UPSC Mains 2026 English Compulsory Paper (Paper B of the Civil Services Main Examination) was conducted on 29 August 2026, in the afternoon session (2:30 PM–5:30 PM), for 300 marks. Paper B is a qualifying paper where candidates must score a minimum of 25% (75 marks). Marks scored in Paper B are not counted for the final merit ranking or personality test shortlisting, but qualifying it is mandatory for your Essay, General Studies, and Optional papers to be evaluated. Download the English Compulsory PDF. Confirm exact text when the Commission uploads the official copy under Previous Question Papers on upsc.gov.in.
Key highlights
- Date and session: Saturday, 29 August 2026, 2:30 PM–5:30 PM (3 hours).
- Marks: 300; Paper B (Compulsory English); qualifying in nature (25% / 75 marks cutoff).
- Structure: Essay (100 marks), Reading Comprehension (75 marks), Précis writing (75 marks), Grammar & Vocabulary (50 marks).
- PDF: Download English Compulsory Paper.
- Official copy: Examinations → Previous Question Papers on upsc.gov.in.
UPSC Mains 2026 English Compulsory paper overview
| Particulars | Details |
|---|---|
| Examination | Civil Services (Main) Examination 2026 |
| Paper name | English (Compulsory Language) |
| Paper number | Paper B |
| Date | 29 August 2026 |
| Session | Afternoon, 2:30 PM–5:30 PM |
| Duration | 3 hours |
| Maximum marks | 300 |
| Nature of paper | Qualifying (25% threshold = 75 marks) |
| Counts for merit? | No (Mandatory qualifying only) |
| Medium | English |
| Question format | Subjective / Descriptive + Objective grammar |
| Negative marking | None |
Paper B concludes the language day of Mains 2026. Paper A (Indian Language) was held the same morning (9:00 AM–12:00 noon). All earlier papers are compiled on the Mains 2026 question paper hub.
Download UPSC Mains 2026 English Compulsory question paper PDF
Download the UPSC Mains 2026 English Compulsory question paper PDF. The Commission also publishes the official PDF under Examinations → Previous Question Papers on upsc.gov.in.
How to download English Compulsory paper from upsc.gov.in
- Open upsc.gov.in.
- Go to Examinations.
- Open Previous Question Papers.
- Find Civil Services (Main) Examination, 2026.
- Select Compulsory English (Paper B).
- Open the PDF and save it.
Question 1: Essay (100 marks)
Instruction: Write an essay in about 600 words on any one of the following topics:
| Option | Essay Topic | Theme |
|---|---|---|
| (a) | The rise of Indian women in sports. | Sports, Gender & Social Transformation |
| (b) | A thing of beauty is a joy forever. | Philosophy, Art & Enduring Values |
| (c) | Growth of influencer culture in India. | Digital Media, Youth & Cultural Economy |
| (d) | War is a problem, not a solution. | Geopolitics, Ethics & Peace |
Question 2: Reading Comprehension (75 marks)
Instruction: Read carefully the passage given below and write your answers to the questions that follow in clear, correct and concise language ($15 \times 5 = 75$ marks):
Passage
As our capacity to deal with our challenges at home increases, India walks with greater confidence abroad. As one more Indian child receives education, one more Indian village gets electricity and drinking water, one more far-flung Indian district is looped into a world-class highway, the image of India that is seen by the world improves, incrementally but irreversibly.
For me, the empowerment of India has meant the transformation of this image over the years. The snake charmer has yielded place to the computer. What was once seen as a chaotic country is now seen as a vibrant, thriving democracy. The population that was once seen as a debilitating burden is now an enviable asset. The Indian immigrant, once considered an economic refugee, is welcomed now in an increasing number of countries.
India is no longer a country seen as home to countless impoverished millions in need of food aid, education and relief. It is seen as a country with a critical role in the twenty-first century, an economy that is both a very viable investment destination as well as a hub of growth, a polity that is a model for a functioning multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, multi-religious democracy. Today, it is no longer possible to ignore India’s voice; without her, no calculus of the 21st century is complete.
