UPSC IFS Syllabus 2024, Check IFS Prelims and Mains Exam Pattern

This article will help you discover the complete IFoS syllabus for the Indian Forest Service Exam, covering subjects, topics, and preparation tips. Get insights into the Prelims, Mains, and Interview stages to excel in the selection process.

Table of Contents

Indian Forest Service (IFoS) exam is one of the prestigious exam conducted by the UPSC for the recruitment of officers who will be further servings as Assistant Conservator Forest(ACF), Divisional Forest Officer(DFO), Principal Chief Conservator of Forest(PCCF) and Director General Forest (DGF), aspiring candidates targeting to be on these positions should learn the UPSC IFoS syllabus in depth to fortify their preparations and ace the exam.

Indian Forest Service Syllabus 2024

We will be discussing about the detailed syllabus of IFoS exam which is conducted by the UPSC, it will help you strategize your focus on the key areas from where the questions are to be framed in the examination. Detailed study of the syllabus is important to make your preparation rock solid, for both stages that is the Prelims and the Mains examination.

IFoS Prelims Syllabus –

Here we have provided a detailed table highlighting the syllabus for the Indian Forest Service (IFoS) Preliminary Examination based on the notification released by UPSC:

Paper 1 (200 marks)
Topic	Details
Current Events	National and International Importance
Geography	Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World
Economic and Social Development	Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives
History of India and Indian National Movement	Important historical events and movements
Environmental Ecology, Biodiversity, and Climate Change	General issues, not requiring subject specialization
Indian Polity and Governance	Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues
General Science	Basic concepts of science

Paper 2 (200 marks)
Topic	Details
Comprehension	Testing understanding of passages
Logical Reasoning and Analytical Ability	Problem-solving and reasoning skills
Decision Making and Problem Solving	Practical application of knowledge
General Mental Ability	Basic quantitative and logical abilities
Basic Numeracy and Data Interpretation	Numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude, data interpretation using charts, graphs and tables

IFoS Mains Examination Syllabus –

Aspirants who have successfully qualified the prelims exam will be writing mains exam on 24th November 2024, it is important to be through with syllabus to clear the mains exam as the mains exam is designed to check your depth of knowledge and applicability below we have mentioned the syllabus for each paper 1 and II

Paper 1 : General English

Topic	Details
Essay Writing	Write an essay on a given topic in English.
Comprehension Writing	Passages for comprehension, and summarizing content concisely.
Grammar and Usage	Correct usage of grammar, vocabulary, and language skills.

Paper 2 : General Knowledge

Topic	Details
Current Events	Knowledge of current events, and everyday observations.
History and Geography	Knowledge of Indian history and geography.
Indian Polity and Constitution	Understanding of the political system and Constitution of India.

IFoS Optional Syllabus

After understanding the syllabus for UPSC prelims and mains it is also important to understand about the mains optional syllabus, as it carries 800 marks for 2 optional subjects covering paper III to VI, for paper III – VI please refer further below to the syllabus of the 11 optional subjects provided by the UPSC,

Agriculture

Paper	Topic
Paper 1	Agronomy
	Soil Science
	Plant Breeding & Genetic
	Horticulture
Paper 2	Entomology
	Plant Pathology
	Agricultural Economics
	Extension Education

Forestry

Paper	Topic
Paper 1	Silviculture
	Forest Soils & Watershed Management
	Forest Management
Paper 2	Forest Mensuration & Management
	Forest Ecology & Environment
	Wood Science & Technology
	Forest Economics

Geology

Paper	Topic
Paper 1	General Geology
	Geomorphology & Remote Sensing
	Structural Geology
	Paleontology
Paper 2	Mineralogy
	Petrology
	Economic Geology
	Hydrogeology

Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science

Paper	Topic
Paper 1	Animal Nutrition
	Animal Physiology
	Animal Genetics & Breeding
Paper 2	Veterinary Medicine
	Veterinary Surgery
	Dairy Science
	Livestock Management

Botany

Paper	Topic
Paper 1	Cryptogams
	Phanerogams
	Plant Anatomy
Paper 2	Plant Physiology
	Genetics
	Ecology
	Economic Botany

Civil Engineering

Paper	Topic
Paper 1	Structural Engineering
	Geotechnical Engineering
	Hydraulic Engineering
Paper 2	Environmental Engineering
	Transportation Engineering
	Surveying
	Construction Planning & Management

Mechanical Engineering

Paper	Topic
Paper 1	Thermodynamics
	Fluid Mechanics
	Machine Design
Paper 2	Manufacturing Science
	Industrial Engineering
	Mechanics of Materials
	Automobile Engineering

Chemical Engineering

Paper	Topic
Paper 1	Chemical Process Calculations
	Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics
	Fluid Mechanics & Mechanical Operations
Paper 2	Chemical Reaction Engineering
	Mass Transfer
	Heat Transfer
	Instrumentation & Process Control

Physics

Paper	Topics
Paper 1	Classical Mechanics
	Electromagnetism
	Thermodynamics & Statistical Mechanics
Paper 2	Quantum Mechanics
	Solid State Physics
	Nuclear Physics
	Electronics

Statistics

Paper	Topic
Paper 1	Probability Theory
	Statistical Inference
	Linear Models & Regression Analysis
Paper 2	Sampling Theory
	Stochastic Processes
	Multivariate Analysis
	Operations Research

Zoology

Paper	Topic
Paper 1	Non-Chordata and Chordata
	Cell Biology
	Ecology
	Genetics & Evolution
Paper 2	Physiology & Biochemistry
	Developmental Biology
	Applied Zoology

IFoS Interview :

IFoS exam interview is conducted by UPSC for recruiting officers serving for the forests and protecting wildlife in the fields and candidates who have cleared prelims and mains reach the interview stage, there is no syllabus for Interview stage, it majorly depends on the DAF filled by the candidates as the members of board only have that information of yours with them, be thorough with the DAF and all detains related with you along with the recent environmental developments around the world.