Of all the four General Studies papers in the UPSC civil services mains examination, the General Studies paper III is often considered the most diverse paper in terms of the vast coverage of subjects. It incorporates the subjects of economics, internal security, disaster management, science and technology and agriculture.
The topics internal security and disaster management are diverse and also equally marks fetching in both the prelims and the mains exams. These topics are also highly linked with current affairs. Almost every question asked from these areas is related to current events. So, apart from standard textbooks, you should also rely on newspapers and news analyses as well for these sections.
| Subject | Name of the Book | Author/Publications |
| INDIAN ECONOMY | Indian Economic Development | XI Standard NCERT |
| Introductory Macro Economics | XII Standard NCERT (Ignore all diagrams & mathematical formulas) | |
| Newspaper | The Hindu / The Indian Express | |
| ECOLOGY & ENVIRONMENT | Certificate Physical & Human Geography | Goh Cheng Leong |
| Biology (Chapters pertaining to Ecology) | XII Standard NCERT | |
| Chapters on Environment | India Year Book | |
| Newspaper | The Hindu / The Indian Express | |
| SECURITY ISSUES | India’s Security in a Turbulent World | Jasjit Singh, published by National Book Trust of India |
| Newspaper | The Hindu / Indian Express | |
| SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY | Biology | VIII, IX & X Standard Books |
| Newspaper | The Hindu / Indian Express | |
| Science Reporter for Science & Technology’ | Monthly Magazine |