Guard, Forest Protection Force — Question Paper Analysis (Set-A)
Guard, Forest Protection Force — Question Paper Analysis (Set-A)
Exam: JKSSB Guard, Forest Protection Force, Forest/Ecology/Environment Dept., J&K — held 29.03.2026 Structure: 120 MCQs • 120 marks • 120 minutes • 1 mark each • ¼ negative marking Key feature: The paper follows the syllabus blueprint exactly and in order — Mathematics (28), Reasoning (28), English (28), General Awareness & Science (36). Post-exam corrections (Series A): 2 questions discarded (Q21, Q44); 2 answers revised (Q40 D→B, Q84 A→D); 1 question dual-keyed (Q38 accepts A & B).
1. Section-wise distribution
| # | Section | Questions | No. of Q | Marks | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | Mathematics | Q1–Q28 | 28 | 28 | 23.3% |
| II | Reasoning | Q29–Q56 | 28 | 28 | 23.3% |
| III | English | Q57–Q84 | 28 | 28 | 23.3% |
| IV | General Awareness & Science | Q85–Q120 | 36 | 36 | 30.0% |
General Awareness & Science is the single largest block (36 marks / 30%); the other three sections are equal at 28 each.
Mathematics ████████████████████████████ 28
Reasoning ████████████████████████████ 28
English ████████████████████████████ 28
General Awareness & Science ████████████████████████████████████ 36
2. Mathematics (Q1–Q28): topic breakdown
| Sub-topic | Questions | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Average | Q4, Q5, Q6, Q7 | 4 |
| Time, Work & Distance | Q8, Q9, Q10, Q11 | 4 |
| Ratio & Proportions | Q12, Q13, Q14, Q15 | 4 |
| LCM / HCF | Q21*, Q22, Q23, Q24 | 4 (−1 discarded) |
| Mensuration | Q25, Q26, Q27, Q28 | 4 |
| Percentage | Q1, Q2, Q3 | 3 |
| Probability | Q18, Q19, Q20 | 3 |
| Problems on Ages | Q16, Q17 | 2 |
* Q21 discarded.
Emphasis: A remarkably even, textbook spread — four questions each from Average, Time-Work-Distance, Ratio, HCF/LCM and Mensuration; three each from Percentage and Probability. All are single-concept, one-to-two-step problems. This is the most scoreable quantitative section of any paper in this set — straightforward for a prepared candidate.
3. Reasoning (Q29–Q56): topic breakdown
| Sub-topic | Questions | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Analogies | Q29, Q30, Q31, Q32 | 4 |
| Relationship concepts (blood relations) | Q33, Q34, Q35, Q36 | 4 |
| Figure / odd one out | Q37, Q38*, Q39, Q40 | 4 |
| Direction Sense | Q41, Q42, Q43, Q44* | 4 (−1 discarded) |
| Number series | Q50, Q51, Q52, Q53 | 4 |
| Venn Diagram | Q46, Q47, Q48, Q49 | 4 |
| Coding/Decoding | Q54, Q55, Q56 | 3 |
| Figure Series completion | Q45 | 1 |
* Q38 dual-keyed; Q44 discarded.
Emphasis: Again a balanced four-per-topic design across analogies, blood relations, odd-one-out, direction, series and Venn diagrams. The Venn cluster (Q46–48) is a single 80-student data set worth 3 marks. This section carried most of the exam's problems — 1 discarded (Q44), 1 revised (Q40) and 1 dual-keyed (Q38) — so it was the least cleanly set.
4. English (Q57–Q84): topic breakdown
| Sub-topic | Questions | Count |
|---|---|---|
| Reading comprehension | Q71, Q72, Q73, Q74, Q75 | 5 |
| Sentences (correction/rearrange/substitution) | Q81, Q82, Q83, Q84* | 4 |
| Verbs | Q67, Q68, Q69, Q70 | 4 |
| Articles | Q57, Q58, Q59 | 3 |
| Prepositions | Q64, Q65, Q66 | 3 |
| Spellings | Q78, Q79, Q80 | 3 |
| Synonyms | Q60, Q61 | 2 |
| Antonyms | Q62, Q63 | 2 |
| Determiners | Q76, Q77 | 2 |
* Q84 revised.
Emphasis: A 5-mark reading-comprehension passage (on "continuous partial attention") anchors the section, followed by strong clusters on Sentences, Verbs, Articles, Prepositions and Spellings. Vocabulary is moderately hard (egregious, whimsical, loquacious, pusillanimous, intransigent, flabbergasted). Grammar-usage items (articles, prepositions, verbs, determiners) offer reliable marks.
5. General Awareness & Science (Q85–Q120): theme breakdown
| Theme | Questions | Count |
|---|---|---|
| J&K-specific (geography/culture/history) | Q110, Q111, Q112, Q113, Q114, Q115, Q116, Q117, Q118, Q119 | 10 |
| General Science (Physics/Chem/Bio) | Q102, Q103, Q104, Q105, Q106 | 5 |
| Indian History | Q94, Q96, Q98, Q99, Q100, Q101 | 6 |
| Indian Geography | Q90, Q91, Q92, Q93, Q120 | 5 |
| Current events (National) | Q85, Q86, Q87 | 3 |
| Sports | Q88, Q89 | 2 |
| Indian Culture / Music | Q95, Q97 | 2 |
| Health, Hygiene & Sanitation | Q108, Q109 | 2 |
| States & Capitals | Q107 | 1 |
Emphasis: This 36-mark block is the heart of the paper. J&K is the single biggest theme (10 questions) — