Q. 1. I Want to appear in IAS (ICS Exam). How Should I prepare for it to get through? 

Ans. There is no standard yardstick to be followed. It all depends on your capacity and capability, irrespective of your performance/score in basic/higher degree exam. To get through the ICSE, however, two basic qualities must be there.

First, you should be mentally fully prepared to bear the strain of this one-year-long exam; and second, you should have (or develop) a sound expression (written as well as verbal) in the medium (language) you want to appear with. Once you have obtained these two qualifications, other issues regarding preparation for the exam can be handled better and easily.

Q. 2. With simple graduation (BA)/post-graduation (MA) as my background what should be my strategy for Prelims?

Ans. It may sound absurd but the best way to prepare for Prelims is to prepare for Mains first. Generally, for Prelims, the questions asked can be grouped into two broad categories : factual & conceptual. Conceptual questions can be handled more effectively only if Mains is prepared first. Besides, objective facts can be related and remembered easily only when a sound conceptual base is pre-existing. 

Q. 3. What optionals should be more suitable optionals for me?

Ans. It is a highly sensitive issue, and the most crucial too, because choice of optionals goes a long way in deciding your prospects. However, the answer to your question can not be as straight-forward. It you have command on language, you can achieve your goal by keeping any optional. My suggestion, however, would be as follows: If you are a post-graduate in any discipline, that should be your first and obvious choice; the same would be true if you have done honours in a social science. Selection of first optional for IIT/Medical graduates too has become difficult. The puzzle, therefore relates to graduates in arts and literature who do feel confused. 

These days, at Mains level, some literature subjects, Anthro, Geography and Public Administration have been doing very well. Of these, the first two are only second optionals, and hence, your choice could fall on either Geography or Public Admn. However, History and Sociology have been counted as safe subjects for Mains. So, if you intend to take Anthropology and any literature for Mains, rely either on Sociology (most of which is covered in the Anthro syllabus and hence you get rid of the agony of reading a third subject) or History (that covers quite a significant part of GS).

The Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) is a research and training institute on public policy and public administration in India. Operated by India's federal Union Government, LBSNAA is located in the remote town of Mussoorie, Uttarakhand in the foothills of the Himalayas.

The academy's main purpose is to train civil service officers of the Indian Administrative Service, Indian Police Service, Indian Foreign Service, Indian Forest Service, Indian Revenue Service, Indian Audits and Accounts Service, Indian Railway Traffic Service, and other government agencies undergo training at LBSNAA.

History :

LBSNAA was established in the Charleville Hotel, acquired by the Indian government in 1959. The Happy Valley Club area was also soon acquired to house the sports complex for the institution. The academy was initially named the National Academy of Administration. The academy was renamed in honor of Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri shortly after his death.

" The first director of the academy was A.N. Jha "

Overview :

In India, most officers of the premier civil services of the country are selected through competitive civil service exams administered by the Union Public Service Commission. Applicants who are accepted attend LBSNAA for a four-month Foundation Course.

After this, officers of the Indian Administrative Service continue their professional training at the academy, while officers of other services proceed to other training institutions, such as the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy inHyderabad for Indian Police Service officers, National Academy of Audit & Accounts in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh for Indian Audit & Accounts Service officers (IAAS), the National Academy of Customs, Excise and Narcotics (NACEN) inFaridabad for Indian Revenue Service (IRS), the National Academy of Direct Taxes at Nagpur for Indian Revenue Service officers (Income Tax), the Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy in Dehradun for Indian Forest Service officers, and theForeign Service Institute India in New Delhi for Indian Foreign Service officers, Indian Institute of Foreign Trade for Indian Trade Service Officers.

The academy also began conducting Mid Career Training Programmes for officers of the Indian Administrative Service in 2007. Officers with about 15 years' service and due to become Joint Secretaries undergo the Phase IV Mid Career Training Programme, while officers with about eight years' service undergo the Phase III Mid Career Training Programme. The academy also conducts a number of short-duration training programmes in various aspects of governance and public administration.

The academy is assisted in research in areas of governance and public administration by a number of research centres, some of them having an autonomous status. The most important research centre of the academy is the National Institute of Administrative Research headed by an Executive Director. The academy also has the Centre for Disaster Management, the Centre for Rural Studies, the Gender Centre and the Centre for Rural Credit.