SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE BOARD OF INDIA

RECRUITMENT OF OFFICERS IN GRADE ‘A’

INFORMATION HANDOUT FOR ONLINE EXAM

PHASE-II

LEGAL / INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY / ENGINEERING (CIVIL & ELECTRICAL)

1. Scheme of Phase-II examination:

This examination will consist of three papers as under:

Paper Name of Paper Type of Paper Duration Number of Maximum

(Minutes) Questions Marks

Paper-I Financial Sector Objective Type 40 50 100

Paper-II English (Writing Skills) Descriptive, to 60 3 100

be typed with
the help of the
keyboard

Specialized subject related

Paper-III to stream
Objective type 40 50 100

The Phase-II online examination will be conducted, only for the candidates who are shortlisted on the
basis of results of Phase-I examination. The date, time of Phase-II examination/shifts and venue of
examinations is indicated in the Call Letters.
i. Paper I and III will be in Hindi and English. Paper II will be only in English.
ii. Candidates, who secure minimum 40% marks separately in each Paper, will be shortlisted for
Phase-III of the recruitment process.
iii. Subject to the criteria mentioned above, candidates equaling 3 times the number of vacancies
shall be shortlisted for Phase III i.e. the Interview. List of candidates shortlisted for Interview
will be made available on SEBI website.
iv. For every wrong answer marked by you in Paper I and Paper III, 1/4th of the marks assigned
to that question will be deducted as penalty.
Marks obtained in Phase II will be accorded a weightage of 85%, while Interview marks
will carry a weightage of 15% for final selection.

1
 The duration for the e x a m i n a t i o n is 140 minutes; however, you may have to be at the venue
for approximately 200 minutes including the time required for attendance marking, submission of Call
letter with photocopy of the photo ID proof, logging in, etc.

Paper-I and Paper-III: Objective Type Papers: In objective type Papers all the questions will
have multiple choices. You can attempt any question at any point of time within the allotted time of
40 minutes. Out of the five answers to a question only one will be the correct answer. You have to
select the correct answer and ‘mouse click’ that alternative which you feel is correct. The
alternative/ option that you have clicked on will be highlighted and will be treated as your
answer to that question (after "Save and Next"). There will be penalty for wrong answers
marked by you. For every wrong answer marked by you, 1/4th of the marks assigned
to that question will be deducted as penalty.

The Scores of Online Examination will be obtained by adopting the following procedure:

(i) Number of questions answered correctly by a candidate in each objective test is considered for
arriving at the Corrected Score after applying penalty for wrong answers.

(ii) Paper wise scores are reported with decimal points upto two digits.

English (Writing Skills) Descriptive Paper: The paper on English shall be framed in a manner to
assess the writing skills including expression and understanding of the topic. The Paper may
include Questions on essay writing, précis writing and comprehension etc. Candidates will have to
type answers with the help of the key-board of the computer.

2. Sample Questions: Please note that the types of questions in this handout are only illustrative
and not exhaustive. In the actual examination you will find questions of a higher difficulty level
on some or all of these types and also questions on the types not mentioned here. Some sample
questions are given below.

Paper-I: Financial Sector

Q.1. Tangible Networth is _______

(1) share capital plus reserves (2) total current assets
(3) fixed assets minus depreciation (4) networth minus tangible assets
(5) Other than those given as options

Q.2. The concept of deferred revenue expenditure is closely related to which of the following
accounting concepts ?
(1) Accrual (2) Going Concern (3) Matching Concept
(4) Conservation (5) Consistency

Q.3. Evergreening of sticky loans by banks is done by ____________

(1) Providing fresh loans to defaulting borrowers to pay interest
(2) Converting outstanding loans into term loans.
(3) Writting off interest outstanding
(4) Only (1) and (2)
(5) Other than those given as options

2
 Paper-II – English (Writing Skills) - Descriptive Paper

Q.1. Write an essay on any ONE of the following topics in about 400 words.

1. Three effective measures to eradicate illiteracy in India. Explain how the measures
suggested by you will be effective.

2. It is often said that computerization results in unemployment. Do you agree? Explain.

3. High Rise Buildings: Infrastructural and Environmental Issues.

Q.2. Write a précis of the following passage in about 120 words, and give it a title.

Christian Reed, a project manager, has worked at the Tata Steel plant—Britain’s biggest—for
11 years. His father worked in the local steel industry for 40 years, and his grandfather was a
foundry worker. “It’s very difficult to contemplate losing the plant,” he says. “It would be like
losing a member of the family.”

