A small video on Essay by Vikas Dhayal, of lessons that he learnt after checking 1000+ copies.
The point about anti-thesis is accurate. I second that!

Here is the link -
https://youtu.be/dkq0zwhu69E?si=Om5bykn3vEmSEHWv

कोई फ़र्क़ नहीं
सब कुछ जीत लेने में
और अंत तक हिम्मत न हारने में।

The end is near now! Keep fighting.
It's not over till it's over!

Here is the link to Comprehensive and detailed experience of Mains 2023 by Sujawal Jagga IPS (batch 2022). He has covered the things in a holistic manner by using self prepared slides. More videos incoming in the series!
Do give your valuable review on the video.

https://youtu.be/wIHWtWrDfhY?si=KciXyoebAGi8XR2i

Giving a perspective on Cadre !
For my first timer interview friends, a lot of people follow few tricks and tactics! And these all are perfectly moral and ethical, I am listing them here just so everyone knows about it and the game becomes a bit fair. I am not endorsing them or recommending them, just for your information. Some of them are as follows -
1. Giving Home state as some other state and keeping the required 'real home state' as 1st preference. So they can get outsider seat, which is mostly more than insider seats!
(Mostly coz in my year, AGMUT outsider finished faster than AGMUT insider)
2. Entering Sikkim as 1st preference in North East zone, logic is that Sikkim has either 0 or 1 seat and someone would have taken it, and their whole zone will skip for one time. Otherwise if you put West Bengal or Assam Meghalaya, they have a lot of seats and if you're not in top 20/30 of your service, chances are that you will get them.
3. Kindly go through Cadre wise vacancies of both IAS and IPS, and put your most preferred choices in that order.

Now coming to my experience!
It was my first interview and I had no exposure to all these at that time, I went through many DAF sessions, and ultimately filled the best I could. Although deep down, I just wanted a rank and was whole heartedly ready to serve in any cadre! Cadre was my least of the worry at that time.

Also, there's nothing like good cadre or best cadre. All cadres have their pros and cons. It depends on your perspective on life and how important your home state is. In my case, I am from Bihar and I have never really lived in Bihar except childhood, and have a little less State identity.
Some things that I wish I would have changed although it wouldn't have made any difference.
1. I had made an order as if I was getting rank 1, so my first five were - Jharkhand (homestate) - rajasthan - MP - karnataka - Assam meghalaya.
Problem with this order is that, rajasthan MP are very high in demand states, and get finished quickly, karnataka in IPS usually has zero seats, but in 2022 bumper seats came in MP and I got MP, otherwise I was ready to serve in Assam Meghalaya with all my heart.

2. If I wanted Bihar, I should have put Jharkhand as my home state and put Bihar as 1st choice, I definitely would have gotten it, but sadly at that moment I didnt want to put Jharkhand as my last preference, so I filled Jharkhand as 1st only and Bihar became my 6th preference!


Concluding remarks - Fill your cadres carefully considering that you might be getting a lower rank in your service coz now even 1 marks will lower ranks by 4-5 places! Put your most preferred states in first two, then, state that you'd settle for in 3rd and 4th and which have seats as well, then state you won't regret in 5th.

I am uploading my cadre preference as well, but it's not a very well researched or prudent, it's rather novice!

Also, you will waste a lot of time on cadre research and ultimately arrive to conclusion that I'll fill what my heart wants. I apologize I can't solve your confusions and dilemmas individually, it's better done in Pre-CSPT telegram groups.

Issues in the tactics -
1) You may get asked on your Home state, so you'll have to prepare a whole new state! That's huge load.
2) Every year you see someone in 20-40 rank going to Sikkim, because they filled sikkim as first choice in NE zone, thinking it'll get skipped, but one seat came and they got it.
(No offence to Sikkim, I reiterate there are no good or bad cadres, each have their pros and cons)

With personality test (PT) approaching fast (likely in 2nd week of January - guessing based on previous trends), it is a good time to start preparing and planning for CSPT, in that context, here are some relevant links for CSPT-2023:

Guidelines for DAF-II
Here
Here

Compilation of Interview Transcripts
Here

Introduction to CSPT Process:
Pdf here
Youtube video here

Special Session on CSPT with Simran (her intro)
Session link Here

CSPT Process decoded
Pdf here

Hope that helps :)
~ Kaptaan 🙏