Political Science & International Relations Optional For UPSC

Why choose PSIR as an Optional?

Choosing PSIR as an optional is one of the most prudent decisions aspirants make, as it holds high scoring potential. It covers a wide range of topics, but at the same time overlaps with GS paper II and parts of GS I. But before opting for the PSIR optional Subject it is important to understand that the UPSC has made certain changes in the Mains syllabus for Optional, these changes are reflective of the dynamic shift in the political scenario of the nation and the World at large. However, if you have a knack for studying the nature of any political system and how a nation-state functions based on its constitutional provisions and comparative governance you will feel at home in PSIR.

The alternation in both papers of the optional papers of the Mains may be characterised at the levels of form and ideas. Surprisingly, in recent times there has been a paradigm shift in the overton window of the political spectrum. For instance, we have seen a stark shift in the inclusion and exclusion of some of the political ideologies in the syllabus. Topics on Indian nationalism have excluded Raja Rammohan Roy, A Arybindo, Gokhale, M.A. Jinnah and Iqbal. Instead  ideologies right to the overton window like of Savarkar, Subhash Chandra Bose, and socialist ideologies that of J.P. Narayan and Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia have been considered. This construct marks the diversification in the syllabus to counterbalance the traditional secular socialist train of ideas. 

Key features of PSIR Optional

PSIR courses at Vajirao and Reddy Institute offer students multiple advantages, such as coverage of the complete syllabus, focus on conceptual clarity, personal doubt clearing sessions and mentoring, daily revision, emphasis on answer writing, UPSC pattern Mock Tests series, updated Study Material, Daily Doubts Clearing, Personal Attention to every student, Online Backup for missed classes, highlighting of linkages with current affairs, latest studies and reports to fetch more marks in the exam and Lifelong Association and Support.

Aspirants at Vajirao and Reddy Institute are encouraged to think for themselves, develop powers of critical analysis, and focus on clarifying their concepts and to continuously engage in debate and discussion. Learning at Vajirao and Reddy Institute therefore is a continuous affair for the faculty as well as the students. Classes are decidedly and deliberately interactive which, in our assessment and experience, produces better results.

PSIR optional Online and Offline Classes

At Vajirao and Reddy IAS Institute we conduct regular PSIR classroom classes in small batches so that aspirants get due attention. However, those aspirants who are unable to secure a seat or cannot travel to Delhi for classes opt for our PSIR Online course which is also popular among the UPSC aspirants and is availed by students across the length and breadth of the country.

Syllabus

PAPER- I

Section—A

Political Theory and Indian Politics :

1. Political Theory: meaning and approaches.
2. Theories of state : Liberal, Neo-liberal, Marxist, Pluiralist, post-colonial and Feminist.
3. Justice : Conceptions of justice with special reference to Rawl’s theory of justice and its communitarian critiques.
4. Equality: Social, political and economic; relationship between equality and freedom; Affirmative action.
5. Rights: Meaning and theories; different kinds of rights; Concept of Human Rights.
6. Democracy: Classical and contemporary theories; different models of democracy—representative, participatory and deliberative.
7. Concept of power : hegemony, ideology and legitimacy.
8. Political Ideologies : Liberalism, Socialism, Marxism, Fascism, Gandhism and Feminism.
9. Indian Political Thought: Dharamshastra, Arthashastra and Buddhist Traditions; Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Sri Aurobindo, M. K. Gandhi, B. R. Ambedkar, M. N. Roy.
10. Western Political Thought : Plato, Aristotle, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, John S. Mill, Marx, Gramsci, Hannah Arendt.

Section—B

Indian Government and Politics

1. Indian Nationalism :

      (a) Political Strategies of India’s Freedom Struggle : Constitutionalism to mass Satyagraha, Noncooperation, Civil Disobedience; Militant and Revolutionary Movements, Peasant and Workers Movements.

      (b)  Perspectives on Indian National Movement; Liberal, Socialist and Marxist; Radical Humanist and Dalit.

2. Making of the Indian Constitution : Legacies of the British rule; different social and political perspectives.
3. Salient Features of the Indian Constitution : The Preamble, Fundamental Rights and Duties, Directive Principles; Parliamentary System and Amendment Procedures; Judicial Review and Basic Structure doctrine.
4. (a) Principal Organs of the Union Government : Envisaged role and actual working of the Executive, Legislature and Supreme Court.

      (b) Principal Organs of the State Government : Envisaged role and actual working of the Executive, Legislature and High Courts.

