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UPPSC RO/ARO study materials
UPPSC RO/ARO study resources

UPPSC RO/ARO: General Studies: Polity, UP-Specific Facts and Constitutional Precision

UPPSC RO/ARO · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.

All guide sections

General Studies: Polity, UP-Specific Facts and Constitutional Precision

What this section tests

The General Studies paper of RO/ARO is a speed-and-accuracy paper: Indian polity and the Constitution, modern Indian history and the national movement, Indian and world geography, UP-specific history/geography/culture, economy, general science, and current affairs of the preceding year. Questions are short and factual, so exact names, articles, years and districts decide the score - not long explanations.

Core areas to lock down

  • Constitution-making: Constituent Assembly first met on 9 December 1946; the Objectives Resolution was moved by Nehru on 13 December 1946; the Constitution was adopted 26 November 1949 and came into force 26 January 1950.
  • Rights and duties: Fundamental Rights occupy Part III, Articles 12–35. Fundamental Duties sit in Part IVA, Article 51A - ten duties added by the 42nd Amendment (1976) on the Swaran Singh Committee's recommendation, with the eleventh (a parent's duty to educate a child aged 6–14) added by the 86th Amendment, 2002.
  • Amendment: Article 368; ordinary bills need a simple majority, constitutional amendments a special majority, and federal provisions also require ratification by half the states.
  • Uttar Pradesh: 75 districts, 403 Vidhan Sabha and 100 Vidhan Parishad seats, and a High Court at Prayagraj that began as the Agra High Court in 1866. UP shares boundaries with eight states plus Nepal.

Worked example

Question: By which amendment and on whose recommendation were Fundamental Duties inserted? Reasoning: Part IVA was not in the original Constitution; the 42nd Amendment (1976), following the Swaran Singh Committee, created Article 51A with ten duties. The 86th Amendment (2002) later added duty number eleven. Answer: 42nd Amendment, Swaran Singh Committee.

Traps that cost marks

42nd vs 44th Amendment; Article 51 (Directive Principle on international peace) vs 51A (Fundamental Duties); 86th (education) vs 93rd (reservation) Amendment; the Objectives Resolution date vs the first sitting date.