Paper II

Reading Material 

There is no one specific source or reading material that I studied for this paper. 

I referred to the notes of previous years' Economics Optional toppers. Additionally, I used the internet extensively. For a paper as dynamic as this, it is best to collect information, facts, and data points from different sources to make your answers interesting and unique. Feel free to sprinkle in the details you come across in newspaper articles, the Budget, and the Economic Survey to give your answer an edge.

Approach

• I kept the PYQs in mind while creating notes for this paper.

• The basic/static portion of the syllabus remains the same every year. First, I tried to master this part as it is relatively easier, more predictable and has a lower cost-benefit ratio.

• However, some new elements may feature. For instance, in the CSE 2023 Exam, there was a question on the New Foreign Trade Policy 2023. I prepared for such questions after I had completed the static portion.

• A word of caution - one must definitely be familiar with the latest Economic Survey and Budget. However, these documents are quite lengthy, and spending disproportionate amounts of time on them does not yield commensurate returns. Personal interest aside, and strictly from the perspective of clearing the exam, they should be approached with answer-writing in mind.

  I tried to develop a broad understanding of what the Economic Survey and Budget had to say about important syllabus areas such as agriculture, inflation, growth, employment, etc., while also noting down 2-3 concrete points for each topic (such as useful statistics, committee recommendations, examples, or quotes) that could enrich answers. I did not read endlessly about any single topic, since in the real exam it would at most be asked in the form of a 20-mark question.

• My notes for this Paper were ready prior to the Prelims. I went through the notes and fine-tuned them multiple times once prelims ended. However, I started learning the exact facts, figures, and viewpoints of different Economists only around 1.5 months before the mains exams were set to begin. Revising details repeatedly in the last few weeks leading up to the Exam allowed me to remember them quickly in the exam hall.

Notes

Syllabus		Notes
	Indian Economy in Pre-Independence Era - Land System and its changes, Commercialization of agriculture, Drain theory, Laissez faire theory and critique. Manufacture and Transport: Jute, Cotton, Railways, Money and Credit.	Link
A.1	Contribution of Vakil, Gadgil and V.K.R.V. Rao.	Link
A.2	Agriculture: Land Reforms and land tenure system, Green Revolution and capital formation in agriculture	Link
A.3	Industry Trends in composition and growth, Role of public and private sector, Small scale and cottage industries.	Link
A.4  A.5	National and Per capita income: patterns, trends, aggregate and Sectoral composition and changes therein • Broad factors determining National Income and distribution	Link
A.5 B.8	Measures of poverty, Trends in poverty Employment and Poverty • Poverty alleviation schemes	Link
A.5	Inequality	Link
B.1	Agriculture and WTO, Food processing, subsidies, Agricultural prices and public distribution system, Impact of public expenditure on agricultural growth	Link PDS and NFSA
B.2	Strategy of industrialization, Privatization, Disinvestments, Role of foreign direct investment and multinationals	Strategy of Industrialization Privatization, Disinvestments FDI, MNCs
B.3	Intellectual property rights : Implications of TRIPS, TRIMS, GATS and new EXIM policy	Link
B.4	Partial and full convertibility, Capital account convertibility.	Link
B.5	Fiscal Responsibility Act, Twelfth Finance Commission and Fiscal Federalism and Fiscal Consolidation	Link FRBM GST
B.6	New Economic Policy and Monetary system. Role of RBI under the new regime*	Link
B.7	From central Planning to indicative planning, Relation between planning and markets for growth and decentralized planning: 73rd and 74th Constitutional amendments#	Link
B.8	Employment and Poverty • Employment Generation • New Rural, Employment Guarantee Scheme • Rural Wages	Link MG-NREGA

* Role of RBI in new regime overlaps with some parts of Money-Banking and Finance from Economics Optional - Paper I

#  Details of the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment Acts are included in the syllabus of Polity (GS - Paper II)