Hello suhail!

As of now the class 10th exam datesheet has not been officially released by CBSE. Probably you will come to know about the exact dates in December 2026. But I can give you an estimate as per the past year datesheet (2025) your exams will be likely held in February/ march 2026. So this is the right time to start preparing for it consistently.

In social sciences both competency and textual question can be asked so you need to do prepare both. I will suggest going through NCERT books thoroughly and then solving the question given at the end of chapter as those questions are competency based mostly. You will gradually develop understanding and precision with practice.

Yes, the chapters that are asked in your periodic test will also be asked in annual board exams as they include the syllabus for whole year. For accurate weightage of each chapter I will recommend you to check the PYQs and sample question paper as they will help in you in grasping the importance of individual chapters.

Best of luck for your exam!