The Union Public Service Commission ( UPSC ) last week concluded the Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2026. This year, 5.49 lakh candidates appeared for CSE Prelims, taking the General Studies (GS) Paper 1 and CSAT (Paper 2) across centres nationwide.

Initial reactions from candidates and coaching institutes suggest that this year’s GS Paper 1 was significantly more challenging than previous years. Many students, as well as UPSC educators have described the papers as lengthy, analytical and unpredictable. Experts also noted a visible shift towards conceptual and statement-based questions, making elimination techniques and deeper understanding crucial for attempting the paper effectively.

Read Paper Analysis | ‘Unpredictable’ UPSC returns with unconventional, very difficult GS paper

Historically, higher difficulty levels in UPSC Prelims have translated into lower cut-offs across categories.…