- Special Eligibility
- How was the ACIO 2012 paper?
- Static (theory) vs Current
- History
- Science (theory)
- Polity
- Geography
- Economy
- International Affairs/events
- Misc.GK/PIN/Awards/sports
- Sports
- Maths Reasoning English
- ACIO Job-Profile
- Computer certificate
- Epilogue
- Appendix: Download material for ACIO
Special Eligibility
All the conditions are given in the ACIO-2013 Notification itself (click me). However Iâd like to point out some important ones:
- For ACIO, the candidate must be Graduate on or before 12th August 2013. (Seems they copied the graduation-deadline concept from SSC-CGL 2013, because in ACIO-2012 notification was silent about this.)
- There is no reservation for physically handicapped (HH, OH, VH) persons.
- Those already in Government service/ PSU/Autonomous bodies: youâll need to show NOC from your employer, when youâre called for ACIO interview.
- Computer certificate is desirable (and not âcompulsoryâ) [plz scroll down to the end part for more on âcomputer certificateâ.]
- The Candidates willing to serve anywhere in India need to apply only.
So how is the ACIO paper?
Based on the ACIO 2012 question paper [courtesy of Mr.Chandradev (ŕ¤ŕ¤¨ŕĽŕ¤ŚŕĽŕ¤°ŕ¤ŚŕĽŕ¤ľ)]
paper I | MCQs on GA/GK + Maths + Reasoning | 100m |
Paper II | English Descriptive | 50m |
Duration: Total 1 hour and 40 minutes
From that question paper, we can see certain peculiarities about ACIO exam:
- Theyâre asking world history.
- Theyâre asking Business GK.
- Permutation-combination-probability (PCP), Geometric progression is asked. (Most govt recruitment exams have stopped asking those topics)
Other than that, Maths/reasoning/Current-affairs =should not give any surprises to serious players from SSC/government exams.
Static (theory) vs Current
Based on 2012âs Paper:
static (theory) | current affairs based | ||
polity | 6 | International affairs | 5 |
Geography | 12 | Misc.GK/PIN/Sports | 8 |
History | 18 | Economy* | 10 |
Sci (theory) | 13 | Defense-Space-Sci.tech | 7 |
Aptitude (Maths + Reasoning) | 21 | ||
total | 70 | total | 30 |
*in Economy they only asked current based Qs. hence Economy put under âcurrent.â
As you can see 70 Static (Theory) + 30 Current =total 100 questions: meaning, your primary focus should be on the static portion.
History
ACIO in exam, history has 4 subparts: Ancient, Medieval, Modern and World History
- Lucentâs General Knowlege book OR
- If youâve General Studies(GS) Manual (of any brand, any edition)- if you already have then use it, otherwise there is no need for specifically getting GS Manual for this exam
(NCERT wonât be of much help because ACIO MCQs need âGK typeâ coverage.)
Ancient: Minimum topics
Minimum topics= they donât guarantee success, they only guarantee that if you fail- you wonât be very far away from the cutoffs. For any topic, when I say (IGNORE): it means I havenât seen MCQs from those topics coming in recent times. But I canât guarantee that nothing will be asked from it! So, If the time permits, do read those topics after youâre done with syllabus.
- Harappa Sites
- (ignore) Who found them (Bisht, Mazumadar, Joshi etc.)
- Where are they located (Which Indian or Paki state?)
- What are the main features of the given site? (e.g. Surkotada =horse)
- ^reverse of above question: what was found where? (Where was horse evidence found?)
- society, religion and economy
- (ignore) why decline/destroyed
- Vedic Period (1500-1000 before Christ)
- (ignore) Vedic religion: Indra/Purandar etc.
- Vedic literature
- Where is there in four vedas?
- What are the features of Upnishad, Aranyak, Smriti, Darshan, Upvedas
- (ignore) Vedic administration: Sabha-Samiti etc.
