MPSC Rajyaseva flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Negative marking in prelims

One-third of the marks assigned to a question is deducted for a wrong answer, so a wrong 2-mark question costs about 0.66 marks and an unattempted question costs nothing.

CSAT qualifying threshold

Paper II of the preliminary examination is qualifying at 33%, meaning at least 66 of 200 marks, and its marks are not added to the merit list.

Article 32 versus 226

Article 32 allows the Supreme Court to issue writs only for fundamental rights, while Article 226 allows High Courts to issue writs for fundamental rights and other legal rights.

Basic structure doctrine

The Supreme Court held in Kesavananda Bharati (1973) that Parliament cannot amend the Constitution in a way that destroys its basic structure.

Ten percent law

In a food chain, only about ten percent of the energy at one trophic level is transferred to the next, so top consumers receive a small fraction of producer energy.

Repo rate

The repo rate is the rate at which the Reserve Bank of India lends short-term funds to commercial banks against government securities.

Money Bill definition

A Money Bill under Article 110 deals only with taxation, borrowing, the Consolidated Fund and related matters, and can be introduced only in the Lok Sabha.

Tropic of Cancer states

The Tropic of Cancer passes through eight Indian states, including Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Tripura and Mizoram.

Ramsar Convention

The Ramsar Convention of 1971 is an international treaty for the conservation and wise use of wetlands, and India is a party with several designated sites.

GST Council article

The GST Council is constituted under Article 279A, introduced by the 101st Constitutional Amendment, and is chaired by the Union Finance Minister.

Elimination strategy

In a four-option question with negative marking, attempt only when at least two options can be confidently eliminated, because a blind guess has near-zero expected value.

Main Examination merit total

The Main Examination carries 1750 merit marks across the Essay, four General Studies papers and two optional papers, with language papers qualifying only.

Final merit calculation

Final rank is based on the Main Examination total of 1750 plus the interview score of 275, giving a combined total of 2025 marks.

Language paper threshold

The Marathi and English language papers of the Main Examination are qualifying at 25% each, and their marks are excluded from the merit total.

Ethics case study structure

A GS IV case answer should state the facts, the dilemma, the stakeholders, the options, their evaluation, the chosen action and its justification.

Answer length discipline

In a 250-mark paper with about 20 questions, each answer of roughly 12-13 marks should be about 150-250 words to fit the three-hour limit.

Way-forward paragraph

Most General Studies answers should end with implementable measures rather than a restatement of the problem, since the way forward carries marks.

Optional subject weight

The optional subject contributes 500 marks through two papers of 250 each, and the choice is fixed at the application stage and cannot be changed later.

Essay paper structure

The Essay paper carries 250 marks and is scored on a clear thesis, thematic paragraphs, multi-domain examples and a conclusion that returns to the thesis.

Sub-headings in answers

Numbered sub-headings and bullet points improve readability in descriptive answers and help the examiner locate the required components quickly.

Interview marks weight

The Personality Test carries 275 marks, roughly 13.6% of the combined Main and interview total of 2025 marks used for the final rank.

DAF as interview source

The Detailed Application Form records education, employment, hobbies, service and cadre preferences, and the board draws most interview questions from it.

Interview assessment criteria

The board assesses suitability for public administration through clarity of thought, balance of judgement, social cohesion, leadership and integrity.

Home district questioning

A candidate's home district and state are routinely probed for geography, economy, culture, local governance issues and current administrative problems.

Service preference justification

A candidate should be able to justify the service and cadre preferences stated on the DAF with reasons tied to the role of that service.

Situational ethics question

Interview dilemmas follow the same logic as written case studies: identify the competing values, state the options, choose and justify with law and public interest.

Handling an unknown fact

If a specific fact is not known, admitting it briefly and reasoning from what is known scores better than fabricating a figure or date.

Political neutrality

A civil servant is expected to give advice without public political alignment, and conduct rules restrict political activity and criticism of government policy.

Hobby depth test

Hobby claims on the DAF are probed to depth, including rules, history or recent developments, so shallow claims invite questions the candidate cannot answer.

Board composition

The interview board typically has a chairman and members from varied backgrounds, and questions move from personal background to academic subject, home district and current affairs.

Listening before answering

Answering the question actually asked, after listening to the full sentence, is part of the assessment; answering a different question is a common error.

Resilience question

When asked what would happen if not selected, the expected tone is resilience and continued public-oriented work rather than despair or overconfidence.