Old NCERT Books PDF (Class 6 to 12): Download the original pre-2005 Old NCERT textbooks for Ancient, Medieval, Modern & World History (Romila Thapar, R.S. Sharma, Satish Chandra, Bipin Chandra, Arjun Dev, Makkhan Lal), Old NCERT Geography (Savita Sinha, B.S. Parakh, M.H. Qureshi), and Science/Biology along with the latest 2026–27 New NCERT Books PDF for UPSC IAS, State PSC, CDS, CAPF, and SSC exams.
Looking for the latest 2026–27 NCERT Textbooks? Jump to All NCERT Books PDF (Class 1 to 12) or select your class directly: Class 6 · Class 7 · Class 8 · Class 9 · Class 10 · Class 11 · Class 12.
1. Old NCERT History Books PDF Download (Class 6 to 12 for UPSC)
The pre-2005 Old NCERT History series is the gold standard for UPSC Prelims and Mains GS Paper I because it presents a strictly chronological narrative of Ancient India, Medieval India, Modern Indian History, and World History. All direct PDF links and syllabus guides are listed in the table below:
| Class & Period | Old NCERT History Book & Author | Direct PDF Download | New 2026–27 NCERT Counterpart |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class 6 (Ancient India) | Ancient India — Romila Thapar (Old NCERT) View Chapter Syllabus & Notes → | Download PDF | Class 6 Social Science (2026–27) |
| Class 7 (Medieval India) | Medieval India — Romila Thapar (Old NCERT) View Chapter Syllabus & Notes → | Download PDF | Class 7 Social Science (2026–27) |
| Class 9 / 10 (World History I) | The Story of Civilization, Volume I — Arjun Dev | Download PDF | India & Contemporary World I |
| Class 10 (World History II) | The Story of Civilization, Volume II — Arjun Dev | Download PDF | India & Contemporary World II (PDF) |
| Class 11 (Ancient India) | Ancient India — R.S. Sharma (Classic UPSC Edition) | Download PDF | Themes in Indian History Part I (PDF) |
| Class 11 (Ancient India) | Ancient India — Makkhan Lal | Download PDF | Themes in World History Class 11 (PDF) |
| Class 11 (Medieval India) | Medieval India — Satish Chandra (Classic UPSC Edition) | Download PDF | Themes in Indian History Part II (PDF) |
| Class 12 (Modern India) | Modern India — Bipin Chandra (Classic UPSC Edition) | Download PDF | Themes in Indian History Part III (PDF) |
2. Old NCERT Geography & Biology Books PDF Download (Class 6 to 12)
The Lands and Peoples (Class 6–8) series covers continent-wise physical and human geography (Africa, South America, North America, Europe, Asia, Australia), which is frequently tested in UPSC Prelims map-based questions:
| Class | Old NCERT Geography / Science Book & Author | Direct PDF Download | New 2026–27 NCERT Counterpart |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class 6 | Lands and Peoples – Part 1 (Savita Sinha) | Download PDF | Class 6 Social Science |
| Class 7 | Lands and Peoples – Part 2 (Savita Sinha, Mohd. Akhtar Hussain) | Download PDF | Class 7 Social Science |
| Class 8 | Lands and Peoples – Part 3 (D.P. Gupta, Savita Sinha) | Download PDF | Class 8 Social Science |
| Class 9 | Understanding Environment (Ananta Padmanaban) | Download PDF | Contemporary India – I |
| Class 10 | Economic and Commercial Geography of India | Download PDF | Contemporary India – II (PDF) |
| Class 10 | Geography of India (B.S. Parakh) | Download PDF | Class 10 Geography Guide |
| Class 10 | India: Economic Geography (B.S. Parakh) | Download PDF | Class 10 All Books |
| Class 11 | Physical Basis of Geography | Download PDF | Fundamentals of Physical Geography (PDF) |
| Class 11 | Principles of Geography – Part 2 (M.H. Qureshi) | Download PDF | India: Physical Environment (PDF) |
| Class 12 | India: A General Geography (1990 Edition) | Download PDF | Fundamentals of Human Geography (PDF) |
| Class 12 | India: Resources and Regional Development (1993 Edition) | Download PDF | India: People and Economy (PDF) |
| Class 11 & 12 | NCERT Biology (Class 11 & 12 Complete Books) | Class 11 Biology PDF · Class 12 Biology PDF | Class 12 Biology Guide |
3. Old NCERT Books PDF in Hindi for UPSC (पुरानी NCERT पुस्तकें हिंदी में)
Hindi-medium UPSC aspirants read the same old NCERT history and geography books in their Hindi editions: Romila Thapar’s Prachin Bharat and Madhyakalin Bharat, Satish Chandra’s Madhyakalin Bharat and Bipan Chandra’s Adhunik Bharat. The PDFs below are scans of NCERT prints kept in the Digital Library of India collection on archive.org; the table gives the year of the scanned print and its page count.