What are the factors that have contributed to this sea-change in our standing abroad? To my mind, the most critical factor is the way we have nurtured our spirit of freedom and enabled it to enliven all our democratic institutions. The world today marvels at how we have managed to transform possible faultlines — be they of religion, region or language — into bonds that unite.
Our election process, peaceful transfers of power, flexible federalism, independent judiciary, freedom of debate — in parliament or in the press — has set standards by which the resilience of societies to handle political challenges is measured. Our billion-strong democratic experiment is unique and is seen as such. It empowers every Indian, at home and abroad.
The growing strength of the Indian economy is another crucial element in the process of our empowerment. Wide-ranging reforms, a determined bid towards global integration keeping in mind our own specific circumstances and a commitment to bring the benefits of development to every strata of our society have set the stage for phenomenal growth. The world is paying attention though much more needs to be done to attract the level of investment that we seek. But the effects of economic change have already empowered an increasing number of Indians.
The third factor that empowers us today is the quality of our education. This has transformed our population burden into a bank of talent. It has created and nourished our cutting-edge IT industry. It has enabled India to become a nuclear power, a confident explorer of space frontiers, a leader in biotechnology — in fact, a giant of the knowledge industry.
When one is abroad, the true value of Indian education and scientific temper, often taken for granted at home, stands out as a major factor of our empowerment. Our efforts have to be aimed at extending this education of excellence to every Indian; the impact on India’s empowerment will be manifold.
And one last point: India is empowered in the world today because of the philosophical underpinning of our foreign policy, the principles that we have held dear, the ideals that we have cherished. The relentless pursuit of peace, the willingness to engage, the enormous contributions to multilateral institutions, and, above all, the independence of our decision-making have earned respect and admiration for our foreign policy.
Today we continue these traditions in our dialogue with our neighbours and in our energetic engagement with every major power and region in the world. Our consistent efforts to achieve close and friendly political relations, mutually beneficial economic linkages and increased people-to-people contacts are resulting in tangible empowerment for every Indian.
In the eyes of the world, an empowered India is no longer a matter of doubt; it is already a matter of fact.
Questions
| Q | Marks | Question |
|---|---|---|
| Q2(a) | 15 | What, according to the author, indicates the empowerment of India? |
| Q2(b) | 15 | What is the most important factor that has brought about a sea-change in India’s standing abroad? |
| Q2(c) | 15 | What does the author say about the contribution of Indian economy to the empowerment of India? |
| Q2(d) | 15 | How has education contributed to India’s empowerment on the global stage? |
| Q2(e) | 15 | What are the key features of India’s foreign policy? |
Question 3: Précis Writing (75 marks)
Instruction: Make a précis of the following passage in about one-third of its length (~255 words out of 773 words). Do not give or suggest a title to it. The précis should be written in your own words ($75$ marks).
Passage (773 words)
We are not always able to read more than one history of an event. When we are not, we must admit that we do not have much chance of learning the truth of the matter in question—of learning what really happened. However, that is not the only reason to read history. It might be claimed that only the professional historian, the man who is writing a history himself, is required to cross-examine his sources by exhaustively checking one against the other. He must leave no stone unturned if he is to know what he ought to know about his subject. We, as lay readers of history, stand somewhere between the professional historian, on the one hand, and the irresponsible amateur, on the other hand, who reads history only for amusement.
Let us take the example of Thucydides. You may be aware that he wrote the only major contemporary history of the Peloponnesian War at the end of the fifth century B.C. In a sense, there is nothing to check his work against. What, then, can we expect to learn from it?
Greece is now a tiny country; a war that occurred there twenty-five centuries ago can have little real effect on our life today. Everyone who fought in it is long dead, and the specific things for which they fought are long dead, too. The victories are now meaningless, and the defeats without pain. The cities that were taken and lost have crumbled into dust. Indeed, if we stop to think of it, almost all that remains of the Peloponnesian War is Thucydides’ account of it.