3.Buddh and Jain
When it comes to Ancient history, Buddism-Jainism= most favorite topic for examiner. Prepare them parallel so you donât mix up answers
Buddhism: prepare following | Jainism |
Buddha: real name, parents, spouse, birth year+place, death year+age+place | same for Mahavir |
3 pillar (Tri-ratna), 4 truths, 8 fold path + symbols associated with Buddhaâs life | 5 doctrines |
3 sects | 2 sects |
literature (Tripitaka, Milindpanho etc) | same |
council, chairman, patron and result | same |
famous places | same |
patron kings | same |
- Maurya
- Mahajanpada vs capitals: only famous names (e.g. Magadha, Kashi, Kuru, Gandhara)
- (ignore) Mauryan Administration
- Only 3 Mauryan Kings: Chandragupta Maurya, Bindusara, Asoka (and prepare the Greek travellars/ambassador/envoys/kings associated with them. But ignore the chillar-kings like Bimbisara- Ajatshatru, Udayin, Shisunag and Nanda
- Only 3 Main Kings after Maurya: Pushyamitra, RudraDaman, Kanishka
- Focus on Asokaâs edicts, their location, content, labels used for him (e.g. Piyadass)
- (culture) Mauryan Caves and art (Yaksha-Yakshini)
- (culture) famous writer during Mauryan time
- Gupta
- 2 Main kings: Samudragupta and Vikramaditya
- (ignore) Gupta Administration
- Harshavardhan and Huien Tsang
- Pala-Pallav-Pratihar-Rahstrakuta= only their culture contribution (e.g. temple, univ.,caves)
- South India
- (culture) Sangam litt. particularly Manimekalai, Tolkapiyam
- Chera-Chaula-Pandya=their emblem/symbol
Medieval: Minimum topics
- Important Wars (who fought with whom, when and what was the result + some of them are from âmodern historyâ)
- two Tarai battles
- three Panipat battles
- three Anglo Maratha wars
- three Anglo-French wars
- Two Anglo-Sikh wars
- Plassey
- Buxar
- Bedera
- Burmese
- Afghan
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- Maratha: Shivaji, his administration and the three Anglo Maratha wars
- (ignore) Vijayanagar empire (Harihar and Bukka)
- culture
- S.India Temple and features: Gopuram, Garbhagriha, Hoysala temple etc.
- N.India:
- Poets-patron kings, main books
- Mosques, tombs, gates, forts etc.: where are they located and who built them?
- Travelers (incl. Ancient) + envoys: mainly Megasthenes, Fa-Hien, Al-Baruni, Huien Tsang, Marco Polo, Ibn Batuta, Nicolo Conti, Wiliam Hawkins, Thoms Roe, Tavernier, Bernier.
- Religion
- Bhakti saints
- Sufi Saints particularly Khwaja Muinuddin Chisty
- Sikhism, Gurus particularly Nanak, Arjan Dev and Gobind Singh
Modern (British Raj)
- Entry of Europeans: where did they setup factory and under whose rule? + their conflicts with Native rules (e.g Siraz-ud daula, Tipu Sultan)
- Important Gov.Gen/Viceroys and their policies (in Lucent’s GK this is given @Page 134 onwards + also given in the last pages of Spectrumâs Brief History of Modern India)
- Hastings
- Cornwallis
- Wellesley
- Bentick
- Metcalfe; Aukland; Hardinge (each of them only did 1 or 2 imp things)
- Canning
- Mayo
- Lytton (Badass#2)
- Ripon
- Landsdown
- Curzon (Badass#1 and UPSCâs Role Model)
- Minto
- Chelmsford
The Viceroys after Chelmsford, should be prepared with focus on how they handled Gandhi and Partition of India:
- Irwin
- Willingdon
- Linlithgow
- Wavell
- Mountbatten
- C. Rajagopalachari (only the fact that he was 1st and last Indian governor general of free India)
- Revolts (Lucent’s GK Page 95 onwards)
- 1857 (although it has become too clichĂŠd, rarely MCQ coming from here)
- Peasant revolts and their leaders+reasons: mainly Indigo, Deccan, Ramosi, Chamran, Kheda, Moplah, Tebhaga, Telengana and Eka
- tribal revolts and leaders+reasons: mainly Rampa, Munda, Naga and Tana Bhagat
- Others mainly Sanyasi, Pagal Panthi and Kuka
- Culture
- Books and authors (Dadabhai, RC Dutt, Gandhi, Bankim etc)
- Newspaper-language-owner
- various org. and their founders: Mainly Brahmo, Sadharan Brahmo, Namdhari, Radha Swami, Arya Samaj, Prarthana, Deccan Edu., Theosophical, Ramkrishan Mission, Servents of India, Purna Seva Sadan, Satya Sodhak, Aravipuram, Justice party, Bahishkrit Hitkarini, Self-Respect, Harijan Sevak, Derozio, Tattvabodhini, Wahabi, DEoband, Aligarh,
- Reformers: Roy, Vivekanand, Sahjanand, Saraswati, Kesab Chandra etc.