The fate of his job and those of about 4,300 other Port Talbot steelworkers, as well as
Britain’s loss-making steel industry in general, have become the most poignant part of the
political row that has erupted in Britain since Tata Steel, Britain’s biggest producer, said in
late March that it planned to sell or close its operations in the country. Opposition politicians
have demanded that the government engineer a rescue, either by erecting high tariff walls
against cheap steel imports, as America has done, or by going for some sort of nationalisation,
as Italy has attempted with the ill-starred Ilva plant in the heel of the country. On April 5th a
potential rescuer, Sanjeev Gupta of Liberty House, a commodity-trading company, said he
was interested in buying the Port Talbot business, though he wants plenty of government
sweeteners before doing so. He has called Britain’s steel industry “probably the worst in the
world.”

There are few parts of the rich world where steel remains a good business, however. Port
Talbot’s woes are indicative of a global problem—especially in places where makers of
unspecialised steel face competition from cheaper producers.

In the eyes of many, including the Welsh steelworkers, the main bogeyman is China, where
steel output has ballooned. The country has produced more steel in two years than Britain
since 1900, according to the International Steel Statistics Bureau, and is indeed awash with
excess capacity. But this is part of a phenomenon that extends across the developing world.
The OECD, a club mostly of rich countries, reckons that in the four years to 2017 steelmaking
capacity will have grown by 50% in the Middle East, 20% in Africa and 10% in Latin
America.

Meanwhile, the China-led slowdown in developing economies and low oil prices, which have
hit the use of steel in rigs and pipelines, mean that demand is severely lagging supply. Even in
India, which is supposed to be the bright spot of the global steel market, demand growth is
unlikely to recover to levels in the years before 2010 when it embarked on a debt-fuelled
infrastructure construction binge.

3
 Q.3. English Comprehension based on a passage.
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follows.
In this age, when the popular involvement in day-to-day matters in mounting, it is the
electronic systems that offer us a potential service infrastructure which could, with careful
programming, probably take care of a very large element of what we describe as mechanical,
procedural governance without all the distortions, corruptions and harassments which
constitute the daily misery of the average citizen. Of course, the electronic systems will only
behave to the extent that they are properly programmed. But this is no impossible task today.
Once we move our minds beyond the mere use of the electronic revolution for business
efficiency and higher profitabilities and apply it to the task of reducing the routine, repetitive
activities of governance, we will conserve time and energy for more important and creative
tasks. In other words, the electronic revolution can make for better and more effective
handling of real everyday problems, additionally to providing the basic service of
computerized information banks. Even in less developed conditions, the potential of the
electronic network to take over a great deal of what is called bureaucratic “paper work” has
been vividly demonstrated. Licensing system involving endless form filling in endless copies;
tax matters which baffle millions of citizens, particularly those who have nothing to hide;
election system which require massive supervisory mobilizations or referendums based on
miniscule “samples” which seldom reflect the reality at the social base. At all these points, the
electronic advantage is seen and recognized. However, we must proceed further.
It is possible to foresee a situation where the citizen, with his personalized computer entry
card, his “number”, is able to enter the electronic network for a variety of needs now serviced
by regiments of officials, high and low. Indeed, this is already happening in a number of
countries. From simple needs, we will move to more complex servicing, and, ultimately, into
creativity or what is called “artificial intelligence”.
Q. (i) What does the term “bureaucratic paper work” refer to?
Q. (ii) How has electronic revolution helped organisations in day-to-day activities?
Q. (iii) What is “artificial intelligence”?
Paper-III – Specialized subject related to stream
Legal
Q.1. Which of the following is lawful object of a contract ?
(1) Forbidden by law (2) Fraudulent (3) Injurious to a person or property
(4) Opposed to public policy (5) Other than those given as options
Q.2. In which of the Acts is the law relating to “Indemnity” laid down ?
(1) Insurance Act (2) Indemnity Act (3) Banking Regulation Act
(4) Reserve Bank of India Act (5) Other than those given as options
Information Technology
Q.1. In UNIX, mounting a file system means ––
(1) providing a link to the file system to be mounted so that it appears as a local subdirectory
(2) moving all the files from one file system to another
(3) loading a file system from back up medium like tape
(4) copying all the files from one file system to another
(5) Other than those given as options
Q.2. What is the full form of ADS ?
(1) Active Directory Structure (2) Advanced Design System (3) Alternate Data Stream
(4) Analytic Data Set (5) Artwork Delivery System

