The Maharashtra Public Service Commission has simultaneously announced three significant structural changes to its examination system, including the removal of the optional subject from the State Service main examination, a shift to a two-paper pattern for preliminary tests, and the introduction of computer-based testing for the Gat-K combined preliminary examination 2026.
The optional subject, which earlier required candidates to answer 250 marks worth of questions from a chosen discipline, has been dropped from the Maharashtra Rajyaseva (Gat-A and Gat-B) combined preliminary examination. MPSC has justified the change by noting that candidates from Maharashtra were at a disadvantage compared to those from states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Haryana, Telangana and Madhya Pradesh, where optional subject preparation is more entrenched. Scoring disparities and difficulties in maintaining evaluation standards across subjects also prompted the decision.
Under the revised pattern — applicable from the 2025 prelim cycle — candidates will appear for two papers instead of one. The Gat-K combined prelim 2026, which covers 2,611 posts, will be conducted online via CB
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