- education reform: Hunter, Sadler, Macaulay and Sargeant
- Freedom Struggle
- Congress
- GK related to Congress Sessions: prominent chairmen, resolution etc. (given on Page 133 of Lucent’s GK)
- Moderate, Extremist and their leader, Surat Split
- Swaraj Party, Nehru Report
- Congress Ministries vs Muslim League
- Revolutionaries: org.-leaders-members and conspiracy-cases + INA and its trials + RIN munity
- Home Rule Besant and Tilak and Lucknow Pact
- Gandhi:
- Champaran, Aâbad, Kheda;
- NCM, Khilafat, CDM, QIM
- Gandhi-Irwin, Gandhi-Amebedkar, Gandhi-Bose
- British response:
- Reforms: Morley Minto; Montague-Chelmsford
- Thuggary: Rowlett, Jalliyanwala, Simon, RTC, Communal award
- Acts: 1909, 1919, 1935 and 1947;
- Partition related: Linlithgow offer, Wavell plan, Cabinet Mission , Cripps Mission
- finally the important freedom fighters and their contribution (depending on the remaining time before exam)
- Congress
Observe the questions from 2012âs ACIO paper
Entry of Europeans and Before 1857 | After 1857 |
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World history
- Again, a unique feature of ACIO, because most government exams donât touch world history as far as MCQs are concerned.
- Go through Chapter 2 of Lucentsâ GK Book. With more emphasis on medieval and modern world history.
- Observe the questions from 2012âs paper:
Medieval World History (500-1500AD) | Modern (After 1500AD) |
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Culture
- While preparing for Ancient/Medieval/Modern history, youâll come across culture-religion-art-music-dance-painting type information + use NIOS culture material for filling up the details (Free download @bottom).
- Although from 2012âs ACIO paper, it seems less about culture and more about religion:
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This concludes the history preparation, keep in mind that one time reading= useless. Youâve to revise history multiple times.
Science (theory)
from ACIO 2012 paper, we can see that ~20% is science and ~20% is aptitude. For Science, theory, start with NCERT (for physics, chemistry, biology and environment): Free download @bottom
Class | Chapters (PHYSICS) | Chemistry | Biology |
7 | 4, 13, 14 and 15 | 5 and 6 | 1,2,10,11 and 12 |
8 | 11 to 16 | 3 to 6 | 2, 8, 9 and 10 |
9 | 8 to 12 | 1 to 4 | 5,6,7 and 13 |
10 | 10, 12 and 13 | 1 to 5 | 6 to 11 |
11 | Physics textbook ch.1 | — | — |
12 | — | — | Biology textbook Ch.11 and 12 |
after that use Lucentâs GK book for filling up the gaps left in NCERT about GK related to chemical compound-uses, inventions-inventors, SI-CI units, diseases etc. (if youâve general studies manual that will also work).
PHYSICS |
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CHEMISTRY |
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BIOLOGY |
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*for more on disease etc. go through my public health articles
- [Public Health] Current Affairs 2012-13: Government schemes, Policies, Yearbook stuff (Part 1 of 3)
- [Public Health] Current Affairs 2012-13: Diseases, Drugs and Research (Part 2 of 3)
- [Public Health] Current Affairs 2012-13: Mock Questions (Part 3 of 3)
Observe the following questions from ACIO 2012 paper to gauge what type of information you should focus during study:
physics
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Chemistry
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Biology / Botany / Agriculture
human related | plant related |
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Science (Current Affairs)
Current affairs related to science=also known as Science & Tech- be it space, IT, electronics, nano-tech, bio-tech, noble prizes, physics, medicine etc. lot of coverage given on mrunal.org/snt
Youâll also find such topics regularly in magazines and newspapers.
Observe the following questions from ACIO 2012 paper to gauge what type of information you should focus during study:
- Why was CERN, the largest particle physic laboratory located near Geneva in news recently?
- For discovery of Neutrino, a new subatomic particle
- For discovering Higgs Boson, a new subatomic particle.
- Because of differences among the member nations over finance liabilities.
- Major breakdown in the laboratory
- What is the present permissible power density value for mobile towers operating at 1800 MHz?
- 4.5 watt/metre
- 9 watt/metre
- 13.5 watt/metre
- 18 watt/metre
Space/ISRO/NASA
Space-technology related compilation for 2012 upto March 2013, already given on following on following page
mrunal.org/2013/04/space-tech-current-affairs-compilation-2012-13-for-ssc-cgl-upsc-csat
Copy paste it in MS Word and keep updating it with latest developments from newspapers-magazines, and revise.
Observe the following questions from ACIO 2012 paper to gauge what type of information you should focus during study:
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Defense
Defense related compilation for 2012 upto March 2013, already given on following on following page
Copy paste it in MS Word and keep updating it with latest developments from newspapers-magazines, and revise.