4
 Engineering (Electrical)
Q.1. Which of the following insulation classes is mainly used in electrical machines ?
(1) Class - Y (2) Class - A (3) Class - F (4) Class - C (5) Class – H
Q.2. How much is the forbidden energy gap for germanium?
(1) 5.2 eV (2) 3.8 eV (3) 1.12 eV (4) 0.7 eV (5) 0.3 eV
Engineering (Civil)
Q.1. The first method invented for planning projects was -----------
(1) Bar chart (2) Milestone (3) CPM
(4) PERT (5) Other than those given as options

Q.2. If the load on the beam is increased, the tensile stress in concrete below the neutral axis
will ------
(1) decrease (2) increase (3) remain constant
(4) vary in both ways (5) Other than those given as options

3. Details of Online Exam Pattern : Operational Instructions

(A) Paper-I and Paper-III : Objective Type Papers
(1) A login screen will be displayed to the candidate. The candidate has to log in using Login ID
and Password which will be printed on the Call Letter.
(2) The candidate’s profile (name, roll no. etc.) will be displayed and the candidate has to confirm
the same by clicking on the ‘I Confirm’ button if the profile is correct. Thereafter the
instructions will be displayed on the screen. The candidate should ensure that the profile
displayed on the screen is that of himself / herself. In case of any discrepancy, the same may be
brought to the notice of the Test Administrator/Invigilator prior to the start of examination.
(3) All the questions will have multiple choices. Out of the 5 answers to a question, only one will
be the correct answer. The candidate has to select the correct answer and mouse click that
alternative which he/she feels is correct. The alternative/option that is clicked on will be treated
as answer to that question. Answer to any question will be considered for final evaluation only
when a candidate have submitted the answers by clicking on “Save and Next” or “Marked
for Review and Next”.
(4) A candidate should read the instructions carefully and indicate that he/she has done so by
‘checking’ the box at the bottom of the screen, after which the ‘I am ready to begin’ button is
activated.
(5) After clicking on the ‘I am ready to begin’ button, the actual test time will begin.
(6) Only one question will be displayed at a time.
(7) For the post Engineering (Electrical) – A non-programmable calculator will be made available
on the screen for paper III.
(8) The clock has been set at the server and the countdown timer at the top right corner of the
screen will display the time remaining to complete the exam. When the clock runs out the exam
ends by default-the candidate is not required to end or submit his exam.

5
(9) The Question Palette displayed on the right side of screen will show the status of each question
using one of the following symbols:

You have not visited the question yet.

You have not answered the question

You have answered the question

You have NOT answered the question, but have marked the question for review

The question(s) “Answered and Marked for Review” will be considered for
evaluation.
The question(s) “Marked for Review” will not be considered for evaluation.
Hence, no marks will be allocated for the same.

The Marked for Review status for a question simply indicates that you would like to look at that
question again. If a question is answered and Marked for Review, your answer for that question
will be considered in the evaluation.
(10) To select a question to answer, the candidate can do one of the following:
(a) Click on the question number on the question palette at the right of the screen to go to
that numbered question directly. Note that using this option does NOT save the answer to
the current question.
(b) Click on ‘Save and Next’ to save answer to current question and to go to the next
question in sequence.
(c) Click on ‘Mark for Review and Next’ to save answer to current question, mark it for
review, and to go to the next question in sequence.
(11) To select the answer, click on one of the option buttons.
(12) To change the answer, click another desired option button.
(13) To save the answer, the candidate MUST click on ‘Save & Next’.
(14) To deselect a chosen answer, click on the chosen option again or click on the Clear Response
button.
(15) To mark a question for review click on ‘Mark for Review & Next’. If an answer is selected for
a question that is ‘Marked for Review’, the answer will be considered in the final evaluation.
(16) To change an answer to a question, first select the question and then click on the new answer
option followed by a click on the ‘Save & Next’ button.
(17) Questions that are saved or marked for review after answering will ONLY be considered
for evaluation.
(18) Sections will be displayed on the top bar of the screen. Questions in a section can be viewed by
clicking on the section name. The Section you will view will be highlighted.
(19) You can shuffle between section and questions any time during the examination of that
particular paper, as per your convenience.
(20) Under no circumstances should a candidate click on any of the ‘keyboard keys’ once the exam
starts as this will lock the exam.
(21) A candidate can only change his/her answer before submission.

