How to Use Newspapers for UPSC Preparation

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Newspaper for UPSC


How to use newspapers for UPSC preparation is one of the most asked questions by IAS aspirants.  If you have any doubt related to newspaper reading for UPSC preparation then today’s article will have all the answers to your questions.

Many IAS aspirants consider newspaper reading and taking notes from it on a daily basis cumbersome. But reading newspaper is a must for IAS and other competitive exam aspirants to ace in current affairs and general knowledge.

In today’s article, we will tell you how to read the newspaper for UPSC preparation in less time. A newspaper generally contains information about all the current and general issues. So it’s important to develop newspaper reading habit to stay up to date on the current affairs.

Before going further on how to use newspaper to prepare for UPSC let’s understand why newspaper reading is important for UPSC aspirants after that we will focus on how to use them for preparation.

Importance of Newspaper Reading for UPSC

In UPSC and other government exams, questions are asked from current affairs and newspaper can serve you the daily dose of current affairs.  Apart from the newspaper, there are other sources also available for current affairs like Pratiyogita Darpan and other books.

Here you need to keep in mind that these other books can be the supplement as they are monthly or weekly books and cannot justice with all the news as they need to stick to page limit as well. So the newspaper can be considered as an indispensable tool for UPSC Preparation. To prepare for UPSC exam, The Hindu and Indian Express both are the best newspapers. For Mains exam for Hindi, it is advised to read Hindi newspapers like Amar Ujala or Dainik Jagran. Here UPSC aspirants need to make sure to read only one newspaper for the UPSC preparations.

Now when you know how newspapers and competition books are different and they cannot be replaced by each other.  Let’s understand now, how to use newspapers for UPSC preparation.

Newspapers for UPSC Preparation

A newspaper has a huge content for its readers so it becomes tough for the UPSC Aspirants to decide on what to read and what to leave because every single news they leave seems important.  Newspaper or e-newspaper both are good sources of knowledge. Before grabbing the knowledge from the newspaper, one must know what to read and what to ignore. 

What to Read and What to Ignore in a Newspaper?

When you read a newspaper, focus on the news, not the political issue. You can avoid the news on sports and entertainment when you prepare for UPSC.  Before reading any newspaper, keep the syllabus in mind and don’t go out of syllabus even while reading a newspaper.

Do not waste much time on the front page of the newspaper but keep an eye on the news related to parliament work or any new verdict by Supreme Court.  Ignore the following types of news to save time; Local news, local political news, film reviews, celebrity interviews etc. and trivial facts like sports titles, awards, personalities in the news etc.

Sorting the News

Sorting the news is the next and most complex step of making the notes from newspapers.  You can sort your note in two ways; Date wise or Topic wise. You can pick any of the ways but topic wise notes sorting is better than the date wise sorting. A topic wise collection of news will allow you for quick revision on the day before the exam and better recollection of facts in the mains exam.

After sorting out the news its important to make notes in your language. This will help you in the revision time.

 Important Topics

Making notes from a newspaper is a tedious task and you cannot do it without full alertness. To make notes from newspaper your Primary focus should be on editorials, defense news, economy, constitutional amendments, Environment, Government bills and schemes, International affairs, social issues, court rulings, etc.

Do note down social issues as well. In 2011 a question related to Khaap Panchayat was asked in UPSC exam, so these issues are also important. Articles on the economy, newly launched schemes for the welfare of Indians are important.

Instead of reading the complete newspaper, try to find out keywords related to your syllabus. News related to Aadhar will come in GS, news related to the new scheme or bank will come under the economy. You will have to look for the keywords in the newspaper and then read the complete news.

Read newspaper daily and note down the notes on a daily basis. If you will skip a single day, then you will create more pressure on you in the next day.

Make the notes from the newspaper after reading the complete article. First, you will have to understand the article then only you will be able to understand what is said by the writer and what are the other issues related to the one, mentioned in the article.

Summing Up

As a UPSC student, you cannot ignore the importance of newspaper reading. Reading newspaper keeps you updated about all the national and international news. When you prepare for a competitive exam like UPSC then you will stay updated with all the national and international happenings.

Here is the conclusion of this article. Read only one newspaper daily. If you want to know about the different view on a topic then you can read only the editorial part of a different newspaper. Spend only 2-3 hours in reading the newspaper and make notes from it. I believe that with this article many of you have got the answer to this question. If still, you have any question related to newspaper reading then drop it in the comment box below. We will answer it.  

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