Anurag Ghuge, AIR-624 CSE-22 Journey, Prelims, Mains, Essay, Interview & More

Hi All,

This is the 23rd Topper Journey & Strategy post from the Batch of 2023. Anurag Ghuge has cleared CSE-22 with AIR-624. This was his 4th Attempt. In all, he appeared in 3 Interviews. This tells that his Prelims & Mains strategy has stood test of time. Here he discusses the same along with his journey.

Introduction

Hi, This is Anurag Ghuge, AIR 624 in CSE 2022. I have done B.Tech. in Civil Engineering from NIT Warangal. I hail from Washim Dist, Maharashtra. I had Public Administration as Optional. And My Preparation had started after graduation in 2018.

You can contact Anurag at his Instagram Profile and his Twitter Handle

Brief Summary of my UPSC Journey

I have given 4 Attempts, 3 Mains and 3 Interviews:

1st Attempt – CSE 2019 – Could not clear Prelims. Fell short by 1.5 Marks. Made Mistakes by over-attempting, and not reading questions thoroughly under pressure.

2nd Attempt CSE 2020 – Cleared Cutoff by ~10 Marks. Wrote First Mains and cleared it. Appeared in Personality Tests, but missed Final List Cutoff by 9 Marks. [Not Recommended]

3rd Attempt CSE 2021 – Wrote Mains and Appeared in Personality Test Again, But fell Short by 29 Marks in Final List. [Not Recommended]

4th Attempt CSE 2022 – AIR 624 in CSE 2022.

Book List for GS (Mains and Prelims)

Arts and Culture – 11th Fine Arts NCERT, Book by Nitin Sighaniya, Watch Relevant Performing arts on Youtube.
Ancient History – RS Sharma, Vajiram Yellow Book, Selective Chapters from A.L.Basham
Medieval History – Vajiram Yellow Book, Added Notes from Different Test Series
Modern History – Spectrum
Geography – 11th and 12th Geography NCERT, Selective readings of G.C. Leong
Economy – Class Notes of Vajiram and Sriram’s Economy book
Indian Society – Vision Society Material, Notes from Mehak Jain Ma’ m, Value Addition from Social Media
Polity – Laxmikant, PYQs, Magna Carta Series on Youtube by Atish Mathur Sir
IR – Mains 365
Security – VisionIAS Material
Disaster Management – VisionIAS Material
Ethics/ GS4 – Selective reading of Lexicon and Book by D.K. Balaji, Lukmaan Case Study Booklet, Topper Copies, Forum Red Book for Ethics

Various successful candidates of UPSC CSE-24 were part of Ethics/Essay Modules & Other Initiatives. Some of them, with their clickable feedback, are AIR-2, 28, 32, 35, 53, 54, 55, 57, 61, 72, 91, 119, 217, 219, 247, 256, 261, 287, 299, 328, 351, 450, 525, 579, 590, 728, 813, 871, 905 etc.

My Paid Modules: Current Affairs 2026 Prelims + Mains, Ethics Classes, Ethics Test Series, Ethics Classes + Ethics Test Series, Essay Classes + Test Series, Ethics + Essay Bundle

Ethics Module 2025-26 Detailed Plan: 281 Pages, 776 Examples, 78 PYQs, 27 Applied Ethics Issues, 18 Answer Templates. Click Here to Download the Detailed Planner

2025 & 2026 Ethics-Essay Modules are with Personalized Ethics-Essay Test Series wherein Paper & Model Answers/Essays are set by Mudit Jain Sir. He will conduct Live Discussion of Paper. These features are available only in the personalized Ethics and Essay test series, details of which are mentioned above.

My Books: Current Affairs Prelims 2025, Decode Ethics 2025 Mains, Decode Essay 2025 Mains & Decode CSAT

My Free Initiatives: Free Guidance, Free Current Affairs PDF, YouTube

Strategy For Prelims – GS

With my Failure in 1st Prelims, I had micro-analysed my every attempt of Question. I had solved multiple Full Length Tests of different institutes.

I arrived at my optimum attempt of 75-80 by plotting on the Accuracy-Attempt graph.
Learning which Questions not to attempt. (If you don’t know, you don’t know)
Focus on the Static Part of Polity, History, Maps and Logical Economy section.
Eliminating Options by using latent knowledge
Learning from Test Series about new information, and dimensions of topic.

In Prelims Exam – My Strategy involved 1. Attempting my Strength i.e. Polity, Economy, Maps etc, 2. Making Less mistakes rather than trying to solve more. Also, Keeping Calm and Being patient in the exam hall and trusting your preparation – This is the core reason why I could clear prelims without much preparation in CSE 2021 and CSE 2022 after negative final results.

For Prelims CSAT – Being an Engineer and experience in CSAT, never did a separate preparation.

Strategy For Mains

Demand of Qn > Content of Answer. Demand should be a priority and content can be improved upon.
Structure of Answer shows Coherence.
Use of Intros, Conclusions, Keywords related to topic, and Subheading using Qn Words.
Paper completion plays a major role in deciding your marks. Balance of Quantity and Quality is needed.
Time Management for 10m and 15m. Try to bridge the gap in consecutive qns.
Writing Speed by practicing, and revising more.
Use of Readymade Diagrams, Maps, Flowcharts, Case Studies will enhance quality.
Refer topper Copies for Understanding Presentation, Dimensions of Qn and Structuring.
Add Value Addition from Test Series in Notes
Prepare Optional in detail and understand demand of Optional as well with PYQs.

Special Inputs for Essay Paper

My Scores have been decent in Essay Paper – 138 (2020), 117 (2021) and 125 (2022).

Refer to topper copies for general idea exploration and flow of essay.
I avoided the PASTEL Approach as it makes the essay mechanical. I try to divide essays in thematic dimensions and then sprinkle examples in each dimension which is relevant.
Use of Quotes (2-3 in one essay), Books and Authors – Refer to Shubham Bhaisare Sir’s Notes
Attention to Presentation with Word and line spacing.
Avoid Repetition of words, and Maintain logical flow in essays.
Conclusion should not be rushed, Balanced and detailed conclusion has brought more marks.
Avoid focussing on Keywords of topic, but relationship between them. (Relevant in Philosophical Essays).
You can always ask me about essay preparation on my Instagram, I regularly post different write-ups and FAQs about Essays.

Interview Stage

Prepare DAF Thoroughly.
Brainstorm most of the possible questions, from Transcripts and Relevant Entry in DAF.
2-3 Newspapers are the best friends in PT Stage.
Smile, Speak to the point and Internalize values which are required and need to be expressed.

General Tips

Prepare the Static part well. It will give an edge in current affairs as well. Also, Will be beneficial in Mains and Interview as well.
Have Belief and Faith in Your Preparation, Materials and Suit your preparation as per your personality.
Stick to Single source [Base] and add the extra content in it.
Timetables should always be made, Prepare in Short Term and Long Term Goals. Keep Buffer time to cover the spillovers.
Compilation of multi-purpose data sets, committees and judgements. One Page Notes for Repeated Themes of GS.

This Exam is a long game and given the nature, failures are always a possibility. There will be times of self-doubt, low confidence and even thoughts of leaving this altogether. Always have trust in your motive, your abilities and your passion. Surround yourselves with positive people who motivate you to work harder. Keep an open mind and adjust as per the changing demand of the UPSC. All the Best!