[Strategy] Comprehension for CSAT Paper 2: Rules, tips, assumption, inference, free practice material

(500+ passages!)

1.

Rule #1: Remove the garbage

2.

Rule #2: Leave Nothing for later

3.

Rule #3: Dont push your luck

4.

Rule #4: Verify every option

5.

CSAT: P2: 2011 vs 2012

6.

English language test

7.

Assumption / Inference?

8.

Assumption?

9.

Inference?

10. Practice: (500 passages ready for download!)

11. Booklist for CSAT paper II?
Rule #1: Remove the garbage
In CSAT(UPSC) or CAT, the examiners dont frame / write the passage on their own, they simply copy it
from a newspaper column, article, science journal, book etc. They only frame the questions by
themselves.
So Why do passages look difficult?
#1: Nature of Sentences:

The (original) authors who write for newspaper columns, books, journals- have a habit of using
very lengthy and complex sentences, full of passive voice and sentence connectors.

Either your vocabulary is low and or you dont read English regularly. Therefore it takes you quite
some time to pause and grasp each statement.
#2: Nature of question:

In SSC/Bank type exam, one RC question is followed by four option A,B,C,D. for example:

Q1. According to the given passage, Dev Anand was born in

a. blah blah blah
b. blah blah blah

c. blah blah blah

d. blah blah blah
Hence, to answer one question, youve to know/find only one statement / fact. But in CSAT, CAT, often RC
questions are 2TF or 4TF nature. For example

2TF

4TF

2 Statement true/false

4 Statement true/false

Q1. According to given passage, which of the following is

true about Dev Anand?1. blah blah blah
2. blah blah blah
Answer choices

Q1. According to given passage, which of the

following is true about Dev Anand?
1. blah blah blah
2. blah blah blah
3. blah blah blah
4. blah blah blah
Answer choices

a.

Only 1

b.

Only 2

c.

Both

d.

None

a.

Only 1 and 2

b.

Only 2, 3 and 4

c.

Only 1, 2 and 3

d.

Only 4

To answer a 4TF question, youve to know/eliminate four facts or statements.

So in a way, youre solving four question and yet getting marks for only one question. (similar
thing is happening in the General studies paper.)

This makes the RC-exercise very time consuming. Youve to re-read several sentences again and
again to verify/eliminate those 2 or 4 statements.

Therefore, in the light of these two issues (Nature of sentences + nature of question), your first rule / task
while solving RC is: Remove the garbage.
How?
While reading the passage, Do any one of the following:
1. Underline the important stuff using a red or green ballpen/gelpen or highlighter. (dont use
pencil/blue ballpen for underlining because then Important stuff is not easily distinguishable from
garbage). OR
2. Cutdown unimportant phrases/lines/words (=garbage) using a ballpen/gelpen.

For example
Original text

Cutdown

Underline

This is what leads to the

idea of an enabling State,
that is, a Government that
does not try to directly
deliver to the citizens
everything that they need.
Instead, it creates an
enabling ethos for the
market.

This is what leads to the idea of an

enabling State,that is,
a Government thatdoes not try to
directlydeliver to the
citizenseverything that they need.Instead,
(such Enabling Government) it creates an
enabling ethos for the market.

This is what leads to the idea of

an enabling State, that is,
aGovernment that does not try to
directly deliver to the
citizenseverything that they
need. Instead, it createsan
enabling ethos forthe market.

^as you can see, after cutting down, we are left with important part only: This leads to an enabling state.
Government doesnt deliver everything, instead it creates ethos for market.
^This habit helps because

If you just keep reading without doing anything (with your hand), then you might miss an
important phrase or word while reading the passage.

But when youve to underline/cutdown some part of text= you need to pay attention to each and
every phrase/sentence.

Since youve underlined/cutdown=data is condensed/compressed.

So next time while youre scanning through this passage (for looking 2TF, 4TF answers), it takes
less time to wade through the data.

To see this rule in action: go through earlier article containing solved passages from 2011s paper click me
Rule#1 (A):
Make a table, if there are questions on assumption / inference.
Ill elaborate on this rule, in the later part of this article.
Rule #2: Leave Nothing for later

Suppose there is one passage with four questions.

You take 6 minutes to read passage and 30 seconds to solve each question. =total 10 minutes.

but fourth question is difficult/confusing/youre feeling 50:50 for the answers.

And You decide ok, Ill come back to this question later, after finishing the paper=problem

Because

When you leave question for later= it unnecessarily creates pressure on your mind. One part of
your brain is now occupied in thinking yaar Ive to come back to that question again. It affects
your performance in other remaining question of the paper.

When you come back after finishing the paper, the passage wont be in your memory. The
momentum/understanding of the passage is lost or partially evaporated.

So youve to once again read or atleast glance through the whole data one more time.

When the papers timelimit is about to finish, your mind starts playing dirty tricks on you (out of
the fear of imaginary cutoffs). So, if earlier you were feeling 50:50 between two options, now your
mind will tell you to pick one option under that pressure.=youre pushing your luck=negative
marking may dig your grave.

Therefore, whenever you read passage do all questions at once, dont leave anything for later.

If you cant solve a particular comprehension question then leave it for good. Dont put it on Ill
come back later list.

Same advice for data interpretation question- youve to re-study the graph/chart/table.
Rule #3: Dont push your luck

In CAT, you dont have to tick 60/60 questions to get 99+%ile.

Similarly in UPSC , you dont have to tick 80/80 questions in paper-II to clear the prelims exam.
(besides, marks of prelims are not counted in final merit list)

So please dont have this board exam mentality ki comprehension kaa har sawaal tick karnaaa
hi hai (I must tick every comprehension question because it is a comprehension question!).

If you cant decide an answer, then dont tick it. Move on to next question.

Trying to solve RC questions with Gut-instinct = Youre throwing good money after bad money
via negative marking.

Please bear in mind: negative marking plays a huge role in all UPSC prelims. So never walk in
the exam hall with cut off mindset.
Rule #4: Verify every option

Often the RC question-answers are set in such way that the moment you read option A,
immediately your mind thinks ahathis must be the right answer.

And you tick it without actually going back to the passage to confirm/verify that answer.= big
mistake.

You must verify all option A,B,C and D. dont tick answer without verifying / confirming them with
the original passage.

Because when youre in stress and haste, sometimes your eyes see one thing but your mind
reads it as something else. For example

Actually given

In those years, Dev Anand worked as a surveyor, before that he was a clerk but
Bollywood was his ultimate destiny.

Under stress and haste, Your

mind reads it as

Dev Anands career path= surveyor > clerk > Bollywood hero.(actually
given clerk> surveyor>Bollywood hero).

Now if there is a question on Dev Anands career path, youll end up ticking the wrong answer (if
you dont confirm/verify every option with the given passage.)
CSAT: P2: 2011 vs 2012

In UPSC CSAT paper II (Aptitude), youll face the Comprehension in two sectors
1. Passages to test your Comprehension power (the difficult ones) =passage+questions given in
both English + Hindi.
2. Passages to test your basic English knowledge (easier ones)= passage+questions given in
English only.

2011

2012

Passage

Qs

Words Approx

Passage

Qs

Words Approx

Right to Education

250

Education

150

Inclusive growth

250

Western liberal

200

Creative society

100

Pesticide

400

Foreign domination

200

Climate

300

Keystone species

250

Exotic species

350

Ecosystem

150

Democracy

350

Moral Act

150

Collectivities

150

FDI

200

Total

28

1350

Total

32

2100

Ok so in 2012, UPSC added only 4 more questions in comprehension (32-28=4), Then why is there so
much hue and cry about comprehension?
Three factors:
1. From 2011 to 2012, while the number of comprehension questions increased by just 14%, but
the size of passages has increased by 55% [(2100-1350)/1350]
2. Many of the questions are of 2TF, 3TF, 4TF type (=you are solving 2,3 or 4 sub-questions and
getting marks for only one question= time consuming exercise.)
3. 2011, the questions were straightforward. 2012: Now youre also asked to identify assumptions,
inferences, implications and themes of the passage. And in such answers, more than one choice
appear plausible. Often you find yourself in 50:50 choice.
Combination of these three factors, makes CSAT passages difficult.
To put this bluntly: CSAT comprehension section looks tough because it is copying the structure of higher
level aptitude tests like CAT and GMAT. (although with UPSCs own peculiarities).
English language test

These passages are given only to test your knowledge of English language. (hence difficulty level
easy compared to previous comprehensions) Hindi translations not given for these passages.

