Where to give the title in precis writing—at the beginning or at the end?

Well as long as i have done precis writing i have always written the heading on the top before beginning the paragraph. You should first prepare a draft of the precis, keeping in mind, the need to reduce the original to one-third its length. The main thoughts expressed in the passage, the ideas it contains, the opinions presented and the conclusion arrived at should figure in the rough draft. Unimportant things like the names of people and places and dates should not figure in it. It may so happen that your first draft is too long or that it sounds rather jerky. Shorten it if necessary and write out a careful second draft. Sometimes you may need to work out three or even four drafts, but with reasonable care and concentration, you should normally succeed in producing good precis writing by the second draft.