Observe the following questions from ACIO 2012 paper to gauge what type of information you should focus during study:
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Environment
Given the depth of environment related questions asked in 2012, NCERTs will be more than sufficient. (Meaning NIOS studymaterial for environment-biodiversity= not a âhigh priorityâ thing.)
List of NCERT chapters to be studied (free download @bottom)
class | subject | chapters |
6 | geography | 8 |
7 | geo. | 1 to 6 |
science | 7, 16 to 18 | |
8 | geo. | 8 |
sci. | 7 and 18 | |
9 | geo | 5 |
science | 14 | |
10 | Geo. | 2 |
sci. | 14 to 16 | |
11 | geo(Physical) | 15 and 16 |
geo (India) | 4 and 5 | |
economy | 9 (Sustainable development) | |
12 | Biology | 13 to 16 |
chemistry | 14 |
+ prepare the list of famous wildlife sanctuaries, national parks, biodiversity hotspots (from Indian Geography point of view). Observe the following questions from ACIO 2012 paper to gauge what type of information you should focus during study:
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^yes only two question, but still cost: benefit of preparing environment is quite good. (Compared to the amount of random data youâve to mugup to get 2 correct answers in Person in News (PIN)/Misc.GK MCQs)
Polity
- I assume you already have Indian Polity by M.Laxmikanth, use it. Then polity = piece of cake.
- If youâre not preparing for any exam except ACIO and donât want to invest in Laxmikanth then go with Lucent’s GK + NIOS Polity material. (NIOS material download given @bottom)
Union vs State topics
Study âparallel-topicsâ of Union vs. State for example
- Prez, VP then immediately State governor
- PM then immediately CM
- Parliament (+budget making) vs State assembly (+Panchayati Raj)
- SC vs HC
- Attorney Gen =>Advocate General
- UPSC =>State PSC
- The âlistâ (union-state-concurrent)
- and so on
^That way youâll remember details without mixing up answers.
Basics of Constitution
Making of constitution, Preamble, Funda.rights/duties, DPSP, amendment, which feature was borrowed from which country and so on.
Bodies
Do various bodies at once e.g. planning comm, NDC, NCW, National commissions for SC, ST, backward classes and so on. Since ACIO is GK type exam, you should focus on info such as how many members in each body, what is their age limit/ can they be reappointed, who selects them, who are the current chairman of such bodies (for PIN question)
Observe the questions asked in ACIO-2012 paper:
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^6 questions but all of them can be solved effortlessly, IF you revise polity often. Hence polity=No excuse topic.
Geography
Subtopic | Content | # of Qs in ACIO 2012 |
Indian | Topics related to India (e.g. industry, drainage etc.) | 6 |
World | longest/largest lakes-rivers, mountains, famous cities, country-capital etc. | 3 |
Physical | Universe, earth, atmosphere, weather, climate etc. | 2 |
Indian Geography
If you look @2012âs paper, itâs just GK stuff about state borders, river-tributaries and hill stations. Always check the map simultaneously whenever you come across any location based info- If you try to mugup the list of states from which Ganga river passes=It wonât go in long term memory, unless you see the course of river in the map of India.
Source:
- NCERT textbooks (There is plenty of GK lying around in them + it contains lot of maps, photos = easier to remember things.) Free download @Bottom
- India 2011: last chapter on States and union territories (free download @bottom).
- Lucent’s GK or any other book or General Studies manual for filling up the missing GK details from NCERT. e.g. hill stations, list of tiger sanctuaries etc. (if youâve general studies manual- that is also fine.)
Indian Geography-Minimum topics
Minimum topics donât assure success, they only assure that if you fail- youâll not be very far away from the cutoffs.
- Mountain:
- Which states do they cover (e.g Khasi-Garo-Jantia hills)
- highest peaks
- Mountain passes (Nathu-la etc.)
- Which of them are young mountain/fold mountain etc.?
- rivers
- Where do they start?
- Which states do they cover?
- In which sea do they end?
- list of their tributaries
- Any water fall?
- Any dams? If yes then which states get benefit from it?
- Any national inland waterway on them?
- States
- Administrative
- CENSUS-2011 related GK (highest-lowest in literacy, sex ratio etc.) use Google for this. + State with maximum ST population in absolute numbers and in percentages. etc.
