CHENNAI: Job aspirants who face difficulty in writing descriptive answers in competitive exams can now be at ease, as the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission (TNPSC) has decided to conduct the main examinations for group-IIA posts in multiple-choice question (MCQ) format.
Previously, only the preliminary exams for groups I & II and group IV main exams were conducted in this format. Additionally, the commission has announced the discontinuation of interviews for group-II posts, specifying that only marks obtained in the main (descriptive) examination will be considered for ranking and filling posts.
The group-IIA category now includes posts such as the commissioner of municipality, executive officer of town panchayats, revenue assistant in the revenue department, assistant section officer in the secretariat, assistant inspector in the local fund audit department, among others.
The group-II category encompasses positions such as sub registrar, junior employment officer, special assistant in DVAC, special branch assistant in intelligence and CID, assistant inspector of labour, and other roles.
A TNPSC member told TNIE that an expert committee comprising professors and others recommended the changes after assessing the required skills and qualifications for the posts.
“The group-II syllabus will be slightly less extensive than group-I, while group-IIA will be an upgraded version of group-IV syllabus,” said the official. He clarified that the knowledge required for group-II will be much broader, with standards nearly matching those of group-I.
TNPSC secretary S Gopala Sundara Raj has advised job aspirants to follow the revised syllabus issued on Monday while preparing for group II and IIA exams. The commission is expected to issue a notification for filling 2,030 vacancies on June 28, according to the annual planner.
As per the revised syllabus, the main exams for group-IIA will now include intelligence and reasoning questions for 60 marks out of a total of 300. Additionally, 150 marks will be allocated for general studies, and 90 for language (general Tamil or general English). All 200 questions will be in MCQ format, each carrying 1.5 marks.
Similarly, for group-II mains, all topics listed for group I, including environment, bio-diversity, and science and technology, have been included, except for ethics. Previously, the main exams for both group II and IIA consisted solely of general studies for 300 marks. There will be no changes to the preliminary and mandatory Tamil language exams for both group II and IIA.
“Abolishing the interview for group-II will indeed bring transparency to the selection process and expedite appointments. This year, the interview process for 400 group-II posts caused a huge confusion during the release of rank lists,” said A Rajesh Kumar, an aspirant.