Village Administrative Officer (VAO)
The Village Administrative Officer is a key post in the Revenue Department at the village level. The VAO is responsible for maintaining land records, collecting revenue, issuing certificates, and managing village-level administration under the Taluk office.
Exam Pattern
The TNPSC VAO exam is a single-paper objective-type test covering general studies, Tamil Nadu-specific topics, village administration, and aptitude.
- Single Paper — 200 Questions Objective-type MCQs in a single session
- Duration — 3 Hours 180 minutes to complete all 200 questions
- Total Marks — 300 Questions carry varying marks totalling 300
- Degree Standard Questions at graduate-level difficulty
- No Interview Selection based purely on written exam performance
Key Information
Essential eligibility and posting details for the VAO examination conducted by Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission.
- Eligibility — Any Degree Bachelor's degree from a recognised university
- Age Limit — 21 to 32 Years Relaxation applicable for reserved categories as per TN govt rules
- Department — Revenue Posting under the Revenue Department at the village level
- Apply Online Applications through tnpsc.gov.in
Core general knowledge covering science, history, polity, geography, economy, and current affairs at the degree level.
Physics, Chemistry, and Biology fundamentals — everyday science applications, scientific discoveries, health and nutrition, environmental science.
Ancient, Medieval, and Modern Indian History — Indus Valley Civilization, Maurya & Gupta empires, Mughal era, British rule, Indian National Movement, major reform movements.
Indian Constitution — Preamble, Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles, Union & State Government, Panchayati Raj, Judiciary, Election Commission, amendments.
Physical geography, Indian geography, climate, rivers, soil types, natural resources, agriculture, population distribution, urbanisation.
Economic planning, five-year plans, NITI Aayog, fiscal & monetary policy, banking, taxation, poverty alleviation schemes, GDP & national income.
National and international current affairs, awards, sports, important summits, government schemes, scientific achievements, appointments.
Focused coverage on Tamil Nadu's history, culture, geography, economy, and socio-political movements that shaped the state.
Sangam Age, Chola, Chera & Pandya dynasties, Pallava architecture, Bhakti movement, art forms (Bharatanatyam, Carnatic music), temple architecture, literary heritage.
Self-Respect Movement, Dravidian Movement, Justice Party, anti-Hindi agitation, contributions of E.V. Ramasamy Periyar, C.N. Annadurai, Kamaraj, role of Tamil Nadu in the Indian freedom struggle.
Physical features — Western & Eastern Ghats, rivers (Cauvery, Vaigai, Tamiraparani), soil types, climate zones, districts, major cities, natural resources.
Industrial development, IT corridor, automobile hub, textile industry, agriculture sector, government welfare schemes, state budget, GSDP, poverty alleviation programs.
Core administrative and revenue topics directly relevant to the VAO post — land records, village governance, and disaster management.
Revenue department hierarchy — District Collector, Revenue Divisional Officer, Tahsildar, Deputy Tahsildar, VAO. Revenue collection process, land revenue system, functions of the Revenue Department.
Types of land records in Tamil Nadu, survey and settlement operations, land classification (wet, dry, garden), FMB (Field Measurement Book), Adangal register, A-register, land reforms.
Patta — document of land ownership issued by the government. Chitta — document maintained by the Revenue Department showing land classification and ownership. Transfer of patta, sub-division, mutation process.
Panchayati Raj system, Village Panchayat, role of VAO in village governance, issuing certificates (nativity, income, community), census operations, election duties at village level.
Role of VAO during natural disasters (floods, cyclones, drought), relief distribution, damage assessment, coordination with NDRF/SDRF, disaster preparedness at grassroots level.
Quantitative aptitude and logical reasoning topics tested in the VAO examination.
Percentage calculations, successive percentages, ratio and proportion concepts, direct and inverse proportion, partnership problems.
Identifying patterns in number sequences, missing terms, BODMAS rule, simplification of complex expressions, square roots, cube roots, surds.
Work and time problems, pipes and cisterns, efficiency-based problems, work done by groups, alternate day work problems.
Cost price, selling price, profit/loss percentage, marked price, discount, successive discounts, dishonest dealings.
Mensuration — area and perimeter of triangles, rectangles, circles, trapeziums, parallelograms. Volume and surface area of cubes, cuboids, cylinders, cones, spheres.
Reading bar graphs, pie charts, line graphs, tables. Calculating averages, percentages, ratios from given data sets.
Coding and decoding, blood relations, direction sense, seating arrangements, syllogisms, analogies, odd one out, Venn diagrams, statement & conclusions.