- state capitals (especially for North East); where is state high court; in case of UT/islands which HC has jurisdiction (under polity)
- do they come under 5th or 6th schedule (under polity)
- CM of North Eastern states (under Person in News)
- border: with neighboring states and countries; state with largest area, longest coastline, max no. of district
- agro
- soil-crop-cropping seasons (use the NCERT zipfile for Agriculture given @bottom)
- Trade and Transport
- mines/minerals (only the very prominent names. donât go in all details)
- famous industrial / handicraft cities
- towns of export excellence (especially those recently added)
- If it is a costal state: name of major ports?
- Any famous airport?
- National highway: shortest and longest
- culture
- Any important fairs / cultural events-dances/festivals?
- Famous tourist places hill stations, temples, monuments, mosques, minar, caves etc?
- Any sites included in UNESCO world heritage list? (use google)
- environment
- Any biodiversity hotspot?
- Any famous wildlife parks / sanctuaries?
- Any rare species found?
- Any place famous for migratory birds?
- Administrative
Observe The Questions from 2012âs paper:
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World Geography- Minimum list
- Mountain range in each continent and highest peak
- longest, largest rivers: countries covered by them
- fresh water lakes; water falls : countries they belong to (just top 3-5 names)
- cold and hot deserts of the world: countries covered by them
- landlocked countries in Europe and Asia
- Location of famous grassland (Veld, Prairies, Pampas etc.), tribes (Pigmy, Masai etc.) and winds.
- famous borders (e.g. Durand line, 38th parallel etc)
- Capitals of Middle East, European and South East Asian countries
- famous cities-their nick names/specialty; on which river theyâre located
- famous monuments / heritage sites (Angkor Wat, Machu Pichu etc)
- famous strait and which sea do they join (e.g Palk, Berring, Gibralter etc)
- Places in current affairs: South China sea, Gwadar port, Senkaku/Diaoyu island etc. Donât do Ph.D on any topic, just bare minimum coverage from basic-GK. For example Gwadar port=in Pakistan and China giving money for its development. Thatâs all.
Observe the World geography questions from ACIO-2012 paper
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Physical Geography
- In 2012- just two questions were asked but still in terms of cost: benefit, physical geography is still quite good. (Compared to the amount of random-data youâve to mugup for two PIN or two Business GK questions).
- Confine your prep only to NCERTs, free download @bottom
- In other GK books or magazines, they explain physical geography without showing any diagram/chart=very difficult to memorize.
Minimum topics for physical geography
- Universe: basics of planets-their moons, asteroid, comet, stars etc. (just do highschool level coverage, donât put lot of time here on individual planet)
- layers of atmosphere: their sequence, uses (Ionosphere, stratosphere etc)
- layers of earth-core, SIAL, SIMA, discontinuity
- main terms associated with volcanos and earthquakes
- longitude, latitude, timezone, coriolls effect
- climate: how altitude, distance from sea affect temp.; axis-tilt-seasons-day n night; albedo, ozone, aurora
- types of soils and rocks- what crops/minerals do they have
Observe the questions asked in 2012:
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Economy
Economy: From 2012âs paper, we can see theyâre only interested in number based current affairs on Economy, noting about theory/concepts/definitions. (Observe the questions asked below). Some of the ânumber basedâ current affairs has been covered in my economic survey articles. But by and large I avoid touching absolute numbers while writing about economy. Therefore mrunal.org/economy is not much useful for ACIO type MCQs. You may ignore NCERT, NIOS and Ramesh Singh for the same reason.
For such number based current affairs of Economy, consult competitive-magazines, newspaper.
Business GK means various companies, their product launches, merger-acquisitions, owners/CEO/MD, HQ of MNCs etc. For example nowadays Jet-Etihad deal is in news, so who is the chief of Jet Airway (or reverse: Naresh Goyal is chairman of which airline? Etihad is from which country? What is the FDI limit in Aviation?)
refer to Mrunal.org/PIN for such compilations of persons in news (PIN) and bizGK.
Indian Economy |
Business-GK |
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International Affairs/events
- Whether it is CDS, CAPF or ACIO, they do ask a few questions on international affairs/events.
- Goto library, read whatever competitive magazine you get (CST, Pratiyogita, Chronicle, Wizard) and note down important names/details (all such magazines have something called âInternational diary of eventsâ or âWorld this monthâ etc. giving the details of international events) -focus should be on places in news and persons in news
- Important: When you maintain a note, donât write anything that can be remembered as such. For example, Julian Assange is the founder of wikileaks= this can be remembered even without keeping a note.
