TNPSC GROUP 2 & 2A PRELIMS · 01.11.2026 · TAMIL PAPER SOURCE MAP
58 of the 100 Tamil questions traced to the exact textbook page
Book, standard and page number for every one. The other 42 did not come from a school textbook at all — and that is the number worth planning around.
100 வினாக்களில் 58 வினாக்கள் பாடநூலில் அடையாளம் கண்டுள்ளோம். மீதமுள்ள 42 வினாக்கள் பாடநூலுக்கு வெளியே.
|
100 QUESTIONS CHECKED |
58 FROM TEXTBOOKS |
42 FROM OUTSIDE |
64% FROM 8TH-10TH |
The headline, stated plainly
Our research team took the Pothu Tamil paper of 01.11.2026 and worked backwards from each of its 100 questions to the book it came from. Fifty-eight resolved to a Tamil Nadu State Board textbook with the standard and page recorded. Forty-two did not.
That is the finding that matters. The General Studies paper of the same exam was anchored far more firmly in the school books. The Tamil paper is not — a candidate who prepares from textbooks alone will walk into 42 questions with nothing to fall back on.
| Item | Detail |
| Paper checked | Combined Civil Services Examination-II, Prelims, 01.11.2026 |
| Section | Pothu Tamil — questions 101 to 200 of the paper |
| Traced to textbooks | 58 — 55 direct page matches, 3 related-concept matches |
| Outside the textbooks | 42, including one from government material |
| Standards covered | 6th to 12th, including 12th Advance Tamil |
| What is recorded | Book, standard, term, iyal and page number, with the edition where it differs |
Which standard the sources came from
Counted as source citations, not questions. Five questions cite two books each and are counted in both; two questions have a textbook page but no standard recorded. 58 − 2 + 5 = 61.
| Standard | Sources | Share |
| 10th Standard | 14 | 23% |
| 8th Standard | 13 | 21% |
| 9th Standard | 12 | 20% |
| 12th Standard | 10 | 16% |
| 6th Standard | 9 | 15% |
| 11th Standard | 2 | 3% |
| 7th Standard | 1 | 2% |
Standards 8, 9 and 10 together supply 39 of the 61 sources — just under two-thirds. 7th and 11th Standard contributed three questions between them. If time is short, that tells you exactly which books to leave until last.
New edition or old — this one costs marks
| Edition cited | Questions |
| New edition only | 36 |
| Old edition only | 14 |
| Both new and old | 2 |
| Edition not stated | 4 |
| Textbook page found, no citation typed | 2 |
Sixteen questions need an old-edition book.
Fourteen cite an old edition alone, and two cite both. A candidate holding only the current Samacheer editions cannot open the page those sixteen questions came from. For Tamil, keeping the older editions on the shelf is not nostalgia — it is sixteen marks.
16 வினாக்கள் பழைய பதிப்பு நூலை மேற்கோள் காட்டுகின்றன.
Four things worth acting on
One page gave five questions. Page 44 of the 12th Standard new Tamil book was the source for questions 39, 40, 41, 42 and 43 — five in a row, from a single page. Nothing else in the paper comes close.
Advance Tamil is live territory. The 12th Standard Advance Tamil book supplied three questions. Most Group 2 candidates never open it, because it is an optional-subject book.
Eight pages gave two questions each. 10th pages 50, 90 and 8; 9th pages 84 and 19; 8th pages 79, 66 and 90. Worth marking in your own copy.
The 42 outside questions cluster. Most are ilakkanam, marabu-thodar, and matching a work to its author. No textbook chapter covers them as a set — previous-year question practice is the only efficient route.
The forty-two that did not come from the textbooks
All 42 are printed in full in the source book, in Part 2, each with the original question as it appeared in the paper. Where we have found supporting material outside the school books, that is shown alongside.
Work in progress — the outside-the-textbook sources are still being traced.
We have confirmed that these 42 are not in the school books, and we are still working through where each one did come from. This section will grow as each source is confirmed. Check back, or follow the question paper page for updates.
பாடநூலுக்கு வெளியே வந்த வினாக்களின் மூல ஆய்வுப் பணி தொடர்ந்து நடந்து வருகிறது.
Why we are publishing the uncomfortable number.
Forty-two per cent outside the textbooks is not a flattering figure for a source map, and it would be easy to lead with the 58 and leave it there. But a candidate planning from this page needs to know that finishing every Tamil textbook still leaves a large part of the paper unaddressed.
Download the Tamil source book
All 100 questions · typed in Tamil · the textbook citation, the original question and the textbook page for each
Every question is typed out with its four options, followed by a screenshot of the paper as printed and a screenshot of the book page it came from. Part 1 holds the 58 textbook questions, Part 2 the 42 from outside. Free, no sign-up, no email wall.
100 வினாக்களும் தமிழில்; மூல வினாத்தாள் படமும் பாடநூல் பக்கப் படமும் இணைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளன. முற்றிலும் இலவசம்.
தமிழ் மூல நூல் — PDF (60 பக்கங்கள்)
60 pages · 6.7 MB · TAU-Paalai typeface
The General Studies source map, the paper and the key
We ran the same exercise on the General Studies half of this paper. The full question paper and our answer key for all 200 questions are on a separate page.
General Studies Source Book Question Paper & Answer Key 86 of 200 Were Already Ours
The books that follow these sources
| Book | Why, from this map | Price |
| TNPSC Pothu Tamil Question Bank | 42 questions sat outside the textbooks. Past questions are the only efficient way to meet them. | ₹599 |
| TNPSC Group 2 / 2A Books 2026 | The complete set for this exam — General Studies and Pothu Tamil together. | ₹5,964 |
| TNPSC PYQ 4 Books Set 2026 | For the General Studies half of the same paper, unit by unit. | ₹999 |
| TNPSC Group 1 Books 2026 | For candidates writing Group 1 as well — same textbook base, wider coverage. | ₹3,574 |
Free delivery on orders above ₹1,999.
What to do next
Finish the 8th, 9th and 10th Tamil books first — they carry nearly two-thirds of the textbook sources. Keep your old-edition copies for the sixteen questions that need them. Then stop reading textbooks and start on previous-year questions, because that is the only preparation that reaches the 42 the books do not cover.
8, 9, 10 ஆம் வகுப்பு தமிழ் நூல்களை முதலில் படியுங்கள். பின்னர் முந்தைய ஆண்டு வினாக்கள்.
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Source map prepared by Athiyaman Academy, Coimbatore, against the Pothu Tamil paper of the Group 2 and 2A Preliminary examination of 01.11.2026. Fifty-eight questions were resolved to a Tamil Nadu State Board textbook and forty-two to material outside the school books. A question supported by two books is counted once as a question and twice as a source, which is why 58 questions carry 61 sources. Page numbers follow the edition stated. Where a page number or an attribution is disputed, write to us and we will check it and correct the page. This page is a study aid.