Yet that account is still important. For Thucydides’ story—we might as well use that word—has had an influence on the subsequent history of man. Leaders in later eras read Thucydides. When they found themselves in situations that even faintly approximated that of the tragically divided Greek city-states, they compared their own position to that of Athens or Sparta. They used Thucydides as an excuse, a justification, and even as a pattern of conduct. The result was that by ever so little, perhaps, but perceptibly, the history of the world was changed by the view held of a small portion of it by Thucydides in the fifth century B.C. Thus we read Thucydides not because he described perfectly what happened before he wrote his book, but because he to a certain extent determined what happened after. And we read him, strange as this may seem, to know what is happening now.
“Poetry is more philosophical than history,” wrote Aristotle. By this he meant that poetry is more general, more universal. A good poem is true not only in its own time and place, but in all times and places. It has meaning and force for all men. History is not quite so universal as that. It is tied to events in a way that poetry is not. But any good history is also universal.
Thucydides himself said that he was writing his history so that men of the future would not have to repeat the mistakes he had seen made and from which he had suffered personally and through the agony of his country. He described the kinds of human mistakes that would have meaning to men other than himself, to men other than Greeks. Yet some of the very same errors that the Athenians and the Spartans made 2,500 years ago, or at least very similar ones, are being made now as they have been made over and over again since Thucydides’ time.
If your view of history is limited, if you go to it to discover only what really happened, you will not learn the main thing that Thucydides, or indeed any good historian, has to teach. If you read Thucydides well, you may even decide to give up trying to discover what really happened in the past.
History is the story of what led up to now. It is the present that interests us—that and the future. The future will be partly determined by the present. Thus, you can learn something about the future, too, from a historian, even from one who like Thucydides lived more than two thousand years ago.
Let us sum up these two suggestions for reading history. The first is: if you can, read more than one history of an event or period that interests you. The second is: read a history not only to learn what really happened at a particular time and place in the past, but also to learn the way men act in all times and places, especially now. (773 words)
Question 4: Grammar & Vocabulary (25 marks)
4(a) Sentence Correction ($1 \times 10 = 10$ marks)
Instruction: Rewrite the following sentences after making the necessary corrections. Do not make unnecessary changes in the original sentence:
| Part | Sentence Given | Correction Focus |
|---|---|---|
| Q4(a)(i) | The two first chapters of the novel are rather dull. | Order of ordinals and cardinals (the first two) |
| Q4(a)(ii) | They were introduced to each other by a mutual friend. | Usage of common vs mutual |
| Q4(a)(iii) | Such goods are made for export, and are seldom or ever used in this country. | Idiom: seldom or never / seldom if ever |
| Q4(a)(iv) | He not only lost his ticket, but also his luggage. | Correlative conjunction placement (lost not only... but also) |
| Q4(a)(v) | This is one of the most interesting novels that has appeared this year. | Relative pronoun agreement (that have appeared) |
| Q4(a)(vi) | Draw a line over the middle of the page. | Preposition of position (across / through / in) |
| Q4(a)(vii) | She is bad in communicating her ideas. | Preposition after adjective (bad at) |
| Q4(a)(viii) | Nothing now remains besides the factory itself. | Preposition of exception (beside / except / but) |
| Q4(a)(ix) | House prices fell down by five percent last month. | Redundancy (fell by instead of fell down) |
