Logical Reasoning and Analytic ability;
• Decision-Making and Problem-Solving;
• General Mental Ability;
• Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude) (Class-X level). Data Interpretation (Charts, Graphs, Tables, Data Sufficiency etc. – Class-X level); and
• English Language Comprehension Skills (Class-X level).

Note:

• The Preliminary Examination is meant to serve as a screening test only.
• The marks obtained in Preliminary Examination by the candidates who are declared qualified for admission to the main examination will not be counted for determining their final order of merit.
• Every correct answer in the prelims will get them 2 marks, while one-fourth of marks assigned to that question shall be deducted for indicating an incorrect response to each question.

OPSC Mains Syllabus

Once candidates clear the prelims, they need to appear for the main exam of OPSC OAS. This exam is divided across five compulsory and four optional subject papers. Additionally, candidates can complete each paper in 3 hours. The compulsory papers are listed as follows.

• Paper I – Odia language
• Paper II – English
• Paper III – English essay
• Paper IV – General Studies I
• Paper V – General Studies II
• Paper VI, VII, VIII, IX – Optional Papers

All these compulsory papers contribute to a total of 1400 marks. The following section discusses the main exam’s detailed OPSC OAS syllabus 2023.

Note:

• Each of the Papers i.e. Paper-I (Odia language) and Paper-II (English) will be of Matriculation standard and shall be qualifying in nature. The marks obtained in these two papers shall not be counted for ranking.

Paper I – Odia Language

The aim of the paper is to test the candidate’s ability to understand serious discursive prose and express his ideas clearly and correctly in Odia language. The pattern of questions would broadly be as follows:

Paper II – English

The aim of the paper is to test the candidate’s ability to understand serious discursive prose and express his ideas clearly and correctly in English language. The pattern of questions would broadly be as follows:

Paper III – English Essay

Candidates will be required to write an essay on a specific topic. The choice of subjects will be given. They will be expected to keep closely to the subject of the essay to arrange their ideas in orderly fashion and to write concisely. Credit will be given for effective and exact expression.

Paper IV – General Studies I

History of Modern India and Indian Culture

• The History of Modern India will cover the following :
  • History of India since 1857
  • Important personalities who shaped the Freedom Movements in Odisha and India
  • Social Reform Movements
• Indian culture will cover the following;
  • Indian culture from ancient times to modern times
  • Temple architecture of Odisha.
  • Socio-cultural developments in Odisha

Geography of India

• Geography of India will cover the following-
  • Physical, economic and social geography of India.
  • Odisha’s Physiography and Drainage system
  • Odisha’s Natural Resources – Water, forest and minerals.

Indian Polity

• Indian Polity will include the following-
  • Constitution of India
  • Political system of India
  • Government and politics in Odisha
  • Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in Odisha.

Current National issues and topics of social relevance

This part is intended to test the candidate’s awareness of current national issues and topics of social relevance in the present day India, such as;

1. Demography & Human Resource Development
2. Behavioural & Social issues and Social Welfare problems: Child labour, gender inequality, adult literacy, rehabilitation of the handicapped and other deprived segments of society, drug abuse, public health, education and unemployment.

Legal and environmental issues

1. Human Rights
2. Corruption in public life
3. Communal harmony
4. Protection of minorities
5. Internal security and related issues
6. Environment and ecological issues; ecological preservation, conservation of natural resources and national heritage.
7. Role of national institutions, their relevance and need for change

To cover broad topics from the subjects mentioned above, candidates can take help of the following links:

Paper V – General Studies II

India and the World

This part is intended to test candidate’s awareness of India’s relationship with the world in various spheres, such as the following;

1. Foreign Affairs
2. External security and related matters
3. Nuclear policy
4. Indians abroad

Indian Economy

This part will include the following;

• Planning, economic development, economic reforms and development of the Corporate Sector in India
• Economic and Trade issues
• Foreign trade
• Role and functions of IMF, World Bank and WTO
• Reserve Bank of India – its role and functions
• Odishan Economy: Development during the post Reform Period
• Regional disparity

International Affairs & Institutions

This part will include the following;

• Important events in world affairs
• International institutions like UN, ILO, EU, SAARC, WHO, ICJ

Developments in the field of science & technology, communications and space

In this part, questions will test the candidate’s awareness of the developments in the field of science and technology, communications and space and also on basic ideas of computer Statistical Analysis, Graphs & Diagrams

This part will include exercises to test the candidates’ ability to draw common sense conclusions from information presented in graphical, statistical or diagrammatical form and to point out deficiencies, limitations or inconsistencies therein. The candidates should also be aware of techniques of counting and elementary probability.

Get OPSC Exam related details from the links provided below:

List of Optional Subjects for OPSC Mains Examination

The candidates must opt for two optional subjects for Main Examination. Each subject will have two papers and each paper carrying 300 marks. Request for change of Optional Subjects will not be entertained.

1. Agriculture
2. Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science
3. Anthropology
4. Agricultural Engineering
5. Botany
6. Chemistry
7. Civil Engineering
8. Commerce & Accountancy
9. Economics
10. Electrical Engineering
11. Education
12. Fisheries Science
13. Forestry
14. Geography
15. Geology
16. Home Science
17. History
18. Indian Language & Literature (any 1) – Odia, Hindi, Sanskrit, English, Persian, Urdu.
19. Law
20. Management
21. Mathematics
22. Mechanical Engineering
23. Philosophy
24. Physics
25. Political Science & International Relations
26. Public Administration
27. Psychology
28. Sociology
29. Statistics
30. Zoology

Candidates shall not be allowed to opt for the following combinations of optional subjects.

1. Odia, Hindi, Persian, Sanskrit, Urdu, English
2. Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Agricultural Engineering.
3. Mathematics & Statistics
4. Anthropology & Sociology
5. Political Science & International Relations and Public Administration.
6. Commerce & Accountancy and Management.
7. Agriculture and Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science.
8. Management and Public Administration
9. Education and Psychology
10. Agriculture and Agricultural Engineering.

Personality Test or Interview

The candidates capable of clearing prelims and mains will be called for the final interview. The personality test or interview shall carry 250 Marks.

Thus, hopefully, this article on the OPSC OAS syllabus will guide the aspirants regarding the subjects and topics essential for clearing this exam. They can quickly clear this exam if they start preparing topic wise and set proper targets.

For the Best preparation strategy for competitive exams, candidates can visit the linked article and get detailed study material and preparation tips to excel in the examination.

Aspirants who shall be appearing for the exam for the first time and are willing to get some preparation tips and study material for the competitive exams can turn to BYJU’S for assistance.

If aspirants are sitting for multiple state service examinations, they can get syllabus information about each of the important public service commission examinations from the links mentioned below: