Below is a list of UPSC AIR-1 toppers and the optional subjects they chose.
UPSC AIR-1 Winners - Optional Subjects
| Year | Topper | Optional Subject |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Shakti Dubey | PSIR (Political Science & International Relations) |
| 2023 | Aditya Srivastava | Electrical Engineering |
| 2022 | Ishita Kishore | PSIR |
| 2021 | Shruti Sharma | History |
| 2020 | Shubham Kumar | Anthropology |
| 2019 | Pradeep Singh | Public Administration |
| 2018 | Kanishak Kataria | Mathematics |
| 2017 | Anudeep Durishetty | Anthropology |
| 2016 | Nandini K.R. | Kannada Literature |
| 2015 | Tina Dabi | Political Science |
| 2014 | Ira Singhal | Geography |
| 2013 | Gaurav Agrawal | Economics |
| 2012 | Haritha V. Kumar | Economics |
| 2011 | Shena Aggarwal | Medical Science |
| 2010 | S. Divyadharshini | Public Administration |
| 2009 | Shah Faesal | Public Administration |
| 2008 | Shubhra Saxena | Psychology |
| 2007 | Adapa Karthik | Zoology |
| 2006 | Mutyalaraju Revu | Electrical Engineering & Mathematics |
| 2005 | Mona Pruthi | English Literature |
| 2004 | S. Nagarajan | Geography |
| 2003 | Rupa Mishra | Psychology |
| 2002 | Ankur Garg | Physics |
| 2001 | Alok Ranjan Jha | Public Administration |
| 2000 | Vijayalakshmi Bidari | Statistics |
Optional Subject Trends in UPSC
- Dominance of Humanities Subjects
- In the last decade, many toppers have opted for humanities-based subjects such as:
- Political Science & International Relations (PSIR)
- Anthropology
- History
- Public Administration
- These subjects are considered popular due to their overlap with the General Studies syllabus.
Engineering Background Candidates
- Some candidates from engineering backgrounds have succeeded by choosing technical subjects, such as:
- Kanishak Kataria - Mathematics
- Aditya Srivastava - Electrical Engineering
- This shows that core academic subjects can also be scoring when the candidate has strong conceptual clarity.
Telugu State Toppers and Their Optionals
- A few AIR-1 toppers from the Telugu region selected diverse optional subjects:
- Anudeep Durishetty (2017) - Anthropology
- Adapa Karthik (2007) - Zoology
- Mutyalaraju Revu (2006) - Electrical Engineering
Advice for UPSC Aspirants
- Choosing an optional subject should not be based only on toppers' choices. Instead, candidates should consider:
- Personal interest in the subject
- Academic background
- Availability of study material and guidance
- Overlap with the General Studies syllabus
- In short, the best optional subject is the one you can understand deeply and score well in, rather than simply following trends.
UPSC AIR-1 Toppers (1970-Till Now)… Do You Know How Many Are from Telugu States?
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