Observe the questions from 2012âs paper:
Current | Static |
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Misc.GK/PIN/Awards/sports
Can be further classified into
static | current |
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cost: benefit is not very good, very few questions come from here. Anyways, youâll find the data in Lucentâs GK book. | strategy given below |
- Iâve published Person in News compilation from 2012 to March 2013 click me
- Copy paste it in MS Word file
- Goto library, read whatever competitive magazine you get (CST, Pratiyoigta, Chronicle, Wizard) and note down important names/details.
Observe the questions asked in ACIO 2012âs paper:
institutes | days |
Where are Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Indira Gandhi Centre Atomic Research and Vikram Sarabhai Space Research Centre respectively located?
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How do you observe every year the first Monday of October?
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Abbreviations | PIN |
What does NSAB stand for in Indian context?
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Mohammed Morsi, Fracois Hollande and Bashar al-Assad are the current Presidents respectively of which countries?
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Sports
Can be classified into
static | current |
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Cost: benefit not very good. | need to prepare. |
So, how to prepare the current affairs on sports?
- Goto library, read whatever competitive magazine you get (CST, Pratiyoigta, Chronicle, Wizard) and note down important names/details
- but keep in mind that all such magazines/websites provide too many details/ball by ball commentary â you just need to maintain a brief MS word file containing important events/names/awards/mascots/venues only. otherwise itâll become very difficult to revise entire content from original source on the night before the exam.
Observe the questions from ACIO 2012 paper:
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Maths Reasoning English Essay
Already covered under separate article:
https://mrunal.org/2013/08/studyplan-acio-aptitude-maths-reasoning-and-english-essay-for-assistant-central-intelligence-officer-acio-exam.html
Note: Your interviewers read your essay before/during your interview. A good essay will give them a good impression about u even before u enter the room.
ACIO Job-Profile
Iâm copy pasting this, based on the inputs by Mr.Deepak, an ACIO himself.
<start of copy paste>
In a way, job satisfying. Pay is ok, work is ok, frustrating at times, but still manageable. Not much social life, real life âTigerâ has no time for Katrina. He is not âEk THAâ but âEk HI Tigerâ. Work environment is not what you expect from an intelligence organization. It is as inefficient as any sarkari office, if not more. But still it is successful ONLY because of max 10% dedicated officers at lower level (ACIO) and higher level (IPS). Patriotism is slightly less than Army, but 100 times more than (State)Police. Zero tolerance towards terrorism. Youâll learn that when you join. As of now, (I have) no plans to leave but I donât see myself continuing more than 3yrs (in this job). My intention is to give as much info to the ACIO aspirants, as I am legally allowed to, so that
- They can come in mentally prepared and know what to expect from this job.
- They know their rights and strengths. (Regarding leaving job, getting No Objection Certificates (NOC) to write other exams etc.) Because no one will tell them these later on. I do this because no one gave me this info when I joined and I faced difficulties.
- Iâm not discouraging anyone from joining. Iâm trying to give people an idea of what lies ahead so that they are not overwhelmed later. If some guy who lives in a fantasy of johnny depps and james bonds cant digest it, not my problem. I have seen people coming in with high expectations only to end up disappointed. (Therefore Iâm providing) both positives and negatives. Although, I admit, negatives seem more in number.
- After posting, youâll have ample free time, but in a difficult situation, it is difficult to enter in a studious mindset. But serious candidates will clear UPSC even in such situations. I have given the (following) picture from an average candidate’s viewpoint.
ACIO Training
Initial training (phase 1)
- Your initial training in Shivpuri will be mostly physical. Running for 1.5 KMS in the morning, followed by 2 hours of exercise. Then âclassesâ-totally useless 5th standard stuff taught. Utterly useless. Again, exercise in the evening and bed by 10.30PM. This is for 2 months in Shivpuri. Salary in hand (during training): 20,000/- to 25000/-.
- Good news is, most of your salary will stay in your bank account as you will not have to spend on anything except food (mess fees- 5 thousand per month).
- Save this money, it will be useful if you want to pay the bond amount and leave in the first few months of job posting. You will more or less enjoy this period of training and make good friends. For UPSC candidates, bad news. NO TIME TO STUDY AT ALL! NOT EVEN 30 minutes per day!
- Trainees get holidays to write other exams (Ex:UPSC mains) during the training period if they give a written request. This will be good news to those who have training during 2013 mains.
Second training (phase 2)
- Second training in Delhi. Theory classes from morning till evening. NO PHYSICAL TRAINING. Some lectures by IPS officers are worth listening to, rest are crap.
- You will be allowed to roam around in Delhi in the evening. This is for 2 months also. UPSC candidates, here also, no time to study.