5. Grassroots Democracy : Panchayati Raj and Municipal Government; Significance of 73rd and 74^th Amendments; Grassroot movements.
6. Statutory Institutions/Commissions : Election Commission, Comptroller and Auditor General, Finance Commission, Union Public Service Commission, National Commission for Scheduled Castes, National Commission for Scheduled Tribes, National Commission for Women; National Human Rights Commission, National Commission for Minorities, National Backward Classes Commission.
7. Federalism : Constitutional provisions; changing nature of centre-state relations; integrationist tendencies and regional aspirations; inter-state disputes.
8. Planning and Economic development : Nehruvian and Gandhian perspectives; Role of planning and public sector; Green Revolution, land reforms and agrarian relations; liberalization and economic reforms.
9. Caste, Religion and Ethnicity in Indian Politics.
10. Party System : National and regional political parties, ideological and social bases of parties; Patterns of coalition politics; Pressure groups, trends in electoral behaviour; changing socio-economic profile of Legislators.
11. Social Movement : Civil liberties and human rights movements; women’s movements; environmentalist movements.

PAPER-II

Comparative Politics and International Relations

Section—A

Comparative Political Analysis and International Politics :

1. Comparative Politics: Nature and major approaches; Political economy and political sociology perspectives; Limitations of the comparative method.
2. State in Comparative Perspective: Characteristics and changing nature of the State in capitalist and socialist economies, and advanced industrial and developing societies.
3. Politics of Representation and Participation: Political parties, pressure groups and social movements in advanced industrial and developing societies.
4. Globalisation: Responses from developed and developing societies.
5. Approaches to the Study of International Relations: Idealist, Realist, Marxist, Functionalist and Systems theory.
6. Key Concepts in International Relations : National interest, security and power; Balance of power and deterrence; Transational actors and collective security; World capitalist economy and globalisation.
7. Changing International Political Order :

       (a) Rise of super powers; Strategic and ideological Bipolarity, arms race and cold war; Nuclear threat;

      (b) Non-aligned Movement : Aims and achievements.

      (c) Collapse of the Soviet Union; Unipolarity and American hegemony; Relevance of non-alignment in the contemporary world.

8. Evolution of the International Economic System: From Brettonwoods to WTO; Socialist economies and the CMEA (Council for Mutual Economic Assistance); Third World demand for new international economic order; Globalisation of the world economy.
9. United Nations : Envisaged role and actual record; Specialized UN agencies—aims and functioning; need for UN reforms.
10. Regionalisation of World Politics : EU, ASEAN, APEC, AARC, NAFTA.
11. Contemporary Global Concerns: Democracy, human rights, environment, gender justice terrorism, nuclear proliferation.

Section—B

India and the World

1. Indian Foreign Policy : Determinants of foreign policy; the institutions of policy-making; Continuity and change.
2. India’s Contribution to the Non-Alignment Movement Different phases; Current role.
3. India and South Asia :

      (a) Regional Co-operation : SAARC-past performance and future prospects.

      (b) South Asia as a Free Trade Area.

      (c) India’s “Look East” policy.

      (d) Impediments to regional co-operation : River water disputes; illegal cross border migration; Ethnic conflicts and insurgencies; Border disputes.

4. India and the Global South : Relations with Africa and Latin America; Leadership role in the demand for NIEO and WTO negotiations.
5. India and the Global Centres of Power : USA, EU, Japan, China and Russia.
6. India and the UN System: Role in UN Peace-keeping; Demand for Permanent Seat in the Security Council.
7. India and the Nuclear Question : Changing perceptions and policy.
8. Recent developments in Indian Foreign Policy: India’s position on the recent crises in Afghanistan, Iraq, and West Asia, growing relations with the US and Israel; Vision of a new world order.

Syllabus Analysis

Political Theory and India Politics

The first paper of Political Science in the Main has two Sections (i) Political Theories, and the Indian Politics and (ii) Indian Government and Politics. The previous syllabus contained six topics in the theory section and four topics relating to the Indian government and politics. In contrast, the revised syllabus has 10 topics in the first section and 13 in the second. 

Section (A) has been enhanced with added Theories of Political Culture, Theories of Political Economy, Theories of Power and Hegemony, and a dedicated topic on Indian Political Thought. Manu and Kautilya in the old syllabus were part of an exhaustive topic on Political Thought that encompassed numerous political thinkers. The first topic of India and Western Political Thought has been split and shifted to the end of the theory paper. The count of western political philosophers has also been reduced from 17 to 10, with one addition of Rosa Luxembourg, whose thought was viewed as pivotal in reinterpreting the communist philosophy’s relevance in the European context.

