PSIR Optional Question Paper 2021

The PSIR Optional Question Paper 2021 for the UPSC Civil Services Mains examination is reproduced below in full: Political Science and International Relations Paper-I and Paper-II, Section A and Section B, with the marks for every question as UPSC printed them. Each question links to its solved model answer, and after the papers you will find a syllabus-wise mapping of the 2021 questions, the thinkers who were tested and what the paper signals for your preparation. For every other year and the full topic-wise list, see PSIR Optional question papers (year-wise and topic-wise).

Want the answers too? All 56 questions of the 2021 paper are solved in LotusArise PSIR Optional PYQ Solutions — tap Model answer next to any question below to open it.

PSIR Optional Question Paper-I (2021)

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Time allowed: three hours · Maximum marks: 250 · Eight questions in two sections; Question 1 and Question 5 are compulsory, and three more are to be attempted with at least one from each section.

Section ‘A’: Political Theory and Indian Politics

1. Comment on the following in about 150 words each: 10×5=50
   (a) Feminist critique of the State 10 · Model answer
   (b) Affirmative action 10 · Model answer
   (c) Equality of outcome as a political idea 10 · Model answer
   (d) Tools of legitimation of the State 10 · Model answer
   (e) J. S. Mill’s ideas on women suffrage 10 · Model answer
2. (a) How has Rawls enriched the idea of justice in liberalism? 20 · Model answer
   (b) Examine the importance of behavioural approach in political theory. What led to its decline? 15 · Model answer
   (c) Can there be universal conception of human rights? Give your arguments. 15 · Model answer
3. (a) Explain the Aristotelian view of politics. To what extent do you think it has contributed to the development of modern-day constitutional democracies? 20 · Model answer
   (b) “When a nation becomes devoid of arts and learning, it invites poverty.” (Sir Syed Ahmad Khan). In the light of this statement, assess the role of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan as a reformer in modern India. 15 · Model answer
   (c) “Political ideology is primarily concerned with the allocation and utilization of power.” Comment. 15 · Model answer
4. (a) Do you think that the Buddhist traditions have lent greater ethical foundation to the ancient Indian political thought? Give your arguments. 20 · Model answer
   (b) Marx’s concept of ‘alienation’ is an essential part of the reality in capitalism. Explain. 15 · Model answer
   (c) “Free and fair deliberation is key to the foundation of democracy.” Explain. 15 · Model answer

Section ‘B’: Indian Government and Politics

5. Answer the following in about 150 words each: 10×5=50
   (a) “The Constitution of India is a product of a historical process, rich with constitutional antecedents.” Comment. 10 · Model answer
   (b) “The Constitution makers faced the great task of forging a common national identity in the face of unparalleled social and cultural diversity in India.” Comment. 10 · Model answer
   (c) Mention the founding principles that define India’s Constitution. 10 · Model answer
   (d) Analyze the Marxist perspective of the nature of Indian National Movement. 10 · Model answer
   (e) Underline the significance of the first constitutional amendment. 10 · Model answer
6. (a) “Constitutionally reconciling the Fundamental Rights with the Directive Principles of State Policy has led to frequent amendments of the Constitution and judicial interventions.” Comment. 20 · Model answer
   (b) The role of the President of India becomes more significant during a minority government and a coalition government. Explain. 15 · Model answer
   (c) Do you think that despite having significant limitations the Panchayati Raj Institutions have strengthened the process of democratic decentralization? Give your views. 15 · Model answer
7. (a) “The Indian party system is shaped by a complex interaction of the country’s federal structure, electoral system and social cleavages.” Explain. 20 · Model answer
   (b) Do you think that there has been a gradual shift in the basis on which the demands for the creation of new States have been raised in different regions of India? Explain. 15 · Model answer
   (c) What explains India’s modest improvements in social development outcomes even as the rate of growth has accelerated since the initiation of economic reforms? 15 · Model answer
8. (a) “The success of electoral democracy can partly be attributed to the status and role of the Election Commission of India.” Explain. 20 · Model answer
   (b) Examine the evolution of the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of India as a constitutional court. 15 · Model answer
   (c) Explain how caste as a social category is also becoming a political category in the democratic politics of India. 15 · Model answer

PSIR Optional Question Paper-II (2021)

Time allowed: three hours · Maximum marks: 250 · Eight questions in two sections; Question 1 and Question 5 are compulsory, and three more are to be attempted with at least one from each section.

Section ‘A’: Comparative Politics and International Relations

1. Answer the following in about 150 words each: 10×5=50
   (a) Discuss the political economy approach to the comparative analysis of politics. 10 · Model answer
   (b) “Political parties and pressure groups are sine qua non of democracy.” Comment. 10 · Model answer
   (c) “Marxist approach to the study of international relations has lost its relevance in the post-cold war era.” Comment. 10 · Model answer
   (d) What measures have been undertaken by the United Nations for its reforms? 10 · Model answer
   (e) Discuss the five proposals made by India in the recent COP-26 conference held in Glasgow. 10 · Model answer
2. (a) “The post-colonial state was thought of an entity that stood outside and above society as an autonomous agency.” Explain. 20 · Model answer
   (b) Discuss the emergence of neo-realism and its basic tenets. 15 · Model answer
   (c) What is ‘complex interdependence’? Discuss the role of transnational actors in the international system. 15 · Model answer
3. (a) Explain the impact of electoral systems and cleavages in shaping party systems with reference to developing countries. 20 · Model answer
   (b) What is globalisation? Why is there an intense debate about globalisation and its consequences? 15 · Model answer
   (c) Critically examine the decline of the United States of America as a hegemon and its implications for the changing international political order. 15 · Model answer
4. (a) The modernization thesis asserts that affluence breeds stable democracy. How do you explain the success of India being the world’s largest democracy as an exceptional case? 20 · Model answer
   (b) Explain the success of ASEAN as a regional organisation. 15 · Model answer
   (c) Explain India’s relations with the European Union in the context of Brexit. 15 · Model answer

