Aspiring Civil Service Officers have to pass the UPSC Prelims, a highly competitive and tough examination, to move forward in their Civil Services journey. The UPSC Prelims has two papers – General Studies Paper-I and Paper-II. Paper-II, also known as the Civil Services Aptitude Test or CSAT, is conducted to test the candidate’s reasoning, analytical, and comprehension abilities.
In 2011, the UPSC introduced a rule stating that Paper-II would be qualifying in nature and candidates require only 33% of marks to qualify for the next level, i.e., UPSC Mains. However, this decision was met with significant protests in many parts of India, especially among the Tamil-speaking population in the South because algebraic problems in Paper-II were difficult to understand.
In 2020, the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly passed a resolution requesting the Centre to exempt Tamil language from the Civil Services exam and instead include it as an optional subject. After considering the request, the Centre allowed Tamil to be an optional subject for UPSC Prelims and Mains.
Now, the question arises, is Tamil Optional the Key to ACING UPSC Prelims? The answer to this question is, Yes.
There are several advantages of choosing Tamil language as an optional subject for UPSC Prelims:
1. Easier to Grasp: Tamil is the mother language of more than 60 million people in India. It is much easier for one to understand and make sense of Tamil language, both grammatically and conceptually.
2. Scoring Subject: The Tamil language paper in UPSC Mains is scoring and easy to prepare if one is well-versed in the language.
3. Additional Support to Tamil Students: Tamil language as an optional subject in UPSC Prelims and Mains will help Tamil students to compete with the rest of India on a level playing field.
4. Higher Pass Rates: Tamil language as a subject in UPSC Prelims and Mains will increase the overall passing rate, as it will give a fair chance to candidates who are well-versed in Tamil.
5. Improved Diversity: The Tamil language as an optional subject in UPSC Prelims and Mains will improve diversity in the Civil Services, as Tamil-speaking candidates would have more opportunities.