With UPSC CSE 2022 Mains examination only two days away (it will start from September 16 and go on for 5 days), candidates are gearing up to write answers of descriptive type on various topics. Answer writing plays a crucial role in preparation as well selection. But, most of the content on perfecting the skill of answer writing is in English. Not much material is available in Hindi, and as such, Hindi medium candidates face difficulty, as answer writing should be the focus from the start of the preparation.
Taking note of this, 2019-batch IAS officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre, Ms. Srushti Deshmukh Gowda, has written a book on answer writing for Hindi medium students. In her book, Answer Writing Manual in Hindi, she discusses important strategies about good answer writing. It is a step-by-step guide for Civil Service Mains Examination and addresses all categories of candidates – as a complete guide for the beginners and as a tool to help improve marks substantially for the veterans. The book is replete with flowcharts, diagrams, personal notes, sample answers, essays, and reference notes for optional and compulsory papers.
On Hindi Divas, Indian Masterminds interacted with Ms. Srushti Deshmukh Gowda, who is SDM of Gadarwara in Narsinghpur district, Madhya Pradesh, to bring you more details about her book for Hindi medium students.
TRANSLATED ORIGINAL BOOK TO HINDI
Ms. Gowda’s book was originally in English, she decided to get it translated to Hindi for the Hindi medium candidates later on. “I got messages from many people asking why my book was not in Hindi. My batch mates, who were toppers in Hindi medium, told me that material availability in Hindi medium is very less and that is why Hindi medium students face a lot of challenges in the preparation of UPSC CSE exam. So I started thinking that this book should be in Hindi, too,” she said.
For this, she took the help of a translator but restructured it herself to suit the Hindi medium students. She did not take any help of google translator or any other similar software. “I rewrote the Hindi book and took the help of a translator. My whole focus was on how to get my point across in simple words. How can I easily convey English words in Hindi words, so that the students from rural environment, who take the examination in Hindi medium, can understand and get the essence of the book,” she said.
WHAT’S IN THE BOOK
Referring to why she wrote the answer writing book in the first place, Ms. Gowda said, “I wrote it because it seemed to me that the matter for answer writing is not available so much in one place. We read a lot, but we get marks only by writing. Therefore, there should be some source related to answer writing where everything can be found in one place. This is how I tried to write this book.”
The book offers guidance on how to prepare for the UPSC CSE exam and how to write answers in the Mains exam. Both have been equally focused upon and then strategies offered. Strategy for all the GS Papers – 1, 2, 3, 4 – find place in the book. “I have taken out different important topics of these four papers. I explain how we have to read them and then write them. Also I have written on how to decode any question, while writing the answer. Many times we write in the exam what we know. But, we have to write what is asked. There is a difference between these two, and many times marks are not given for this reason only. That’s why I have focused a lot on how you have to understand the question and write the answer.”
She has also written on what can be added in the answer to get better marks, how one can get one or two marks extra from the examiner for an answer.
SUGGESTIONS FOR ASPIRANTS
Although only two days are left for UPSC Mains, Ms. Gowda has some important advices for aspirants. She said, “You are just some hours away from the exam, so be calm, be patient, don’t panic at all. Don’t try anything new. Keep revising what you have already read. There is one more thing you can do before the exam: try to take the exam at the same time in your home so that your mental clock is set to the time you have to take the real exam.”
WHY HINDI MEDIUM IS LAGGING BEHIND
On being asked why the Hindi Medium results in UPSC are much below expectations, lagging far behind the English medium results, she said, “What I understood is that there is no good material in Hindi. Also, most of the matter or sources from the Internet are not in Hindi. Hence, the students of Hindi medium face a lot of difficulty. If we can bridge this gap, it will get better. At the same time, we need more mentors and online coaching platforms for Hindi medium candidates.”
