SSC CGL Exam Analysis 5 October 2026 — Shift 2
SSC CGL 2026 Tier 1 · 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM IST · Updated 5 Oct, 7:45 pm IST
The afternoon paper was reported as easy to moderate by most candidate interviews and as moderate by others, while the survey leaned difficult. Quant was heavy on Advanced Maths, with several circle questions, and the sectional timer cut into attempts. Reasoning had some confusing statement-based questions. General Awareness was easy to moderate with very little current affairs, and English had a long reading passage early on. One centre reported a system shutdown, with the timer resuming afterwards.
Section-wise difficulty and good attempts
| Section | Qs | Difficulty | Good attempts |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Intelligence & Reasoning | 25 | Moderate | 18–25 |
| General Awareness | 25 | Easy to Moderate | — |
| Quantitative Aptitude | 25 | Moderate to Difficult | 17–20 |
| English Comprehension | 25 | Moderate | — |
Topics asked, section by section
General Intelligence & Reasoning
ModerateSome statement-based questions confused candidates, and a blood relation question with 4 statements was skipped by many. There were 2–3 matrix questions and 1 seating question.
- Statement-based questions →
- Blood relation (4 statements)
- Matrix · 2–3
- Coding-decoding →
- Input-output
- Seating arrangement · 1 →
General Awareness
Easy to ModerateMixed static GK with very little current affairs. Reports on the polity and economy share conflict. Science had about 2–3 biology questions and 1 physics question.
- 1991 reforms, Five-Year Plans →
- 11th Schedule (Panchayat) →
- Space technology · 2
- Biology and physics · 3–4
- Sports (Asian Games, Grand Slam), Nobel, an index ranking →
Quantitative Aptitude
Moderate to DifficultHeavy on Advanced Maths and lengthy. Circles had 4–5 questions. No Data Interpretation or statistics was reported. Candidates said the 15-minute lock cut their attempts.
English Comprehension
ModerateA lengthy unseen passage came early. There were 3 sentence-rearrangement (PQRS) questions, voice and narration, a cloze test with clause identification and the idiom 'dark horse'. Vocabulary was from previous-year words and the error-spotting questions were short.
- Voice and narration →
- Cloze test →
- Sentence rearrangement (PQRS) · 3
- Error spotting →
- Vocabulary and idioms →
Topics with an arrow link to our free notes and practice questions for that topic.
Questions asked (memory-based)
What candidates recalled after the shift, reworded. Exact wording and options may differ from the real paper.
General Awareness
- Questions on the Five-Year Plans and the 1991 reforms (LPG).
- A question on the 11th Schedule (Panchayat).
- About 2 questions on space technology.
- A statement-type question on the biosphere.
English Comprehension
- The idiom 'dark horse' (as recalled by candidates).
Quantitative Aptitude
- 4–5 circle questions, plus triangles, trigonometry and mensuration.
What candidates noticed
- One centre reported a system shutdown during the paper, after which the timer resumed. Some candidates also reported mouse or PC hangs. These are centre-level reports.
- A candidate survey (328 responses) reported an average of about 83 attempts and an average score near 133, and 61% of respondents called it more difficult than last year. The sample is self-selected.
Where reviews disagree
- Overall difficulty: candidate interviews said easy to moderate or moderate, while the survey leaned difficult (61% difficult, 35% same, 4% easy).
- General Awareness: reports about the polity and economy questions conflict, with some candidates recalling more of them than others.
- Attempts: candidates claimed anywhere from 70 to 97 attempts, so there is no single good-attempts figure.
Other shifts on 5 October
Sources
Compiled and cross-checked from candidate reviews and coaching-institute analyses. Figures are unofficial until SSC releases the answer key.
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FAQs
How was the SSC CGL 5 October 2026 Shift 2 paper?
Candidates rated the 5 October 2026 Shift 2 paper Moderate overall. The afternoon paper was reported as easy to moderate by most candidate interviews and as moderate by others, while the survey leaned difficult. Quant was heavy on Advanced Maths, with several circle questions, and the sectional timer cut into attempts. Reasoning had some confusing statement-based questions. General Awareness was easy to moderate with very little current affairs, and English had a long reading passage early on. One centre reported a system shutdown, with the timer resuming afterwards.
What are good attempts for SSC CGL 5 October 2026 Shift 2?
Around Not reliably reported (candidates claimed 70–97) out of 100 questions, going by candidate and coaching-institute reviews. Accuracy matters more than raw attempts because of the 0.50 negative marking.
Which General Intelligence & Reasoning topics were asked in SSC CGL 5 October 2026 Shift 2?
General Intelligence & Reasoning was Moderate. Topics reported: Statement-based questions, Blood relation (4 statements), Matrix (2–3), Coding-decoding, Input-output, Seating arrangement (1).
Which General Awareness topics were asked in SSC CGL 5 October 2026 Shift 2?
General Awareness was Easy to Moderate. Topics reported: 1991 reforms, Five-Year Plans, 11th Schedule (Panchayat), Space technology (2), Biology and physics (3–4), Sports (Asian Games, Grand Slam), Nobel, an index ranking.
Which Quantitative Aptitude topics were asked in SSC CGL 5 October 2026 Shift 2?
Quantitative Aptitude was Moderate to Difficult. Topics reported: Geometry: circles and triangles (4–5 on circles), Trigonometry, Mensuration, Percentage, profit and loss, commission, partnership.
Which English Comprehension topics were asked in SSC CGL 5 October 2026 Shift 2?
English Comprehension was Moderate. Topics reported: Voice and narration, Cloze test, Sentence rearrangement (PQRS) (3), Error spotting, Vocabulary and idioms.
What was the difficulty level of SSC CGL 2026 Tier 1 on 5 October?
Shift 1 was reported as easy to moderate or moderate. Shift 2 was reported as easy to moderate or moderate, though a survey leaned difficult. Shift 3 was reported as moderate to difficult by the reviewers we found, but a small survey disagreed. All of this is unofficial.
How many good attempts were there on 5 October 2026?
For Shift 3 reviewers put it at about 77–85 out of 100. For Shifts 1 and 2 there is no reliable estimate, because individual candidates claimed anything from about 70 to 97 attempts. These are unofficial.
Which Quant topics were asked on 5 October?
Circles and other geometry, trigonometry, mensuration (prism, cone, pyramid, sphere, hemisphere), algebra, time and work and percentage-based arithmetic were reported. Data Interpretation was reported in Shift 3 but not in Shift 2.
Is the 15-minute sectional timer still in force?
Yes. Each section locks after 15 minutes and you cannot return to it, so skipping long questions early is important, especially in Quant.
Will a tougher shift lower my final score?
No. SSC normalises scores across shifts, so candidates in a harder shift are not penalised compared with those in an easier one.