| Q4(a)(x) | I will take both ones if that is okay. | Pronoun redundancy (both instead of both ones) |
4(b) Prepositions & Missing Words ($1 \times 5 = 5$ marks)
Instruction: Supply the missing words:
| Part | Incomplete Sentence | Answer Key |
|---|---|---|
| Q4(b)(i) | It is ten o'clock ______ my watch. | by |
| Q4(b)(ii) | The public are cautioned ______ pickpockets. | against |
| Q4(b)(iii) | His illness is a mere pretext ______ his absence. | for |
| Q4(b)(iv) | His statement was tantamount ______ a confession. | to |
| Q4(b)(v) | He parted ______ his property and went on pilgrimage to holy places. | with |
4(c) Correct Verb Forms ($1 \times 5 = 5$ marks)
Instruction: Use the correct form of the verb given in the brackets:
| Part | Sentence Prompt | Correct Form |
|---|---|---|
| Q4(c)(i) | I'm sure I ______ him at the party last night. (see) | saw |
| Q4(c)(ii) | I ______ for half an hour when it suddenly started to rain. (walk) | had been walking |
| Q4(c)(iii) | Don't disturb me. I ______ my homework. (do) | am doing |
| Q4(c)(iv) | Perhaps we ______ New Delhi next month. (visit) | will visit / shall visit |
| Q4(c)(v) | I ______ him for a long time. (know) | have known |
4(d) Antonyms ($1 \times 5 = 5$ marks)
Instruction: Write the antonyms of the following:
| Part | Word | Antonym |
|---|---|---|
| Q4(d)(i) | Brief | Lengthy / Long / Verbose / Detailed |
| Q4(d)(ii) | Chatty | Taciturn / Reticent / Reserved / Quiet |
| Q4(d)(iii) | Candid | Guarded / Deceitful / Evasive / Insincere |
| Q4(d)(iv) | Always | Never / Seldom / Rarely |
| Q4(d)(v) | Expand | Contract / Shrink / Compress / Condense |
Question 5: Grammar, Usage & Idioms (25 marks)
5(a) Sentence Transformation ($1 \times 10 = 10$ marks)
Instruction: Rewrite the following sentences as directed without changing the meaning:
| Part | Original Sentence | Directive |
|---|---|---|
| Q5(a)(i) | Latif is more industrious than most other boys. | Rewrite using superlative degree (Latif is one of the most industrious boys.) |
| Q5(a)(ii) | One must be honest in his/her dealings. | Rewrite after correction (One must be honest in one's dealings.) |
| Q5(a)(iii) | She is a good singer. | Rewrite using 'well' (She sings well.) |
| Q5(a)(iv) | There was a traffic-jam this morning. We were late for work. | Rewrite using a conjunctive adverb (There was a traffic-jam this morning; consequently / therefore / hence, we were late for work.) |
| Q5(a)(v) | The teacher asked the students a question. | Change the voice (A question was asked to the students by the teacher. / The students were asked a question by the teacher.) |
| Q5(a)(vi) | She has been working in the company for years; ______ ? | Add a question tag (hasn't she?) |
| Q5(a)(vii) | She said, “I have been teaching music for seven years.” | Change into indirect speech (She said that she had been teaching music for seven years.) |
| Q5(a)(viii) | The measure was put through without opposition. | Rewrite using 'pass' (The measure was passed without opposition.) |
| Q5(a)(ix) | It is not necessary for him to go. | Rewrite using 'need' (He need not go.) |
| Q5(a)(x) | He speaks like his father. | Rewrite using 'as' (He speaks as his father does / speaks.) |
5(b) Make Sentences ($1 \times 5 = 5$ marks)
Instruction: Use the following words to make sentences that bring out the meaning clearly. Do not change the form of the words:
| Part | Word | Meaning & Context | Illustrative Usage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q5(b)(i) | Conceit | Excessive pride in oneself | His unbearable conceit blinded him to constructive feedback from senior officers. |
| Q5(b)(ii) | Fussy | Fastidious; hard to please | The editor is exceptionally fussy about grammatical precision in draft notifications. |
| Q5(b)(iii) | Stalk | Pursue stealthily; stem | Tigers silently stalk their prey through dense forest undergrowth. |
| Q5(b)(iv) | Rebel | One who opposes authority | The young reformer dared to rebel against outdated administrative orthodoxies. |
| Q5(b)(v) | Poorly | Inadequately; unwell | The disaster relief plan was poorly executed due to weak inter-agency communication. |
