Topic-wise Quote Bank for UPSC Essays
Education & Knowledge
"Education is the manifestation of the perfection already in man."
— Swami Vivekananda
"Learning gives creativity, creativity leads to thinking, thinking provides knowledge,
knowledge makes you great."
— A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world."
— Nelson Mandela
Democracy, Governance & Constitution
"Constitution is not a mere lawyer’s document, it is a vehicle of Life, and its spirit is
always the spirit of Age."
— B.R. Ambedkar
"Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high… into that heaven of
freedom, my Father, let my country awake."
— Rabindranath Tagore
"Democracy is the government of the people, by the people, for the people."
— Abraham Lincoln
Social Justice, Equality & Inclusion
"I measure the progress of a community by the degree of progress which women
have achieved."
— B.R. Ambedkar
"The true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable
members."
— Mahatma Gandhi
"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."
— Martin Luther King Jr.
Ethics, Integrity & Values
"A person should not be too honest. Straight trees are cut first and honest people are
screwed first."
— Chanakya
"In the happiness of his subjects lies the king’s happiness."
— Kautilya
"There is no God higher than Truth."
— Mahatma Gandhi
Technology & Human Values
"Science is a beautiful gift to humanity; we should not distort it."
— A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity."
— Albert Einstein
"Technology must be inclusive and not exacerbate the digital divide."
— Raghuram Rajan
Youth & Demographic Dividend
"My faith is in the younger generation, the modern generation. Out of them will
come my workers."
— Swami Vivekananda
"Dream, dream, dream. Dreams transform into thoughts and thoughts result in
action."
— A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
"A society that cuts itself off from its youth severs its lifeline."
— Kofi Annan
Women Empowerment & Gender Equality
"Go, get education… be self-reliant, be industrious, work—gather wisdom and
riches."
— Savitribai Phule
"The highest education is that which does not merely give us information but makes
our life in harmony with all existence."
— Rabindranath Tagore
"We cannot all succeed when half of us are held back."
— Malala Yousafzai
Nationalism, Patriotism & Unity
"Give me blood and I will give you freedom."
— Subhas Chandra Bose
"We must have life-building, man-making, character-making assimilation of ideas."
— Swami Vivekananda
"Look at the sky. We are not alone. The whole universe is friendly to us and
conspires only to give the best to those who dream and work."
— A.P.J. Abdul Kalam