The complete PSIR optional notes for UPSC — Political Science and International Relations — as one free PDF book. 58 chapters, 420 pages, covering Paper I and Paper II in full, written by Rahul Puri, Founder Faculty for PSIR at Anantam IAS.
These are not a summary of standard textbooks. Every chapter opens with the dispute it is about, works through the positions in order, and closes with what actually loses marks on that topic. Where the literature disagrees, the disagreement is set out rather than resolved for you, because that is what the paper rewards.
What is inside
- The UPSC syllabus line, verbatim, at the head of every chapter.
- “In one page” — the night-before skim, placed first.
- Thinker cards giving the core claim, the standard critique and the exam hook.
- Comparison tables and diagrams, which is where PSIR marks are actually won.
- Debate boxes: the two sides, and the examiner's line.
- Verified previous-year questions with year, paper and marks. None invented, none paraphrased.
- One answer skeleton per chapter — a structure, deliberately not a model answer.
- Last-mile revision and where answers lose marks in every chapter.
The eight parts
- Paper I, Section A — Political Theory (9 chapters), Western Political Thought (5), Indian Political Thought (4).
- Paper I, Section B — Indian Government and Politics (16).
- Paper II, Section A — Comparative Politics (4), International Relations (7).
- Paper II, Section B — India and the World (8), South Asia and the Contemporary World Order (5).
Completely free — no sign-up fee, no watermark. Add it to your cart and download the PDF instantly. Every chapter is also published as a separate article under PSIR Optional.
Edited and typeset by Gaurav Tiwari. Set in Tiempos Text and Geist.
