UPSC Mains Public Administration Syllabus

Published on by N Kumar
Public Administration Syllabus for UPSC :
Paper 1
 Administrative Theory
A. Introduction
  1. Meaning, scope and significance of Public Administration;
  2. Wilson’s vision of Public Administration;
  3. Evolution of the discipline and its present status;
  4. New Public Administration;
  5. Public Choice approach;
  6. Challenges of liberalization,
  7. Privatisation, Globalisation;
  8. Good Governance: concept and application;
  9. New Public Management.
B. Administrative Thought
  1. Scientific Management and Scientific Management movement;
  2. Classical Theory;
  3. Weber’s bureaucratic model – its critique and post-Weberian Developments;
  4. Dynamic Administration (Mary Parker Follett);
  5. Human Relations School (Elton Mayo and others);
  6. Functions of the Executive (C.I. Barnard);
  7. Simon’s decision-making theory;
  8. Participative Management (R. Likert, C. Argyris, D. McGregor).
C. Administrative Behaviour
  1. Process and techniques of decision-making;
  2. Communication;
  3. Morale;
  4. Motivation Theories – content, process and contemporary;
  5. Theories of Leadership: Traditional and Modern.
D. Organisations
  1. Theories – systems, contingency;
  2. Structure and forms: Ministries and Departments, Corporations, Companies, Boards and Commissions;
  3. Ad hoc and advisory bodies;
  4. Headquarters and Field relationships;
  5. Regulatory Authorities;
  6. Public – Private Partnerships.
E. Accountability and control
  1. Concepts of accountability and control;
  2. Legislative, Executive and Judicial control over administration;
  3. Citizen and Administration;
  4. Role of media, interest groups, voluntary organizations;
  5. Civil society;
  6. Citizen’s Charters;
  7. Right to Information;
  8. Social audit.
F. Administrative Law
  1. Meaning, scope and significance;
  2. Dicey on Administrative law;
  3. Delegated legislation;
  4. Administrative Tribunals.
G. Comparative Public Administration
  1. Historical and sociological factors affecting administrative systems;
  2. Administration and politics in different countries;
  3. Current status of Comparative Public Administration;
  4. Ecology and administration;
  5. Riggsian models and their critique.
H. Development Dynamics
  1. Concept of development;
  2. Changing profile of development administration;
  3. ‘Antidevelopment thesis’;
  4. Bureaucracy and development;
  5. Strong state versus the market debate;
  6. Impact of liberalisation on administration in developing countries;
  7. Women and development – the self-help group movement.
I. Personnel Administration
  1. Importance of human resource development;
  2. Recruitment, training, career advancement, position classification, discipline, performance appraisal, promotion, pay and service conditions;
  3. employer-employee relations,
  4. grievance redressal mechanism;
  5. Code of conduct;
  6. Administrative ethics.
J. Public Policy
  1. Models of policy-making and their critique;
  2. Processes of conceptualisation, planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation and review and their limitations;
  3. State theories and public policy formulation.
K. Techniques of Administrative Improvement
  1. Organisation and methods,
  2. Work study and work management;
  3. e-governance and information technology;
  4. Management aid tools like network analysis, MIS, PERT, CPM.
L. Financial Administration
  1. Monetary and fiscal policies;
  2. Public borrowings and public debt Budgets – types and forms;
  3. Budgetary process;
  4. Financial accountability;
  5. Accounts and audit.
Public Administration Syllabus for UPSC :
Paper 2
 Indian Administration
A. Evolution of Indian Administration
  1. Kautilya’s Arthashastra;
  2. Mughal administration; Legacy of British rule in politics and administration – Indianization of public services, revenue administration, district administration, local self-government.
B. Philosophical and Constitutional framework of government
  1. Salient features and value premises;
  2. Constitutionalism;
  3. Political culture;
  4. Bureaucracy and democracy;
  5. Bureaucracy and development.
C. Public Sector Undertakings
  1. Public sector in modern India;
  2. Forms of Public Sector Undertakings;
  3. Problems of autonomy, accountability and control;
  4. Impact of liberalization and privatization.
D. Union Government and Administration
  1. Executive, Parliament, Judiciary – structure, functions, work processes;
  2. Recent trends;
  3. Intragovernmental relations;
  4. Cabinet Secretariat;
  5. Prime Minister’s Office;
  6. Central Secretariat;
  7. Ministries and Departments;
  8. Boards; Commissions;
  9. Attached offices;
  10. Field organizations.
E. Plans and Priorities
  1. Machinery of planning;
  2. Role, composition and functions of the Planning Commission and the National Development Council;
  3. ‘Indicative’ planning;
  4. Process of plan formulation at Union and State levels;
  5. Constitutional Amendments (1992) and decentralized planning for economic development and social justice.
F. State Government and Administration
  1. Union-State administrative, legislative and financial relations;
  2. Role of the Finance Commission;
  3. Governor; Chief Minister;
  4. Council of Ministers;
  5. Chief Secretary;
  6. State Secretariat;
  7. Directorates.
G. District Administration since Independence
  1. Changing role of the Collector;
  2. Unionstate- local relations;
  3. Imperatives of development management and law and order administration;
  4. District administration and democratic decentralization.
H. Civil Services
  1. Constitutional position;
  2. Structure, recruitment, training and capacity-building;
  3. Good governance initiatives;
  4. Code of conduct and discipline;
  5. Staff associations;
  6. Political rights;
  7. Grievance redressal mechanism;
  8. Civil service neutrality;
  9. Civil service activism.
I. Financial Management
  1. Budget as a political instrument;
  2. Parliamentary control of public expenditure;
  3. Role of finance ministry in monetary and fiscal area;
  4. Accounting techniques;
  5. Audit;
  6. Role of Controller General of Accounts and Comptroller and Auditor General of India
J. Administrative Reforms since Independence
  1. Major concerns;
  2. Important Committees and Commissions;
  3. Reforms in financial management and human resource development;
  4. Problems of implementation.
K. Rural Development
  1. Institutions and agencies since independence;
  2. Rural development programmes: foci and strategies;
  3. Decentralization and Panchayati Raj;
  4. 73rd Constitutional amendment.
L. Urban Local Government
  1. Municipal governance: main features, structures, finance and problem areas;
  2. 74th Constitutional Amendment;
  3. Global-local debate;
  4. New localism;
  5. Development dynamics, politics and administration with special reference to city management.
M. Law and Order Administration
  1. British legacy;
  2. National Police Commission;
  3. Investigative agencies;
  4. Role of central and state agencies including paramilitary forces in maintenance of law and order and countering insurgency and terrorism;
  5. Criminalisation of politics and administration;
  6. Police- public relations;
  7. Reforms in Police.
N. Significant issues in Indian Administration
  1. Values in public service;
  2. Regulatory Commissions;
  3. National Human Rights Commission;
  4. Problems of administration in coalition regimes;
  5. Citizen-administration interface;
  6. Corruption and administration;
  7. Disaster management.

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