Hi friends,
Most of my students have had this question “How to read the Hindu ? What notes to make ?”
Yes,’ The Hindu ‘ is the preferred newspaper for IAS aspirants, because most of the questions are triggered from there .
Before you learn how to read the newspaper, here are some points I shall suggest
#1. Always have the syllabus infront of you .
#2. Have the past question papers with you and keep referring to them,to understand how questions are asked .
#3. Understand the issue rather than just reading word by word. After identifying the issue ,take down notes topic wise and not date wise.
#4. Use the following websites, if you need more points .
http://pib.nic.in/newsite/mainpage.aspx
- http://yojana.gov.in/
- http://www.prsindia.org/
- http://www.prsindia.org/theprsblog/
- Websites of various ministries
- Wikipedia.
#5. Do not spend more than 1 hour on the newspaper.Few students end up spending 3-4 hours merely on the newspaper. It does not help.
Let’s take a look at the newspapers and relevant articles for the exam.
1. Any judgement/ruling /remark by Supreme Court/High Court is important. While you note down the judgement ,also understand its relevance in your syllabus.Relate it to Geography /History /Economics/Polity.
2. Identify social issues /challenges facing the society as such .Understand its pros and cons and also note down the recent incidents .You can quote them to substantiate your point .Example -caste riots ,moral policing ,restriction on freedom of speech,etc.
- Objectives of the policy
- Under which ministry /department / it operates.
- Any special feature of the policy.
- Who are the members (If its an organisation .eg.Inter State council)
- Any constitutional provisions related to it .
- you will have to understand the issue relating to the policy/scheme and make notes on pros and cons.
5.Here, the issue is on the powers of AFSPA. A judgement has triggered this debate.
Hope you find the article helpful in reading the newspaper .
Happy reading .