Section (B) has considerable additions as well. The Indian freedom struggle with its constitutionalism, mass Satyagraha, revolutionary activities, non-cooperation & civil disobedience, Quit India, the India naval mutiny, the Indian National Army plus women’s active participation in the independence movement all evoke special attention within the framework of Indian nationalism. The development post Indian National Congress in 1885 is equally important for the candidates to consider. Other inclusions are the socio-economic dimensions of the nationalist movement related to the communal issues, the demand for partition, and the backward class movement. The section on planning and economic development chiefly concerns the impact of economic reform policies and the consequences of liberalization on planned development. In teaching grassroots democracy, attention must be paid to the two election rounds that have taken place since the 73rd and 74th constitutional amendments, focusing on women’s empowerment in the new political environment.

It appears that Paper-I is a comprehensive outline of the political philosophies and theories along with the Indian political system, which is quite a lot to cover on both the discussion and empirical sides of the region’s socio-political framework.

Comparative Politics and International Relations

Comparative Politics and International Relations is a new name for Paper-II which now includes the topic on comparative politics from the previous syllabus. The intent is to make the candidates analyze foreign policy and related happenings in relation to the governance framework of the particular nation. In revising the syllabus, the rest of the world was prioritized as the main focus of concern because of the monotonous global political framework. 

The demise of the USSR made the world unipolar and the South Asian region has been transformed with the emergence of India and Pakistan as new players on the nuclear stage. China is a rapidly growing global power, while liberalization has become its predominant principle for economic development. Even so, that nation continues to achieve a proper blend of old values and newer trends. This paper requires constant vigilance of recent developments especially for the aspirants.

In the modified syllabus, Section A for Paper II has a plethora of new additions. These include issues such as strategies of development, concepts of international politics, the nature of the post-cold war global order, and world politics issues including the Afghan Civil War, the Gulf War, the Yugoslav crisis, NAM after the Cold War, and contemporary global concerns. All these are critical additions which are of great importance for students. 

Section B has also been updated, with a particular focus on pivotal foreign policy discussions related to India. This is reflected in the new title of the section “India and the World,” which corresponds to a similarly titled topic in the General Studies paper. The topics included in this section are for the most part unchanged except that now they are examined through the Indian perspective lens. Examples include: India and NAM, India, Africa and Latin America, India and the UN systems, India and the emerging international economic order, and India and nuclear weapons policy. In addition, topics such as IPKE in Sri Lanka, India as a military nuclear power, and other cornerstone tenets of India’s foreign policy also feature prominently in the revised syllabus.

In this regard, Paper – II is fair to the political science students since it addresses the holistic aspects of world and Indian politics both at micro and macro levels. Nonetheless, it pertains to the various angles of comparison policy approaches.

Suggested Reading List: Political Theory

1. An Introduction to Political Thought: O.P. Gauba
2. Political Theory : Eddy Ashirvatham
3. Western Political Theory : George Sabine
4. Political Theory, Ideas and Institutions : Amal Roy and Mohit Bhattacharya.
5. Modern Political Thought : *S.P. Verma.
6. Comparative Politics : *J.C. Jauhary.

Indian Constitution and Politics

1. Indian Constitution: M.V. Paylee
2. An Introduction to Indian Constitution : *D.D. Basu
3. Comparative Governments: C. Kapoor.
4. Ancient Indian Political Theory :P. Verma
5. Modern Indian Political Theory :P. Verma
6. India’s Struggle for Independence: Bipan Chandra.
7. India After Independence (1947-2000) : Bipan Chandra, Mridulla Mukherjee and Aditya Mukherjee.
8. Modern India: Sumit Sarkar

International Politics and India’s Foreign Policy

1. International Politics : *V.N. Khanna
2. International Relations : Palmer and Perkins
3. International Relations : Mahendra Kumar
4. Comparative Politics and International Relations : Prem Chandra and Prakash Arroa.
5. World Politics Since 1945 : Peter Calvocorassi.
6. World Politics in the Twentieth Century : Paul Kennedy
7. Politics among Nations : Hans J. Morgantheau.
8. India’s Foreign Policy Agendra for 21^st Century : Lalit Mansingh
9. India’s Foreign Policy in a Changing World :P. Dutt

Other Important Books

1. Caste and Politics in India : Rajni Kothari
2. Social Movement : Ghaushyam
3. Political Sociology :B. Bottomore
4. NCERT (Class XI and XII)
5. IGNOU material on Political Science.
6. Vajirao & Reddy Institute’s Notes.

Mazagazines and Journals

1. Frontline
2. India Today
3. Mainstream
4. World Focus

Newspaper

1. The Hindu (Editorial, National and International Affairs)
2. Indian Express (Editorial)