UPSC CIVIL SERVICES MAINS EXAM 2017: Compulsory English Question Paper

The UPSC civil services main exam consists of 9 papers out of which one is the English language paper. This paper is compulsory and is of qualifying nature. The marks obtained in this paper will not be counted for your final ranking.

The main objectives of the English paper are:

To assess a candidate’s ability to read and understand serious descriptive prose.
To assess a candidate’s ability to express his/her ideas correctly and clearly.

DOWNLOAD ENGLISH COMPULSORY PAPER PDF

More Study materials and standard books are available free at our download zone |CLICK HERE

Discover more previous year question papers

GENERAL STUDIES PAPER 1	GENERAL STUDIES PAPER 2
GENERAL STUDIES PAPER 3	GENERAL STUDIES PAPER 4
ESSAY PAPER	COMPULSORY ENGLISH
More Optional will be added soon
ANTHROPOLOGY OPTIONAL	CHEMISTRY OPTIONAL
PSYCHOLOGY OPTIONAL	PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION ( PUBAD)

FEATURES	IASTODAY.in	OTHERS
DAILY ANSWER REVIEW	YES (in 60 minutes for core batch -before 10 PM for all lower courses)	NO ( Not even weekly)
EXPERT SUPPORT	24 hours x 7 days (In MASTER PLUS and above)	NO/ During office hours only
GUARANTEE For Service & fee paid.	Guaranteed till you clear (In LIFETIME membership)	No guarantee at any cost.
Dedicated exclusive static tests	YES(in MASTER PLUS and above)	NO
TEST TYPE	Full length similar to UPSC (In all dedicated courses)	DEPENDS
FULL STATIC SYLLABUS COVERAGE	YES (In all dedicated courses)	DEPENDS
Full Day to Day current affairs coverage	YES with review (All mains courses)	NO
TEST REVIEW & MARKS	YES throughout the course duration (In MASTER PLUS and above)	YES during initial days. NO after few tests
Effective cost for 30 MAINS static tests with review	Rs.10,000 (Master plus - Writing skill development 1 year)	More than Rs.26,000
Flexible schedule	Unlimited. Reschedule based on demands.	No flexibility.
Max delay in Mains Test review	24 hours for core and In 4 working days for lower courses.	Over 15 days
INDIVIDUAL MARKS	YES (In all dedicated courses)	NO
UPDATED NOTES	YES(in all dedicated courses)	NOT UPDATED

IASTODY DEDICATED COURSES IN A GLANCE

Prelims TEST SERIES -PRO 2026- More than just a prelims test series for 2026 aspirants. 2026 PRELIMS in an integrated manner with mains and interview together with daily writing and review. - {CLICK HERE for details}
WRITING SKILL DEVELOPMENT(Daily review) (1 month- 6 months) First of its kind series since 2016 is now available for 1 months to 6 months fixed. This can be used for any target year. Your answer will be reviewed as beginner in first day. Next day feedback will be based on first day performance and so on. You will develop a writing skill development better than aspirants outside IASTODAY by the end of this course- CLICK HERE TO KNOW MORE
DAILY REVIEW (Beginner) - Till mains examination We have Daily review (beginner) course available till Mains. This course have 3 phases ie, Novice and then beginner phase till prelims examination and aggressive mode post prelims exam- You will write 1 answer a day as novice, then 2 till prelims and there after 4 daily.- CLICK HERE TO KNOW MORE
ESSAY TEST SERIES -Dedicated Essay test series for scoring high is now available for next year. Real time exam environment, 24 hours accessibility and more @ a nominal fees-{CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS}
Affordable Integrated Marathon (AIM )-Dedicated All in one low cost series covering prelims test series, mains test series, daily answer review, interview, essay, optional and more in single version at lowest ever possible affordable version. Real time exam environment, 24 hours accessibility and more @ a nominal fees in comparison to features-{CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS}
MASTER PLUS-Dedicated mains @ Rs.50/day effective. Flagship MAINS program with all features including 29 mains tests, Daily answer review in 3-4 hours & value added notes and much more -{CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS}.
PREMIUM - Full coverage @ Rs.55/day effective. Our Flagship prelims to interview with all premium features including daily answer review in 60 minutes, Prelims ,interview and much more -{CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS}.