6
 (22) After the expiry of the exam duration (i.e. 140 minutes), candidates will not be able to attempt
any question or check their answers. A candidate’s answers would be automatically saved by
the computer system even if he has not clicked the ‘Submit’ button.

(23) The candidates may ask the Test Administrator about their doubts or questions only before the
commencement of the test. No query shall be entertained after the commencement of the
examination.

(24) Please note :

(a) Candidates will not be allowed to “finally submit” unless they have exhausted the actual test time.

(b) Under no circumstances should a candidate click on any of the ‘keyboard keys’ once the exam starts as
this will lock the exam.

(B) Paper-II: Descriptive Type Paper :

No separate login is required to take the test. This test will start automatically upon auto-submission
of Paper-I after 40 minutes. The questions will be in English and answers are to be typed in space
provided for the same using keyboard. Only one question will be displayed at a time.

Note: You will not be able to shuffle between different Papers.

4. About the Submission- all papers

(1) Candidates are not permitted to ‘Submit’ before the entire Exam time is over.

(2) A candidate can only change his/her answer before submission / Expiry of time for a paper.

(3) After the expiry of the exam duration, candidates will not be able to attempt any question or check their
answers. A candidate’s answers would be automatically saved by the computer system even if he has
not clicked the ‘Submit’ button.

5. General Instructions:

(1) Please note your Roll Number, Password, date, time and venue address of the examination
given in the Call Letters.

The mere fact that an Call Letter has been issued to you does not imply that your candidature has
been finally cleared by the Board or that the entries made by you in your application for
examination have been accepted by the Board as true and correct. It may be noted that the Board
will take up the verification of eligible candidates, i.e. age, educational qualification and category
(Scheduled Caste/Tribe/OBC/PwBD), etc. with reference to original documents, only at the time of
interview of candidates who qualify on the basis of result of the Phase-II examination. You may,
therefore, please note that if at any stage, it is found that you do not satisfy the eligibility criteria as
given in the advertisement or the information furnished by you in the application is incorrect, your
candidature is liable to be cancelled forthwith with such further action as the SEBI may like to take.
You may please note that the Call letter does not constitute an offer of employment with SEBI.

(2) You may visit the venue one day before the Phase-II online examination to confirm the
location so that you are able to report on time on the day of the examination. Candidates
who report late will not be allowed to take the test.

(3) Call Letters should be brought with you to the examination venue along with your recent
passport size photograph duly pasted. (Preferably the same photograph as was uploaded).

7
(4) Please also bring currently valid photo identity proof in original and photocopy of the same photo
identity proof which you bring in original - THIS IS ESSENTIAL. Candidates coming without
these documents will not be allowed to take the test. During each shift, please hand over the
respective Call Letter stapled with one photocopy of the photo identity proof, to the invigilator.
Currently valid photo identity proof are PAN Card/Passport/Permanent Driving
Licence/Voter’s Card with photograph/Bank Passbook with photograph/Photo Identity proof
issued by a Gazetted Officer on official letterhead along with photograph/Photo Identity
proof issued by a People’s Representative on official letterhead along with
photograph/Valid recent Identity Card issued by a recognised College/University with
photograph /Aadhar Card with a photograph/E-Aadhar Card with a photograph/Employee ID
in original with photograph/Bar Council Identity card with photograph. Please Note - Ration
Card and Learner’s Driving License will NOT be accepted as valid ID proof for this
purpose. Please note that your name (provided by you during the process of registration) as
appearing on the Call Letters should exactly match the name as appearing on the photo identity
proof. Female candidates who have changed first/last/middle name post marriage must take
special note of this. If there is any mismatch between the name indicated in the Call Letters
and Photo Identity Proof, you will not be allowed to appear for the exam. In case of candidates
who have changed their name will be allowed only if they produce Gazette notification/their
marriage certificate/affidavit.
(5) Biometric data (thumb impression) will also be captured at the examination venue. With regards
to the same, please note the following:
(a) If fingers are coated (stamped ink/mehandi/coloured, etc.), ensure to thoroughly wash them
so that coating is completely removed before the exam day.
(b) If fingers are dirty or dusty, ensure to wash them and dry them before the finger print
(biometric) is captured.
(c) Ensure fingers of both hands are dry. If fingers are moist, wipe each finger to dry them.
(d) If the primary finger (thumb) to be captured is injured/damaged, immediately notify the
concerned authority in the test centre.
(Any failure to observe these points will result in non-admittance for the examination)
(6) You must scrupulously follow the instructions of the Test Administrator and Board Representative at
the examination venue. If you violate the instructions/rules, it would be treated as a case of
misconduct/ adoption of unfair means and such a candidate would be liable for debarment from
appearing for examinations for a period as decided by SEBI.
(7) During the examination, use of calculators (separate or with watch), books, note books, written
notes, pagers, cell phones (with or without camera facility) or any similar electronic
communication devices, etc. will not be allowed. Candidates are advised not to bring any of the
banned items including cell phones/pagers to the venue of the examination as safety
arrangements cannot be assured. Candidates found resorting to any unfair means or malpractice
or any misconduct while appearing for the examination including giving/ receiving help to/from
any candidate during the examination will be disqualified. The candidates should be vigilant to
ensure that no other candidate is able to copy from his/her answers. For the post Engineering
(Electrical) – A non-programmable calculator will be made available on the screen for paper III.
(8) Your responses (answers) will be analysed with other candidates to detect patterns of similarity of
right and wrong answers. If in the analytical procedure adopted in this regard, it is inferred/
concluded that the responses have been shared and scores obtained are not genuine/valid, your
candidature may be cancelled. Any candidate who is found copying or receiving or giving
assistance or engaging in any behaviour unbecoming of a candidate will not be considered for
assessment. The Board may take further action against such candidates as deemed fit by it.

