- General Studies and General Abilities
- Current affairs of regional, national and international importance; general science and developments in science and technology; environmental issues and disaster management; world, Indian and Telangana geography; Indian history and cultural heritage; society, the Constitution and governance; the Indian and Telangana economy; logical reasoning and data interpretation; and the Telangana movement and state formation.
- Core paper — civil engineering
- Strength of materials and structural analysis, reinforced concrete and steel design, fluid mechanics and hydraulics, water resources and irrigation engineering, geotechnical engineering, transportation engineering, surveying, environmental engineering, and construction planning and estimation. Irrigation and water resources carry particular weight in a state where the department is a major employer.
- Core paper — electrical engineering
- Circuits and network theory, electrical machines, power systems including generation, transmission, distribution and protection, control systems, measurements and instrumentation, power electronics and drives, and utilisation of electrical energy.
- Core paper — mechanical engineering
- Thermodynamics, heat transfer and applied thermal engineering, fluid mechanics and hydraulic machines, theory of machines and machine design, strength of materials, manufacturing processes, industrial and production engineering.
- Core paper — science and laboratory posts
- The relevant science discipline at degree level, with emphasis on analytical methods, laboratory practice, instrumentation and the regulatory framework the department works within.
- Core paper — accounts posts
- Accounting principles and practice, auditing, financial and treasury rules, government accounting and budgeting, and the service and financial regulations applying to state government accounts work.
The core syllabus for an engineering post is close to the standard undergraduate curriculum, which means graduation notes and standard texts remain the right material. What differs from a campus examination is the format — objective questions answered at speed, rewarding recall of formulae and standard results rather than long derivations.
The characteristic mistake in these recruitments is treating the core paper as revision and the general studies paper as the real work. It is usually the other way round. Core subjects were studied for a degree and can be rebuilt from a formula sheet in weeks; general studies and the state layer are accumulated over months and cannot be compressed. Start the slow half first, and use the core paper as the thing you revise while it accumulates.