2011

Qs

2012

Qs

He walked several miles

Jail

My toothbrush

Camping

Polar bear

Hero

Total

Total

Anyways, back to the discussion: what to do when Assumption / inference type question comes in the
passage?
Assumption / Inference?

These questions are peculiar to GMAT passages.

So, whenever youre asked a question on assumption / inference from the passage, you should prepare a
very small table (containing keywords, shortcodes, summary only)

Gist:
Body1.2.
Pro

Con

1.
2.

1.
2.
3.

Please note: you dont need to fill all cells. Just fill up some keywords/ data as per the situation.
Every passage follows this patterns
Assumption(s)==> Passage (body, text, pros, cons) ==> inference, implication, conclusion

Assumptions

Inference/implication/conclusio
n

They are above the table (Therefore not given in the passage
explicitly.)But the passage is based on them (assumptions). If the
assumption is taken away then whole passage/argument/case will
collapse.
Theyre below the table. They are based on the passage.

Consider this example passage.

GDP and Nuclear power
GDP of a country depends among other things- on ready availability of electricity. Nuclear energy has
played an immense role in the rise of manufacturing industries in France and Russia. Recently RBI
lowered Indias growth forecast from 6.5 to 5.7%. Our PM must immediately clear the apprehensions and
fear among people regarding the use of nuclear power.
Rule #1: remove garbage
GDP of a country depends - among other things- on ready availability of electricity. Nuclear energy has
played an immense role in the rise of manufacturing industries of France and Russia. Recently RBI
lowered Indias growth forecast from 6.5 to 5.7%. Our PM must immediately clear the apprehensions
and fear among people regarding the use of nuclear power.

Now rule #1 (a): Make the table.

Gist: We need nuke power for GDP.

Body:

GDP= depends on easy electricity.

RBI lowered GDP forecast.

Pro

Con

France, Russia grow thanks to nuke power.

(Some) Indian people fear nuke power.

Above table is the summary of our passage.

Now lets check sum questions
Assumption?
Q1. Based on given passage, which of the following is the valid assumption?
a. Use of Nuclear power will lead to improvement in IIP and GDP of India.
b. People are worried about the safety of nuclear plants.
c. There is a gap between supply and demand of electricity in India.
approach:

As you can see, all of the given answer choices seem logically valid according to the given
passage. But which one of them is the assumption?

We already saw that passages are based on assumption.

And if assumption is taken out of the equation, whole thing will collapse.

So, Try to visualize it as a courtroom drama.

The author is a criminal and youre the public prosecutor.

You must give an argument thatll completely destroy his entire premise/case. Thus the negative
of your argument, will be his assumption. Lets check

Given answer choice

Negative.

a.

Use of Nuclear power

will lead to
improvement in IIP and
GDP of India.

The negative of this statement = Nuke power will not lead to improvement
in IIP/GDP.But This is just a filler dialogue. It doesnt totally ruin authors
case. So this answer choice is wrong. Move to next choice.

People are worried about

the safety of nuclear
plants.

People think/trust that nuclear plants are safe.Ya but this statement doesnt
help us destroy authors passage/case/argument. So this answer choice is
wrong. Move to next choice.

There is a gap in supply

and demand of
electricity.

The negative of given statement is:There is no gap between supply and

demand of electricity in India. OR in other words,Electricity is easily
available in India.If electricity is available easily then lowering of GDP
forecast (by RBI ) is not due to short supply of electricty.
And therefore, PM doesnt need to create awareness about Nuke powers.
Now, this totally destroys the whole premise/case presented by the Author.
Therefore, answer C is correct assumption.

C is the final answer.

Inference?
Q2. What can be inferred from the passage?
a. India largely depends on thermal power plants for the electricity generation.
b. People are worried about the safety of nuclear plants.
c. Use of Nuclear power will help improve Indias GDP.
Table remains the same.

Gist: We need nuke power for GDP.