8
 (9) You should bring with you a ball-point pen. A sheet of paper will be provided which can be used
for rough work or taking down the question number you would like to review at the end of the test
before submitting your answers. After the test is over you MUST hand over this sheet(s) of paper to
the Test Administrator before leaving the venue.
(10) A candidate who is or has been declared by the Board guilty of impersonation or of submitting
fabricated document/s which have been tampered with or of making statements which are
incorrect or false or of suppressing material information or otherwise resorting to any other
irregular or improper means of obtaining admission to examination or of using or attempting to
use unfair means in the examination hall or misbehavior in the examination hall may be debarred
permanently or for a specified period -
(i) By the Board from admission to any examination or appearance at any interview held by the
Board for selection of the candidates, and
(ii) By the Board from employment under it, and
(iii) If already in the service of the Board, be liable to disciplinary action under the appropriate
rules.
(11) Note for Person with Benchmark Disability (PwBD):
(i) The additional/compensatory time of twenty (20) minutes for every hour of examination
may be allowed to only those candidates with disabilities who have physical limitation to
write/type including that of speed and who use the facility of a scribe. However, the
additional/compensatory time of twenty (20) minutes for every hour of examination will
be allowed to all the Visually Impaired candidates, regardless of whether they opt for
scribe or self writing or with the help of assistive devices like magnifier.
(ii) The PwBD candidates, who want to use facility of scribe, MUST download and carefully
READ the instructions meant for them, which can also be downloaded from SEBI website
(dated November 01, 2018 under ‘careers’ section).
(iii) These candidates are also required to submit a Joint Undertaking/Declaration form that can
be downloaded from SEBI website.
(iv) All Visually Impaired candidates, will be allowed to use the facility of on screen magnifier.
(12) The possibility for occurrences of some problem in the administration of the examination cannot be
ruled out completely, which may impact test delivery and/or result from being generated. In that
event, every effort will be made to rectify such problem, which may include movement of
candidates, delay in test. Conduct of re-exam is at the absolute discretion of SEBI or test
conducting body. Candidates will not have any claims for a re-test. Candidates not willing to
move or not willing to participate in the delayed process of test delivery shall be summarily
rejected from the process.
(13) Anyone found to be disclosing, publishing, reproducing, transmitting, storing or facilitating
transmission and storage of test contents in any form or any information therein in whole or part
thereof or by any means verbal or written, electronic or mechanical or taking away the papers
supplied in the examination hall or found to be in unauthorised possession of test content is likely to
be prosecuted.
6. IMPORTANT POINTS TO REMEMBER:
You are advised to bring with you the following:
(i) Call Letter with photo affixed thereon and photo ID card in Original and photocopy.
(ii) One ball point pen.
(iii) For the post Engineering (Electrical) – A non-programmable calculator will be made available
on the screen for paper III.
WISH YOU GOOD LUCK!!