Section ‘B’: India and the World

5. Answer the following in about 150 words each: 10×5=50
   (a) Discuss the strategic implications of India’s ‘Look East Policy’ transforming into ‘Act East Policy’. 10 · Model answer
   (b) Explain the philosophical foundations of India’s foreign policy. 10 · Model answer
   (c) Explain India’s position on the waiver of intellectual property rights on COVID-19 vaccines in WTO. 10 · Model answer
   (d) Write about the growing significance of QUAD. 10 · Model answer
   (e) How does the recent takeover of Afghanistan by Taliban impact India’s strategic interests? 10 · Model answer
6. (a) “Non-alignment was little more than a rational strategy on the part of a materially weak India to maximise its interests with a bipolar distribution of global power.” Comment. 20 · Model answer
   (b) Examine the Geo-strategic points of contention in the bilateral relationship between India and China. 15 · Model answer
   (c) Write a brief analysis of the ethnic conflicts and cross-border migrations along India-Myanmar and India-Bangladesh borders. 15 · Model answer
7. (a) Why South Asia is considered as the world’s politically and economically least integrated region? Explain. 20 · Model answer
   (b) How do the constituent states influence the foreign policy making process in India? 15 · Model answer
   (c) Examine the evolution of India’s role in the global nuclear order. 15 · Model answer
8. (a) ‘Relations between India and Russia are rooted in history, mutual trust and mutually beneficial cooperation.’ Discuss. 20 · Model answer
   (b) Discuss the ‘Sustainable Development Goals’ as set by the United Nations. 15 · Model answer
   (c) Identify the drivers of India’s new interest in Africa. 15 · Model answer

PSIR Optional 2021 Paper Analysis

Paper-I: syllabus-wise mapping

What stood out in Paper-I

• Western thinkers carried Section A. Rawls on justice in liberalism 2(a), Aristotle’s view of politics and its legacy for constitutional democracy 3(a), Marx’s alienation 4(b) and Mill on women’s suffrage 1(e) together accounted for 65 of Section A’s 200 marks.
• Indian thought came through two less-rehearsed doors. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan was asked through his own quotation on arts and learning 3(b), and 4(a) asked whether Buddhist traditions gave ancient Indian political thought a stronger ethical base, a question that invites comparison with Kautilya and the Brahmanical tradition.
• The short notes tested concepts, not definitions. Feminist critique of the State, affirmative action, equality of outcome and tools of legitimation in Q1 each demand a position and a critique within 150 words.
• Constitution-making dominated Section B. Historical antecedents 5(a), forging a national identity amid diversity 5(b), founding principles 5(c) and the First Amendment 5(e), followed by the Fundamental Rights–Directive Principles conflict in 6(a), made this the most heavily represented block of the paper.
• Institutions were tested through political context. The President in minority and coalition governments 6(b), the Election Commission’s contribution to electoral democracy 8(a), the Supreme Court’s evolving jurisdiction 8(b) and caste turning into a political category 8(c) all reward answers built on concrete episodes and judgments.

Paper-II: syllabus-wise mapping

What stood out in Paper-II

• Comparative politics was asked through classic theses. The political economy approach 1(a), the post-colonial state as an autonomous agency 2(a), electoral systems and cleavages in developing countries 3(a) and the modernization thesis applied to Indian democracy 4(a) all need the standard theoretical literature behind them.
• IR theory took three slots in Section A. The relevance of Marxist IR after the Cold War 1(c), neo-realism’s emergence and tenets 2(b), and complex interdependence with transnational actors 2(c) covered the realist, liberal and critical traditions.
• Events of 2021 drove much of the paper. In Section B, the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan 5(e), India’s stand on the WTO waiver for COVID-19 vaccines 5(c), and QUAD 5(d) were tied to that year’s news, as were India’s five COP-26 proposals in Section A 1(e).
• The neighbourhood got a full long question. South Asia as the least integrated region 7(a), India–China geo-strategic flashpoints 6(b) and ethnic conflict and migration on the Myanmar and Bangladesh borders 6(c) pushed the paper towards the eastern and northern frontiers.
• Foreign-policy process and principle were also tested. The role of constituent states in foreign policy making 7(b), the philosophical foundations of India’s foreign policy 5(b) and a realist reading of non-alignment 6(a) asked candidates to argue rather than narrate.

Each question is counted once, under the syllabus unit its model answer is filed in. The marks show how much of the 400 marks set in each paper came from a unit; a candidate attempts five questions worth 250.

Thinkers and scholars in the PSIR 2021 paper

Solved Answers to the PSIR 2021 Paper

Preparing the syllabus from scratch? Start with the PSIR Optional hub for notes, the official PSIR syllabus and unit-wise PYQs.

PSIR Optional question papers: other years

• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2026
• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2025
• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2024
• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2023
• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2022
• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2020
• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2019
• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2018
• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2017
• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2016
• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2015
• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2014
• PSIR Optional Question Paper 2013

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