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This guide provides the UPSC Geography Optional syllabus. Click on "Paper I" or "Paper II" to expand. Every topic and sub-topic line is clickable and will open in a new tab with more details (placeholder).
Syllabus of Geography Paper - I (PRINCIPLES OF GEOGRAPHY)
Physical Geography
Geomorphology
- Factors controlling landform development
- Endogenetic and exogenetic forces
- Origin and evolution of the earth’s crusts
- Fundamentals of geomagnetism
- Physical conditions of the earth’s interior
- Geosynclines
- Continental drift
- Isostasy
- Plate tectonics
- Recent views on mountain building
- Volcanicity
- Earthquakes and Tsunamis
- Concepts of geomorphic cycles and Landscape development
- Denudation chronology
- Channel morphology
- Erosion surfaces
- Slope development
Applied Geomorphology
- Geomorphology, economic geology, and environment
Climatology
- Temperature and pressure belts of the world
- Heat budget of the earth
- Atmospheric circulation
- Atmospheric stability and instability
- Planetary and local winds
- Monsoons and jet streams
- Air masses and fronts
- Temperate and tropical cyclones
- Types and distribution of precipitation
- Weather and Climate
- Koppen’s Thornthwaite’s and Trewartha’s classification of world climate
- Hydrological cycle
- Global climatic change, and role and response of man in climatic changes
- Applied climatology and Urban climate
Oceanography
- Bottom topography of the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans
- Temperature and salinity of the oceans
- Heat and salt budgets
- Ocean deposits
- Waves, currents, and tides
- Marine resources
- Biotic, mineral, and energy resources
- Coral reefs coral bleaching
- Sea-level changes
- Law of the sea and marine pollution
Biogeography
- Genesis of soils
- Classification and distribution of soils
- Soil profile
- Soil erosion, Degradation, and conservation
- Factors influencing world distribution of plants and animals
- Problems of deforestation and conservation measures
- Social forestry, agro-forestry
- Wildlife
- Major gene pool centers
Environmental Geography
- Principle of ecology
- Human ecological adaptations
- Influence of man on ecology and environment
- Global and regional ecological changes and imbalances
- Ecosystem their management and conservation
- Environmental degradation, management, and conservation
- Biodiversity and sustainable development
- Environmental policy
- Environmental hazards and remedial measures
- Environmental education and legislation
Human Geography
Perspectives in Human Geography
- Areal differentiation
- Regional synthesis
- Dichotomy and dualism
- Environmentalism
- Quantitative revolution and locational analysis
- Radical, behavioral, human, and welfare approaches
- Languages, religions, and secularisation
- Cultural regions of the world
- Human development index
Economic Geography
- World economic development: measurement and problems
- World resources and their distribution
- Energy crisis
- The limits to growth
- World agriculture: a typology of agricultural regions
- Agricultural inputs and productivity
- Food and nutrition problems
- Food security
- Famine: causes, effects, and remedies
- World industries: location patterns and problems
- Patterns of world trade
Population and Settlement Geography
- Growth and distribution of world population
- Demographic attributes
- Causes and consequences of migration
- Concepts of the over-under-and optimum population
- Population theories, world population problems and policies
- Social well-being and quality of life
- Population as social capital
- Types and patterns of rural settlements
- Environmental issues in rural settlements
- Hierarchy of urban settlements
- Urban morphology
- Concept of primate city and rank-size rule
- Functional classification of towns
- Sphere of urban influence
- Rural-urban fringe
- Satellite towns
- Problems and remedies of urbanization
- Sustainable development of cities
Regional Planning
- Concept of a region
- Types of regions and methods of regionalization
- Growth centers and growth poles
- Regional imbalances
- Regional development strategies
- Environmental issues in regional planning
- Planning for sustainable development
Models, Theories and Laws in Human Geography
- System analysis in Human geography
- Malthusian, Marxian and demographic transition models
- Central Place theories of Christaller and Losch
- Perroux and Boudeville
- Von Thunen’s model of agricultural location
- Weber’s model of industrial location
- Ostov’s model of stages of growth
- Heartland and Rimland theories
- Laws of international boundaries and frontiers
Syllabus of Geography Paper - II (GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA)
Physical Setting
- Space relationship of India with neighboring countries
- Structure and relief
- Drainage system and watersheds
- Physiographic regions
- Mechanism of Indian monsoons and rainfall patterns
- Tropical cyclones and western disturbances
- Floods and droughts
- Climatic regions
- Natural vegetation
- Soil types and their distributions
Resources
- Land, surface and ground water, energy, minerals, biotic and marine resources
- Forest and wildlife resources and their conservation
- Energy crisis
Agriculture
- Infrastructure: irrigation, seeds, fertilizers, power
- Institutional factors: Land holdings, land tenure and land reforms
- Cropping pattern, agricultural productivity, agricultural intensity, crop combination, land capability
- Agro and social-forestry
- Green revolution and its socio-economic and ecological implications
- Significance of dry farming
- Livestock resources and white revolution
- Aquaculture
- Sericulture, Apiculture and poultry
- Agricultural regionalisation
- Agro-climatic zones
- Agroecological regions
Industry
- Evolution of industries
- Locational factors of cotton, jute, textile, iron and steel, aluminum, fertiliser, paper, chemical and pharmaceutical, automobile, cottage, and ago-based industries
- Industrial houses and complexes including public sector undertakings
- Industrial regionalisation
- New industrial policy
- Multinationals and liberalisation
- Special Economic Zones
- Tourism including ecotourism
Transport, Communication, and Trade
- Road, railway, waterway, airway, and pipeline networks and their complementary roles in regional development
- Growing importance of ports on national and foreign trade
- Trade balance
- Trade Policy
- Export processing zones
- Developments in communication and information technology and their impacts on economy and society
- Indian space programme
Cultural Setting
- Historical Perspective of Indian Society
- Racial linguistic and ethnic diversities
- Religious minorities
- Major tribes, tribal areas, and their problems
- Cultural regions
- Growth, distribution, and density of population
- Demographic attributes: sex-ratio, age structure, literacy rate, work-force, dependency ratio, longevity
- Migration (inter-regional, intraregional and international) and associated problems
- Population problems and policies
- Health indicators
Settlements
- Types, patterns, and morphology of rural settlements
- Urban developments
- Morphology of Indian cities
- Functional classification of Indian cities
- Conurbations and metropolitan regions
- Urban sprawl
- Slums and associated problems
- Town planning
- Problems of urbanisation and remedies
Regional Development and Planning
- Experience of regional planning in India
- Five Year Plans
- Integrated rural development programmes
- Panchayati Raj and decentralised planning
- Command area development
- Watershed management
- Planning for backward area, desert, drought-prone, hill tribal area development
- Multi-level planning
- Regional planning and development of island territories
Political Aspects
- Geographical basis of Indian federalism
- State reorganization
- Emergence of new states
- Regional consciousness and inter-state issues
- International boundary of India and related issues
- Cross-border terrorism
- India’s role in world affairs
- Geopolitics of South Asia and Indian Ocean realm
Contemporary Issues
- Ecological issues: Environmental hazards: landslides, earthquakes, Tsunamis, floods and droughts, epidemics
- Issues related to environmental pollution
- Changes in patterns of land use
- Principles of environmental impact assessment and environmental management
- Population explosion and food security
- Environmental degradation
- Deforestation, desertification, and soil erosion
- Problems of agrarian and industrial unrest
- Regional disparities in economic development
- Concept of sustainable growth and development
- Environmental awareness
- Linkage of rivers
- Globalisation and Indian economy