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UPSC MAINS ESSENTIALS GS I MAINS ANSWER WRITING PRACTICE (13/02/2025)

UPSC MAINS ESSENTIALS

 
 
 
Exclusive for Subscribers Daily:Harappan Culture and India’s Hypersonic Technology. the UPSC Exam? Discover more insights in the UPSC Exam Notes for February 13, 2025

UPSC Exam Notes presents a dedicated initiative to help you excel in Mains answer writing practice. This program covers both static and dynamic components of the UPSC Civil Services syllabus across various General Studies (GS) papers. Each session is crafted to provide valuable insights and techniques to improve your answer-writing skills, aiming to enrich your preparation for the UPSC CSE Mains. Start with today’s answer-writing exercise based on GS-I topics to evaluate and track your progress.

🚨 Additionally, UPSC Exam Notes releases its November issue of the monthly magazine, packed with critical content, expert analyses, and recent updates to assist your preparation. Dive into the issue to enhance your knowledge base. We welcome your feedback and insights in the comments or via email. 🚨

UPSC Exam Notes offers guidance on structuring Mains answers effectively to maximize your score and presentation.

Introduction

  • Begin your answer with a concise introduction of 3-5 lines. Avoid one-liner introductions as they often lack context.
  • Start by providing basic information, definitions, or key facts from trusted sources to set the foundation for your answer.

Body

  • This is the core of your answer. Analyze the question carefully to understand its requirements and address each aspect fully.
  • Use a mix of points and short paragraphs for clarity. Avoid long paragraphs or purely point-based responses, as balanced formatting enhances readability.
  • Incorporate data from reliable sources, such as government publications, to strengthen your arguments and make your answer more credible.
  • Analyze based on the question’s demand, but avoid over-analysis, which may dilute the answer’s impact.
  • Highlight key terms by underlining, helping your response stand out and improving its presentation.
  • Use flowcharts or tree diagrams where relevant to organize information efficiently, saving time and boosting clarity. These should be applied thoughtfully and only when they add real value.

Way Forward/Conclusion

  • Conclude on a positive, forward-looking note. Highlight potential solutions or the broader implications of your analysis.
  • If an unresolved issue is crucial to the topic, briefly mention it, but avoid repeating points from the introduction or body.
  • Where applicable, reference findings from relevant national or international reports, surveys, or quotations to add weight to your conclusion.

Self-Evaluation

This is a crucial step in answer-writing practice. UPSC Exam Notes provides evaluation guidelines to help you critically assess your responses and refine your thought process for future improvement.
 
Question 1. The Harappan writing system remains undeciphered due to several key obstacles. The inscriptions are notably brief, limiting the amount of information available for analysis. Furthermore, the absence of any bilingual texts, like the Rosetta Stone, makes it difficult to compare the script to known languages. Lastly, the underlying language of the Harappans is unknown, further complicating the task of assigning meaning to the symbols
 

Model Answer (Approach Outline):

This is not a definitive model answer but an approach to tackling the question effectively.

Introduction:

The Harappan civilisation, alongside Egypt and Mesopotamia, is considered one of the world's earliest civilisations.

It developed along the banks of the Indus River, earning it the name "Indus Valley Civilisation." Key sites of this civilisation include Harappa, Mohenjo-Daro, Nal (now in Pakistan), Dholavira, Kalibangan, Lothal, and Rakhigarhi (in India).

Body:

  • Evidence suggests the Indus Valley Civilisation maintained significant trade links with the contemporary Mesopotamian civilisation, whose cuneiform script was deciphered in the early 19th century. However, no bilingual inscriptions have been discovered to date.
  • Over 100 documented efforts by archaeologists, linguists, epigraphists, and scientists have been made to decipher the Harappan script, but these attempts have largely
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