10 Things You Should Know Before You Start Preparing for Punjab PCS Along With IAS Exam

We, at O2 IAS Academy, advise all IAS and Punjab PCS aspirants studying in coaching institutes in Chandigarh to appear for both the PCS and UPSC exams simultaneously because the syllabus is of similar nature with minute differences. Punjab Civil Services exam is conducted by the Punjab Public Service Commission and UPSC civil services examination is conducted by Union Public Service Commission. The state civil servants are under the control of the State government and an officer of one particular state cannot be transferred to another state, While UPSC recruits for the central and all India cadre services. In this blog post, we will discuss all the aspects you must know before you start preparation for Punjab PCS along with IAS exam.

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5. Syllabus

The prescribed syllabus for UPSC and Punjab PCS civil services exam is highly similar with a slight difference Since Punjab PCS exam is conducted by the Public Service Commission of Punjab state, the candidate should be well aware of the history, culture, economy and geography of Punjab. While in case of IAS examination special on any one particular state is not required while covering various subjects and syllabus.

There is not much difference in the overall pattern of the exam and the selection procedure for both the exams. Both IAS exam and Punjab PCS civil services examination are conducted in three stages namely:

1. Prelims
2. Mains
3. Interview

However, there are some minute but significant differences, let us take a closer look at them.

6. Prelims pattern

Similarity-Preliminary Examination for both UPSC and Punjab PCS has two papers with objective type multiple-choice questions. Marks obtained in the Preliminary Competitive Examination by the candidates, who may be declared qualified for taking the Main Competitive Examination, shall not be counted for determining their final order of merit.

The differences between the preliminary stages of these two exams are as follows-

UPSC civil services prelims exam-

• There is ‘Negative Marking’ in the IAS Exam for each incorrect answer but only in the Prelims stage. The negative marking for incorrect answers will be 1/3rd (0.66) of the allotted marks of that question.
• The GS Paper II (CSAT) in IAS exam is of qualifying nature and candidates should score a minimum of 33 per cent in this paper to qualify to the next stage of the IAS exam i.e. the Mains.
• The question paper shall be bilingual and shall be printed in English (Roman script) and Hindi (Devnagri script) except for questions where candidates’ proficiency in the language is to be tested.

Punjab PCS civil services prelims exam-

• Marks from both the papers will be taken into consideration while preparing the final merit list and cut off for Punjab PCS Pre exam.
• There will be no negative marking in the written preliminary examination test; however, there may be negative marking for any objections to the Answer Key found false/frivolous/not supported by authentic evidence.
• The question paper shall be bilingual and shall be printed in English (Roman script) and Punjabi (Gurumukhi Script) except for questions where candidates’ proficiency in the language is to be tested.7. Mains Examination

UPSC– The main examination is conducted to assess the overall intellectual traits of a candidate. It consists of nine papers that include two qualifying papers. However, the merit is counted only for an essay, general studies and optional papers. Candidates who obtain a minimum qualifying mark in the written examination fixed by the UPSC will be called for the interview/Personality Test. The total number of candidates called for the interview will be twice the number of vacancies.

Punjab PCS– The syllabus of Punjab PCS civil services exam is similar to the IAS exam but there are differences in how the different subjects are divided into GS papers. For example, GS III for Punjab PCS consists of Economy, Statistics and Security issues only while in UPSC it consists of Economy, Science and tech, environment and security issues. There is also added syllabus of Punjab’s history, culture, economy, geography and other current happening related to Punjab.

8. Optional paper

The most significant difference between the mains exam of both exams is that in Punjab PCS there is no optional paper while in case of IAS exam it is compulsory to choose one optional subject (consisting of 2 papers with 250×2= 500 marks) out of the given lists of subjects.

9. Language

Prelims- In Punjab PCS no candidate shall be eligible for appearing in the Preliminary Competitive Examination unless he/she has passed the Matriculation Examination with Punjabi as one of the compulsory or elective subjects or any other equivalent examination in Punjabi language, which may be specified by the Government from time to time on or before the last date of submission of Application Forms. While in case of UPSC IAS exam matriculation can be in any of the given lists of languages with no specific requirement for Punjabi.

Mains: In addition, language papers are not of qualifying nature in Punjab PCS mains exam. Marks scored in English and Punjab paper are included while preparing the merit list. While in the case of UPSC civil services exam they are of qualifying nature and there are multiple options to choose from for the language paper.

Interview

For the Punjab PCS interview, the candidates should have good knowledge of the regional language, culture and customs of the state i.e. special focus and attention must be given to the Punjab portion of the syllabus and current affairs. While in the case of UPSC one has to focus on India as a whole more.

10. Sources for current affairs

Though the Punjab PCS exam is a state exam, one must have basic knowledge of the latest happenings in the country. For that, the candidates must start following at least one national newspaper, in order to keep themselves well acquainted with the happenings in the country as well as the world. Thus current affairs preparation is similar to the IAS. Aspirants for both the exams have to religiously read and analyse news from either The Hindu or The Indian Express. In addition, Punjab PCS aspirants need to pay special attention to enhancing their general knowledge and current affairs related to Punjab. For this, The Tribune newspaper should be followed in addition to The Hindu

Overall, despite their differences both the exams are of similar nature and can be easily cracked with hard work, dedication and a good strategy. Importance of analyzing past trends in IAS exam and Punjab PCS cannot be stressed enough. The candidates should pick the last few years’ question papers and try to solve them. This will give them an idea of the pattern and make them comfortable with it. This should be supplemented with regular mock tests. It is also important to cover basics from the NCERT books for both exams. In the end, it is important that aspirants should identify the syllabus overlap between Prelims and Mains of IAS and Punjab PCS and focus on those areas first. It is a plus point to be guided by an experienced teacher who can direct your efforts correctly.

We hope that these tips will help you during your UPSC and Punjab PCS preparation in IAS coaching institutes in Chandigarh or any other part of India. These were our views and opinions on this topic. What are your thoughts and inputs or queries on this topic? Comment below and share your views with us. We, at O2 IAS Academy, would be happy to assist you in your UPSC civil services preparation along with Punjab PCS civil services preparation and answer your queries.