- Salary in hand: same as in shivpuri( 20 â 25 thousand). you will enjoy this period of training too, have fun with friends you have made in Shivpuri. But sadly, you will not have any more fun in IB for 3 MORE YEARS.
First Job Posting
now getting to the SERIOUS STAGE. This stage will teach you a lot about yourself. You will go through some seriously tough circumstances. Enough build-up, here it is-
- FIRST JOB POSTING: 99% border area, (kashmir or northEast)
- (Although) I found out that from recent years (2009 perhaps) ACIO recruits need not compulsorily undergo border posting after joining. Lucky buggers. They are safe in mainland India, and will have a work atmosphere of a typical sarkari office. So that depressing and scary picture i gave is nothing to worry about now. But they will have to serve in the border at SOME TIME in their career. Border posting wont be too big a problem for an acio with 3 â 4 years service unlike a fresh ACIO recruit. having said this, a very small portion of new recruits are posted in the border for a year or so.
- women candidates are treated with slight leniency during posting. They may choose NOT to serve in the border initially. Boys, sorry about that.
- Superiors are arrogant, subordinates are kaam-chors. You will be given accommodation in police quarters. There is danger at work, but nothing to be scared of as long as you donât do anything STUPID.
- You will have to go and collect info from people whenever your superior (DCIO) asks you to. He might make your life difficult. You WILL be very lonely. You will have no friends to help you, no one to care about you. No one will teach you how to collect info. you will have to learn on your own. You will feel that your work is useless. You will have ZERO power. Even police constable will have 10 times more power than you. Aap bas naam ke hi âOFFICERâ honge. You will be not be given ANY important work. you will feel useless No desh seva and all.
- But good thing is, No one will punish you if you are unable to collect info. You WILL be yelled at by your superior, but he CANNOT do anything more. DONT DO ANYTHING STUPID THERE. YOU MAY DIE. The police and army people will know who you are (IB guy) and they WILL NOT cooperate with you. You will go through hell. Most of the time, you will not know what to do.
- On the bright side, you will not have too much work. You will have time to study. But most probably, you will be so depressed that you WILL NOT be able to study. This will go on for 3 years. 80 â 90 % of people pay the bond amount (60,000 rupees) and quit before the first year, Good thing is, IB will not create problems if you want to leave. you can even quit one month after your job posting if you find it difficult. No one can stop you from leaving your job, so dont worry. Just keep the bond amount (60,000/-) ready.
- Also, NOC certificate to write other exams will be given without much problem. you will have to write a letter to your boss. He will have to compulsorily give permission within 15 days. but permission will be given only if the job you are applying for is of higher pay grade than ACIO-II
- If you survive the 3 years IN HELL, you will be given the actual IB training. James Bond ishtyle!! Your job will 90% be in your home state. You will do ACTUAL IB work. chasing terrorists, keeping country safe and things like that.
- You can take your spouse with you during posting, except Kashmir. Spouses might not be allowed there. Enquire during training to be fully sure.
ACIO medial / physical standards
- We have guys who wear glasses. So if your vision can be corrected by wearing glasses, that must not be a problem. Youâre fine. relax.
- I have seen candidates worrying about things, even little things, and it is understandable. I will say something to clear the doubts of all those people- itâs not army or air force. It is IB, a police job. medical aur baaki sab test bas naam ke hi hain.
- (When you get selected) your offer letter will have info in detail. But if you hav a serious condition like asthma, heart problem or low/high BP etc. Get test done PROPERLY and tell IB about it when they ask u. Because during posting in border area, medical help may not be readily available.
(Some more info from other sources)
- IB men usually donât carry guns (unless on deputation in CRPF, SPG etc.)
- IB men cannot arrest people by themselves.
- IB men cannot tell everyone that âI work in IB.â
- In Tier-III city you get more than 35000 Salary per month as an ACIO-II.
Promotion
- ACIO II => ACIO I =>DCIO (Gazetted officer) => Additional Director of IB => Joint Deputy director of IB.
- In the span of around 8-14 years, youâll be a DCIO. (different sources tell different number about how many years it takes to get DCIO promotion.)
- DCIO= Pay Band-3 of Rs.15600-39100 with Grade Pay of Rs.5400/- (=salary roughly the same as Junior scale IAS.)
- Although vacancies are low as you move up in the hierarchy, so not everyone gets every promotion. Most people retire at the DCIO or Additional Direct level.
Deputation
- You can also get deputed to CRPF, SPG, RAW, Airport protection but youâve to pass departmental exams.
