Ace Indian Economic Service (IES) Exam with Ecoholics
Curious about a career in serving the nation through your command in economics? Every year UPSC conducts the Indian Economic Service (IES) examination which can be your gateway to shaping India’s future. Managed by the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, the IES is a prestigious Group ‘A’ Central Service that integrates professional economic analysis into government policy-making and evaluation.
IES officers are involved in a variety of sectors across 72 Ministries and Departments, including finance, health, agriculture, and infrastructure. Interested in preparing for the IES exam? Explore test series, IES exam batch details, and personalized mentorship sessions with Ecoholics below.
Understanding the Indian Economic Service (IES) Examination
- The Indian Economic Service (IES / Service) is an organized Group ‘A’ Central Service.
- The Service aims to institutionalize professional capacity for conducting economic analysis within the Government.
- This economic analysis is utilized for designing and formulating development policies, strengthening delivery systems, and monitoring and evaluating public programs.
- The Cadre Controlling Authority of the IES is the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance.
- The Service is managed based on the Indian Economic Service Rules, which are amended from time to time.
Role of an IES officer
- Economic Advisory and Administration.
- Wide-ranging Government Sectors
- Reforms and Regulations
- Ministry/Department Involvement
- Policy-Related Input
- Compliance Responsibilities
- Collaboration with the Finance Ministry
Eligibility Criteria
- A candidate must have attained the age of 21 years and must not have attained the age of 30 years on 1st August 2024
The upper age limit prescribed above will be relaxable as follows:-
- up to a maximum of five years if a candidate belongs to a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe;
- up to a maximum of three years in the case of candidates belonging to Other Backward Classes who are eligible to avail of reservation applicable to such candidates;
- A candidate for the Indian Economic Service must have obtained a Post-Graduate Degree in Economics/Applied Economics/Business Economics/Econometrics from a University incorporated by of an Act of the Central or State Legislature in India or other Educational Institutes established by an Act Parliament or declared to be deemed as University under Section 3 of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956 or a Foreign University approved by the Central Government from time to time.
- Candidates must be physically fit according to physical standards for admission given in official notification.
- Check the nationality eligibility, apart from Indian, and other details on the official website.
Pattern of IES:
Note: ALL QUESTION PAPERS MUST BE ANSWERED IN ENGLISH; QUESTION PAPERS WILL BE SET IN ENGLISH ONLY.
Syllabus
General English: Candidates will be required to write an essay in English. Other questions will be designed to test their understanding of English and workman-like use of words. Passages will usually be set for summary or precis.
General studies: General knowledge including knowledge of current events and of such matters of everyday observation and experience in their scientific aspects as may be expected of an educated person who has not made a special study of any scientific subject. The paper will also include questions on Indian Polity including the political system and the Constitution of India, History of India and Geography of a nature which a candidate should be able to answer without special study.
Books and Reference Material
Microeconomics Theory ( Hal Varian or HL Ahuja or Walter Nicholsen )
Microeconomics Advanced and Application based ( Schaum’s outline )
Statistics & Econometrics ( Damodar N Gujrati or Schaum’s outline )
Macroeconomics ( Richard T Froyen )
Environmental Economics ( Charles Kolstad , Subhashini Muthukrish
nan or Rabindra N Bhattacharya)
International Economics ( Dominick Salvatore or Paul Krugman )
Indian Economy Performance and Policies – Uma Kapila
Economic Survey and Union budget of India
Journals and Reports from Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
Economic and Political Weekly (EPW)
Online Platforms
Important Books for Indian Economic Service Exam
Indian Economic Service PYQs
Let's strategize with Ecoholics
Ecoholic is the one-stop solution for everything required to clear the examination. Our dedicated team of experts and years of experience should suffice in fulfilling your dream. We provide three Ts, the basic building blocks, Test papers of previous year, Test Series and Teaching experts. These experts are here to help you understand the intricacies of the subject, they would enhance your knowledge and understanding of the topics.
Connecting complex topics with a real life scenario is considered to be the best mode of understanding. We apply a similar procedure, aligned with one-to-one mentorship and doubt-clearing sessions. Test series and study material arrives at your doorstep, and knowledge is at your fingertips. We at Ecoholics are happy to help you achieve your dream and dedicated to provide India with the best economics experts.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
An IES aspirant must possess a Postgraduate degree in Economics, Applied Economics, Business Economics, or Econometrics from a recognized Indian University. Deemed to be a university, or a foreign university approved by the Central Government of India from time to time.
Also, the aspirant must be a citizen of India or a subject of Nepal, Bhutan, or a Tibetan refugee who came to India before January 1, 1962. He/she can also be a person from Indian origin who migrated to India from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka or Eastern African countries with the intention of permanently settling in India.
Aspirants must belong to the age group of 21 to 30 years as on August 1 of the year of examination. However, there are exceptions for certain categories of candidates.
The role of an Indian Economic Service (IES) officer can be categorised as imperative for economic development of the country. IES officer provides economic advice, helps in economic administration, development, monitoring and implementation of economic programmes.
They also work closely with economic reforms, regulation, price fixation, monitoring and evaluation. IES officers assist the Ministry of Finance in preparing annual and periodic statements compatible with the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management of the nation. They practically spearhead the reforms and innovations in the economic domain as per the vision of the government.
An Indian Economic Service officer has bright career prospects. They can work in various domestic and international organisations like the UN bodies, foreign governments, state governments and other regulatory bodies. An IES officer can also get promoted to higher grades and designations like Deputy Director, Assistant Economic Advisor, Senior Research Officer, Director,Joint Secretary, Additional Secretary, etc.
The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Indian Economic Service cut off is announced after considering various factors. The difficulty level of the exam, the number of candidates appeared in the exam, current vacancies for IES, also what the previous year’s cut off was.
The salary structure for an Indian Economic Service (IES) officer in 2023 is based on the post of the candidate and area of designation. The Junior Time Scale Officer / Assistant Director / Research Officer pay scale is INR 15,600 – 39,100 plus Grade Pay: 5,400. Beyond this the officers are provided with Dearness allowance, Travel Allowance, and HRA.
Note: This salary scale can change from time to time.
Both Indian Economic Service (IES) and Indian Statistical Service (ISS) come under administrative inter-ministerial civil services of the Indian government’s executive branch. Since the inception of economic reforms in 1991, the area of analysing and providing recommendations within the service area have multiplied. Moreover it has expanded into a regulatory role of the government.
Originally the Indian Economic Service exam was introduced for formulating and implementing economic policies and programmes of India. In the case of Indian Statistical Service, all the statistical posts of different ministries and departments were amalgamated together in the initial constitution of the service.