| Class | Hindi Book & Author | Edition | English Edition (tables above) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class 6 | प्राचीन भारत (Prachin Bharat) — रोमिला थापर (Romila Thapar) | 1987 print, 189 pages | Download PDF | Ancient India — Romila Thapar |
| Class 7 | मध्यकालीन भारत (Madhyakalin Bharat) — रोमिला थापर (Romila Thapar) | 1988 print, 223 pages | Download PDF | Medieval India — Romila Thapar |
| Class 8 | आधुनिक भारत, सामाजिक विज्ञान भाग-1 (Adhunik Bharat) — अर्जुन देव (Arjun Dev) | 1989 print, 297 pages | Download PDF | — |
| Class 11 | प्राचीन भारत (Prachin Bharat) — मक्खन लाल (Makkhan Lal) | 2003 print | Download PDF | Ancient India — Makkhan Lal |
| Class 11 | मध्यकालीन भारत (Madhyakalin Bharat) — सतीश चंद्र (Satish Chandra) | 1978 print, 215 pages | Download PDF | Medieval India — Satish Chandra |
| Class 11 | मध्यकालीन भारत (Madhyakalin Bharat) — मीनाक्षी जैन (Meenakshi Jain) | 2003 print, 237 pages | Download PDF | — |
| Class 12 | आधुनिक भारत (Adhunik Bharat) — विपिन चंद्र (Bipan Chandra) | 1982 print, 264 pages | Download PDF | Modern India — Bipan Chandra |
| Class 6 (Geography) | देश और उनके निवासी भाग-1 (Desh aur Unke Nivasi) — सविता सिन्हा (Savita Sinha) | 1987 print | Download PDF | Lands and Peoples – Part 1 |
| Class 8 (Geography) | देश और उनके निवासी भाग-3 (Desh aur Unke Nivasi) — द्वारिका प्रसाद गुप्ता (D.P. Gupta), सं. | 1980 print | Download PDF | Lands and Peoples – Part 3 |
| Class 11 (Geography) | भारत का भूगोल खंड-2 (Bharat ka Bhugol) — कृष्ण लाल जोशी (K.L. Joshi) | 1971 print | Download PDF | — |
R.S. Sharma’s Prachin Bharat (the Hindi edition of his Class 11 Ancient India) is not in the archive yet, so it is not listed; his English edition is in the history table above. Two scans are large: Bipan Chandra’s Adhunik Bharat (139 MB) and Desh aur Unke Nivasi Part 3 (147 MB).