5(c) Choose Appropriate Word ($1 \times 5 = 5$ marks)
Instruction: Choose the appropriate word to fill in the blanks:
| Part | Sentence Prompt | Correct Option |
|---|---|---|
| Q5(c)(i) | He was ______ about locking the door and a thief got in. (Negligible / Negligent) | Negligent |
| Q5(c)(ii) | She was a ______ child who would never stop once her mind was made up. (wilful / willing) | wilful |
| Q5(c)(iii) | She devised an ______ scheme to hoodwink the police. (Ingenuous / Ingenious) | Ingenious |
| Q5(c)(iv) | ______ to the VIP room is limited. (Access / Excess) | Access |
| Q5(c)(v) | The budget focused on ______ growth. (Economical / Economic) | Economic |
5(d) Idioms and Phrases ($1 \times 5 = 5$ marks)
Instruction: Use the following idioms/phrases in sentences of your own to bring out their meaning clearly:
| Part | Idiom / Phrase | Meaning | Illustrative Usage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q5(d)(i) | Sitting on the fence | Delaying a decision; remaining neutral | The district magistrate cannot keep sitting on the fence when public safety requires decisive action. |
| Q5(d)(ii) | Cold blood | Ruthlessly; deliberately without emotion | The criminal planned the armed heist in cold blood without showing any remorse. |
| Q5(d)(iii) | Over head and ears | Deeply immersed or overwhelmed | The startup founder was over head and ears in debt before securing institutional funding. |
| Q5(d)(iv) | Bag and baggage | With all one's belongings; completely | After the dispute was resolved, the tenants vacated the premises bag and baggage. |
| Q5(d)(v) | Black and white | In written/printed form; clearly defined | The agreement must be documented in black and white to avoid future legal ambiguity. |
UPSC Mains English Compulsory qualifying strategy
While English Compulsory does not contribute to the merit rank, failing to score 75 marks (25%) disqualifies the candidate entirely, regardless of GS, Essay, or Optional performance.
Total: 300 Marks | Qualifying Cutoff: 75 Marks (25%)
├── Essay (600 words): 100 Marks (Target: 35–45)
├── Reading Comprehension: 75 Marks (Target: 35–45)
├── Précis Writing: 75 Marks (Target: 30–40)
└── Grammar & Vocabulary: 50 Marks (Target: 30–40)
- Précis writing discipline: Strictly maintain the one-third length requirement (~250–260 words for a 770-word passage). Use the grid sheet provided in the UPSC booklet. Write strictly in your own words without adding personal opinions or giving a title unless asked.
- Reading comprehension precision: Answers must be written in your own words. Direct copy-pasting from the passage leads to mark deductions.
- Targeted grammar scoring: Grammar questions (50 marks across Q4 and Q5) offer high scoring potential with objective evaluation. Mastering prepositions, verb tenses, voice, and sentence transformation guarantees clearing the 75-mark threshold comfortably.
- Balanced time management: Allocate 45 minutes for the Essay, 40 minutes for Reading Comprehension, 45 minutes for Précis Writing, and 30 minutes for Grammar, leaving 20 minutes for revision.
Frequently asked questions
What are the qualifying marks for UPSC Mains English Compulsory Paper B?
Candidates must score at least 25%, which equals 75 marks out of 300. Marks obtained in Paper B are qualifying only and are not added to the 1,750-mark written merit total.
Are the marks of Paper B counted for UPSC CSE final merit?
No. Paper A (Indian Language) and Paper B (English) are qualifying papers. However, UPSC evaluates the remaining seven merit papers (Essay, GS 1–4, and Optional 1–2) only if a candidate qualifies in both language papers.
What was the essay word limit in UPSC Mains 2026 English Compulsory?
The word limit was approximately 600 words for a 100-mark essay, with four choices available spanning sports, philosophy, social media influencer culture, and global peace.
Where can I download the official UPSC Mains 2026 question paper PDFs?
You can download the paper from UPSCYatra English Compulsory PDF and from the official UPSC portal under Examinations → Previous Question Papers on upsc.gov.in.