Indian Society Syllabus for UPSC Mains (GS-1)

In this article, I wanna walk you through the Indian Society Syllabus for UPSC Mains GS – 1.

Indian Society Syllabus

Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India.

Role of Women and Women’s Organization, Population and Associated Issues, Poverty and Developmental issues, Urbanization, their problems and their remedies.

Effects of Globalization on Indian society.

Social Empowerment, Communalism, Regionalism & Secularism.

Indian Society Detailed Syllabus

Salient Features of Indian Society

• Diversity (Types – caste, linguistic, social and religious, race, tribe and ethnicity, culture)
• Challenges posed by Diversity
• Unity
• Pluralism
• Unity in Diversity
• Inequality and Exclusion
• Family System
• Examples of above.

Role of Women and Women’s Organization

• Women’s Organisations – Empowerment through Action
• 19^th Century Social Reform Movements and Early Women’s Organisations – (1) Agrarian Struggles and Revolt, (2) Participation in Freedom Struggle
• Women’s Organisations Post – 1947
• Resurgence of Women’s Movement in the 70s: (1) Emergence of New Organisations, (2) Approaches and Issues
• Contemporary Women’s Issues & Organisation Response
• Women’s Organisations and SHGs
• Challenges faced by Women’s Organisations

Population and Associated Issues

• Basic Demography of India
• Population Trends in India and their Implications
• Causes and Effects of Over Population
• Challenges of Population Explosion
• Changing Age Structure of Indian Population
• Demogarphic Dividend: Boon or Bane for India
• Population Aging in India
• India’s Population Policy & Initiatives

Poverty and Developmental Issues

• Concept of Development and Poverty
• Types of Poverty
• Measurement of Poverty – Poverty Line
• Causes of Poverty
• Poverty as a Social Problem
• Socio-economic Spread of Poverty
• Consequences of Poverty –
  • Inequality
  • Continuation of Vicious Cycle
  • Who are worst affected by poverty?
• Problem of Rising Urban Poverty
• Poverty Alleviation Initiatives
• Policy shift from “Trickle Down” Economics to Inclusive or Pro-poor Development to Reduce Poverty
• Relation between Poverty Reduction and Development: Poverty-Inequality-Development Nexus

Urbanization

• Urbanisation Trends in India and Their Implications – Demographic and Social Dimensions
• Factors Driving Urbanisation
• State of Service Delivery and Challeges posed by Urbanisation
• Problems of Urban Areas
• Social Consequences of Urbanisation
• Impact of Urbanisation in Rural Areas
• Urban Planning and Role of Urban Local Bodies (ULBs)
• Reforms Required and Government Initiatives Taken So Far
• Problems of Slums

Effects of Globalization on Indian Society

• Understanding Globalisation – Its Different Dimensions
• Globalisation & Culture – Homogenisation vs. Glocalisation
• Factors Driving Globalisation
• Globalisation & India
• Impact of Globalisation on India – Socio-cultural, economic, on women, agrarian sector etc.
• Does Globalisation cause Poverty?

Social Empowerment

• Which are the Socially Disadvantaged Groups?
• Dimensions of Social Empowerment
• Government Initiatives to Aide Social Empowerment

Communalism

• Communalism – Its Characteristics
• Communalism in India in the Past
• Communalism in Contemporqary India
• Causes of Communalism
• Consequences of Communalism
• Measures to Control & Eradicate Communalism
• Secularism as an Antidote to Communalism

Regionalism

• Concept of Region & Regionalism
• Different Forms of Regionalism
• Regionalism in India
• Causes of Regionalism
• Concept of ‘Sons of Soil’
• Consequences of Regionalism
• Federalism & Regionalism
• Role of Regional Parties
• Measures to Contain Regionalism
• Regionalism in the International Sphere

Secularism

• Concept of Secularism
• Indian Model of Secularism
• Secularism in India
• Nature & Practice of Secularism in India
• Uniform Civil Code
• Challenges faced by Secularism in India
• Measures to Make India Truly Secular