4. New NCERT Books for UPSC (Geography, History, Polity & Economics – Direct Full-Book PDFs)
For Geography, Indian Polity, Economy, and Art & Culture, UPSC toppers recommend combining Old NCERT History with the New NCERT Books (Class 6 to 12). Unlike slow ZIP archives, all full-book PDFs below download directly in one click:
| Class | Subject | New NCERT Textbook Title (2026–27) | Full Book PDF (English) | Full Book PDF (Hindi) | Chapter-Wise Page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class 6 | Social Science | Exploring Society: India and Beyond (NCF) | Download PDF | Hindi PDF | Class 6 Books |
| Class 7 | Social Science | Exploring Society: India and Beyond (Part 1 & 2) | Part 1 PDF · Part 2 PDF | Hindi PDF | Class 7 Books |
| Class 8 | Social Science | Exploring Society: India and Beyond (Class 8) | Download PDF | Hindi PDF | Class 8 Books |
| Class 9 | Social Science | Understanding Society: India and Beyond (NCF) | Download PDF | Hindi Chapters | View Chapters |
| Class 9 | History | India and the Contemporary World – I | Download PDF | Hindi Chapters | View Chapters |
| Class 10 | Geography | Contemporary India – II | Download PDF | Hindi PDF | View Chapters |
| Class 10 | History | India and the Contemporary World – II | Download PDF | Hindi PDF | View Chapters |
| Class 11 | Geography | Fundamentals of Physical Geography | Download PDF | Hindi PDF | View Chapters |
| Class 11 | Geography | India: Physical Environment | Download PDF | Hindi PDF | View Chapters |
| Class 11 | Polity | Indian Constitution at Work | Download PDF | Hindi PDF | View Chapters |
| Class 11 | Art & Culture | An Introduction to Indian Art – Part I | Download PDF | Hindi PDF | View Chapters |
| Class 12 | Geography | Fundamentals of Human Geography | Download PDF | Hindi PDF | View Chapters |
| Class 12 | Geography | India: People and Economy | Download PDF | Hindi Chapters | View Chapters |
| Class 12 | Polity | Politics in India Since Independence / Contemporary World Politics | India Politics PDF · World Politics PDF | Hindi PDF | View Chapters |
| Class 12 | Economics | Introductory Macroeconomics | Download PDF | Hindi PDF | View Chapters |
5. Old NCERT vs New NCERT Books: Which Should You Read for UPSC?
| Subject | Recommended NCERT Edition for UPSC / State PSC | Why? |
|---|---|---|
| Ancient & Medieval Indian History | Old NCERT (Class 11 R.S. Sharma & Satish Chandra) + Class 6–7 Romila Thapar | Strictly chronological, factual coverage of dynasties, administration, art, and society required for Prelims & GS-I. |
| Modern Indian History | Old NCERT (Class 12 Bipin Chandra) | Continuous narrative from 18th-century decline of Mughals to 1947 Independence. |
| World History | Old NCERT (Class 9–10 Story of Civilization Vol I & II by Arjun Dev) | Covers Renaissance, American/French/Industrial Revolutions, World Wars, and Cold War in one place. |
| Geography (Class 6 to 12) | New NCERT (Class 11–12 Physical & Human Geography) + Old NCERT Class 6–8 Lands and Peoples | New Class 11–12 books have clearer diagrams and updated Indian data; Old Class 6–8 covers continent-wise world mapping. |
| Indian Polity, Economy & Sociology | New NCERT (Class 9 to 12) | Reflects constitutional concepts, post-1991 economic reforms, and macroeconomic definitions accurately. |
How Old NCERT Books are different than New Ncert Books?
Old NCERT textbooks (pre-2005) follow a chronological, fact-dense narrative ideal for Ancient, Medieval, Modern, and World History in UPSC exams. New NCERT textbooks follow a thematic approach with richer diagrams and updated data, making them better suited for Geography, Polity, Economics, and Science.
Which books should be followed old or new NCERT books?
For History (Ancient India by R.S. Sharma, Medieval India by Satish Chandra, Modern India by Bipin Chandra, and Story of Civilization by Arjun Dev), follow the Old NCERT PDFs above. For Geography, Indian Polity, Economy, and Science, follow the New 2026-27 NCERT Books.
How to download Old NCERT Books PDF for free?
Click the direct Download PDF links in the Old NCERT History and Old NCERT Geography tables on this page to view or save the complete PDFs for Class 6 to 12 without registration.