- You may even get opportunity to work in foreign country.
end of copy paste
Computer certificate
- This year IBPS PO/MT first said computer certificate necessary but then they reverted the notification so for IBPS, the computer certificate is no longer necessary.
- Although ACIO notification says âKnowledge of computersâ is desirable qualification. (Sometimes in PSU recruitments, they say the same.)
- For some State PCS exam, computer certificate is compulsory (e.g. Gujarat).
- So as a tool of career-backup/precaution, you should get a computer-certificate. (Unless youâre a computer engineer).
- You may be proficient in computers as such (without any degree), but that doesnât hold any value in government recruitment, unless youâve a fancy paper certificate as proof.
- Question is where to get the certificate that is both cheap and legit?
- CCC (Course on computer concepts) by National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT earlier known as DOEACC) – it is an autonomous body under Ministry of communication and IT, hence the certificate is legit for all government exams. (exam fees around Rs.360)
- They take exam every month, just an easy MCQs test about computer hardware, software, MS office and windows. For more details refer to
http://nielit.in/education/faq/ccc.htm
^please donât take this lightly âthik hai, Iâll see It later after ACIO exam is over.â Because when ACIO is over, some new exam will come and youâll get busy with that. It will only hurt you when you cannot appear for xyz exam or get less âprofileâ score than others only because you donât have the certificate. So these things need to be done parallel. (Same goes the for various distance education /PG programs of IGNOU: sooner you enroll =better)
Epilogue
Epilogue/summary/unwanted advice/whatever Iâll repeat the same tape-recorder
- In the daytime=read for general awareness, in the night after dinner=practice aptitude. Because after dinner, body starts feeling sleepy and brain starts losing concentration. But if youâre moving your hand (by writing the Maths/reasoning sums)=>then brain has to concentrate.
- Revision is essential for General awareness. Whatever you read – keep a target of revising it multiple times. Otherwise, you wonât be able to recall the exact details in the exam.
- Donât waste time in day-dreaming, facebook, orkut, random net surfing, chatting, TV, cricket, weddings of distant relatives/college batch mates etc. Time-pass activities will always be there, but once you cross the age-limit, there is no restart button. (This rule applies to all competitive exams.)
- Avoid Piecemeal preparation e.g. ACIO-exam is over so now Iâm in vacation mood, Iâll resume preparation only if I get interview call OR if some new job-notification comes=Bad Idea. Current affairs preparation must be continued even after the exam is over and keep doing it until youâre selected for this exam (or whatever other dream job youâre planning for).
and thanks Mr.csl80 and Mr.Chandradeo for their inputs about the exam, previous paper and trends.
Appendix: Download material for ACIO
- ACIO Previous Years Question paper 2012: click me
NCERT Downloads
Go to following link: https://mrunal.org/download
youâll find the material organized in various folders. Click on individual folder and download zip files. Here is the description about the contents of individual folder:
Folder | Comment |
History | NCERT History=not much useful for ACIO because it doesnât contain consolidated GK.+NIOS Culture material= should be used. |
Science | Contains class 7 to 10 NCERT Science in three zips: physics, chemistry, biology.+NIOS Science material. (although there will be lot of overlapping so you may avoid if youâre running out of time.) |
EnB | Contains selective chapters from class 6 to 12 from science and geography textbooks that are relevant for Environment and biodiversity.+NIOS material for environment and biodiversity EnB. (you may avoid this) |
Economy | Not much usefull for ACIO (becase we saw that in 2012 they only asked current affairs).Contains NCERT class 11 + NCERT 12 Macro economics+NIOS economy material. |
Geography | Important for ACIO. Contains NCERT class 6 to 12 in five zip folders: physical, India, World, Agro and glossary.+NIOS material on geography (although lot of overlapping so you may avoid NIOS) |
India yearbook
- Earlier government used to upload free PDF files for India yearbook (e.g. India 2010, India 2011 etc.)
- But for the Review Officer prelims, you should prepare a few static topics for it, from MCQ point of view. so, just download the India 2011 edition click me
And read chapter following chapters
30. State and UT (for geography related GK stuff)
then if time permits, also read chapter
- 1.Land and the People (for GK)
- 2.National Symbols (for GK)
- 3.The Polity (for polity)
- 20 Justice and Law (for polity segment)
Sir, for IB ACIO Grade II examination NCERT and GK LUCENT book is enough? Or i have to read more than that? Please help me out. Thank you
What are facilty they provide ib acio,
I want to ask.why police don’t help acio???
sir plz give 2017 important ca..which are important for acio xam…time is less..plz sir help us……..
October 15 is the ACIO exam date
pls give information of model question papers