UPSC CSE 1-Year Self-Study Plan (Free Resources)

Phase 1 (Month 1–3): Foundations

• NCERT 6–12 (History, Geography, Polity, Economy)
• Daily newspaper (The Hindu / Indian Express)

Phase 2 (Month 4–8): Advanced

• Standard books: Laxmikanth (Polity), Spectrum (Modern), Ramesh Singh (Economy)
• Monthly current-affairs compilation (Vision IAS PT365 free PDF)

Phase 3 (Month 9–11): Tests

• 1 sectional test/day
• 2 full-length mocks/week

Phase 4 (Month 12): Revision

• 4 revisions of Polity + History before Prelims