How to Prepare for Economics Section of GK?

Economics remains possibly the single component in the static section from which maximum questions are asked across entrance examinations. While sections like history and polity are more relevant for those applying to law or civil services, and business awareness is most important for management applicants, economics questions are ubiquitous. Yet the term “economics” in this context is somewhat misleading as the term implies a study of the theories and principles of the subject. The term must instead be “economy” as questions are more in line with the state of the economy, both national as well as international.

Students preparing for this topic must prepare on the following topics in detail:
• The Planning Commission, the five year plans and their dates, the NITI Aayog and senior members of such boards.
• Economic terms and their current rates such as inflation, CRR, Bank Rate, tax slabs and size of economy.
• Production statistics such as top Indian states or global producing countries for major agricultural commodities and mineral resources.
• All Indian government schemes, their starting year, relevance and the field they are working in; special focus on recently implemented ones.
• Business affairs from macro-economic point.
• Committees / Commissions and the field in which they worked in.
• International organizations such as IMF, WTO and UN bodies, their full forms, heads, headquarters, year of formation and purpose.
• Locations of major industrial projects, dams or infrastructure within India.
• Basic universal economics terms such as GDP, GINI Index, WPI, Credit rating agencies, SDR, global currencies and their applicability.

In order to best prepare for these topics, students must start off with any basic book. Most coaching institutes provide study material where the information is laid out in concise manner. In case the student has not opted for formal coaching, he / she may simply start off with the relevant sections from the NCERT Economics book. Only the Macroeconomics section is relevant, and one can start off with the class IX book as it best introduces the student to a lot of basic economics concepts. Once this basic level is fulfilled, the student may proceed to buy any renowned book on GK from the market. The best known sources are – Pearson’s, Arihant, Universal, Manorama (my personal favourite) and Lucent. These books contain theory in detail on all major relevant portions, plus also question-answer rounds. Crucially, students must always start off by taking a look at the last 3 years’ question papers from the exams he/she wishes to attempt.