Body:

GDP= depends on easy electricity.

RBI lowered GDP forecast.

Pro

Con

France, Russia grow thanks to nuke power.

(Some) Indian people fear nuke power.

Assumption =above the table and Inference is below the table. (Meaning Inference is derived from the
given arguments/case) hence Inference should stay close to table.
Lets check

a.

India largely depends on thermal

power plants for the electricity
generation.

While this may be true as per our General Knowledge, but this is
not given in the passage. (table)Inference must be close to the table.
Inference must be derived from the table.
Hence, This is not a valid inference.

People are worried about the

safety of nuclear plants.

This is mere restatement of what is said already in the passage= not

good as inference.

Use of Nuclear power will help

improve Indias GDP.

This is the right answer, because it follows the table.GDP= need

easy electricity.
France, Russia grew because of Nuke plants.
Therefore, use of nuke power will help improve Indias GDP as
well.

Practice: (500 passages ready for download!)

Since UPSC level practice passages are rare, hence for the practice purpose youll have to make do with
whatever is available in the domain of CAT/GMAT. So,
Download this RC zip file: (size about 6MB) use any one of the following link.

Server #1: Mediafire click me OR

Server #2: Google Drive click ME

It contains saved webpages of Pagalguy forums RC threads for the years 2010, 2011 and 2012
respectively. (in three separate folders)

Total about 290 webpages, if we assume two passages are given per web-page, these are more
than 500 practice passages!

The zip file also contains one PDF file: 35 RC Passages with answers.pdf = basically it is a few
selected passes from 2012s Pagalguy RC Thread. Neatly formatted and arranged for practicing
(the Foxit PDF highlighter/text-strikethru feature will help you apply Rule #1).

You can also use this following site for practice: http://codecoax.com/grerc/
Booklist for CSAT paper II?

CSAT is still in a nascent stage (UPSC has conducted only two papers so far.)

There is not enough databank of previous-questions / trends so that authors / publication houses
can come out with decent books exclusively written for CSAT. (like theyve for CAT or SSC type
exams).

So, Whatever books/ material are available in the market right now are either

Watered down version of CAT/GMAT books (For example, Arun Sharmas book for CSAT (by
TMH publication.)

or Beefed up version of SSC/IBPS books. (released by most of the Jholachhap publication

houses)

Since CSAT (Aptitude) = newly opened door so lot of publishers are trying to capture market and
in that haste, quality is not maintained. (Books often have printing, typing mistakes.)

UPSCs aptitude is (again) like Kungfu= You can use variety of booklists/studymaterial combo and
yet succeed.

In this context: CSAT Paper II booklist = you should pickup based on your career-backup plan.

1.

UPSC + CAT/CMAT as
backup

UPSC + CAPF, SSC,

IBPS, LIC etc as
backup

Maths

1.

NCERT class 7 to 10 Maths (freely available)

2.

Quantam CAT by Sarvesh Kumar OR Arun

Sharma

1.

How to prepare Verbal ability and Reading

Comprehension by Arun Sharma

2.

The RC Zip file already given above.

1.

Pagalguy threads on reasoning

Comprehension

Reasoning

2.

Coaching class booklets for LR and or Arun

Sharma and other mock papersets books
available in market.

1.

Maths

1.

NCERT class 7 to 10

2.

Fast track to Objective Arithmetic by Rajesh

Verma

UPSC alone + private

job/business.

1.

(for the SSC/IBPS passages solve their old

papersets + for their grammar use SP Bakshi
etc.)

2.

RC Zip file already given above.

Comprehension

RS Agarwals OR BS Sijwalisbook on Verbal and

Nonverbal reasoning.

Reasoning

1.

Maths

1.

NCERT class 7 to 10

2.

Comprehension

2.

CSAT Paper II Manual of TMH or Pearson

3.

Reasoning

3.

The RC Zip file already given above.

In CSAT 2012, the paper contained some peculiar problems on Assumption, inference, syllogism
and logic.

MK Pandeys Magical book on Reasoning, contains some good basic foundation material in that
regard. So if and when youve time and mood, go through it.

Article on How to approach Maths and Reasoning for CSAT= will be covered