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The section of Current Affairs in CLAT is one of the most contentious and talked about amongst all the sections, primarily because of its utter vastness and somewhat unpredictability. Proper preparation for this section can ensure good marks within a short span of time, as what this section is absolutely not is time-taking, while inadequate preparation can lead to losing out on crucial marks which could otherwise highly boost up one’s obtained marks and subsequent ranking. So, it is very important, in my opinion, to prepare for this section properly and systematically in order to successfully ace it.

One of the foremost things to do for the preparation of the Current Affairs section is to read a newspaper daily, most preferably the Indian Express or the Hindu and to go through the paper thoroughly, although not taking an undue amount of time to finish reading it. This kind of time-bound reading of the newspaper will have a two-fold benefit: it would help to increase the reading speed, a must for the CLAT exam, and it would also develop the ability of eclectic reading. But, it is not just sufficient to read the news articles. After reading the news of the day, one has to make proper, detailed notes of the events and happenings covered in the news, including all the relevant and necessary background and associated information. This is to be done for the reason that post the change in the CLAT pattern, the new pattern entails the knowledge of a limited number of events in their entirety, instead of knowing of quite a many headlines. However, the limited nature of events must not give out the notion that one’s preparation should also be limited in scope and the preparation must be kept as varied and diversified as possible. The writing down of detailed notes of the events would also facilitate better understanding and remembering, apart from a systematic archiving for quick, future references.

Apart from the daily readings of the newspaper, one can also subscribe to reliable and notable magazines on a monthly basis such as Pratiyogita Darpan, Yojana and the Economic and Political Weekly, to read and know about the important happenings of the month, however one should also make one’s own notes from such readings to aid in better understanding. This would also help in listing out all the important events on a monthly basis. Further, the importance of revision for the Current Affairs section can never be emphasised enough and although regular, monthly revisions during the course of preparation can be sufficient, the frequency needs to be enhanced to twice or thrice a month in the immediate 1-2 months prior to the CLAT exam. Revision assumes an important role in the preparation of the current affairs section because it basically involves the imbibing and accumulation of a large volume of information and if the knowledge previously acquired is not refreshed through timely revision, then there is a chance of it being forgotten. So, revision is an absolute necessity.

Another thing to do is to practice passage-based questions based upon the news events and happenings being covered. This also has a two-fold benefit as apart from aiding in the preparation through the practice of actual CLAT-type questions, it also helps in getting an idea about the type of questions that can be expected from a particular news event and this can be immensely beneficial in strategic preparation by helping one to focus on the important aspects of an event, and leave out the dimensions which are irrelevant in the context of CLAT. while there is usually a dearth of quality materials to practice passage-based questions from, the compendium material of Acing CLAT for Current Affairs is one such quality source whose precise and to the point materials and questions can enhance the level of preparation manifold.

One should also not leave out on covering the important and notable awards and prizes which are given out every year in various fields around the world and domestically such as the Nobel Prize, the Pulitzer Prize, the Academy Awards, the Padma Awards, the National Film Awards, the Bharat Ratna, the Man Booker Prize, the Ramon Magsaysay Awards etc. apart from knowing about the recipients of these awards and honours, one must also know about the reasons behind them being bestowed with such awards apart from the relevant history, background, importance and purpose of such awards and prizes.

One of the things to avoid during the preparation of this section is reading from too many sources of information as it leads to haphazard work and compromises on the quality of the preparation. One must limit oneself to a few good sources of newspapers and monthly magazines and read only from them to ensure that the preparation is done properly and more time is spent on effective preparation instead of just voluminous reading from a large number of sources without proper understanding, which does not add any real value. Another thing to avoid is devoting too much time to the Current Affairs preparation. Since the scope of this section is virtually endless, aspirants often tend to devote a major chunk and portion of their preparation time upon this section, which leads to a lack of adequate preparation for the rest of the sections, ultimately leading to an imbalance in the groundwork for the D Day of CLAT. Time Management is the key to acing the CLAT exam and so one must always try to devote a reasonable and optimum amount of time to all the sections and not devote an undue amount of time to the Current Affairs section alone, for with timely revisions and regular readings, this section can be dealt with without giving it the majority of study time.

On a concluding note, proper practice and extensive reading are the keys to securing a good score in this section. There is no real limit to the amount of information out there in the world, such is the vast nature of the section of current affairs, but with the systematic preparation and strategic smart work, this section can also be successfully braved.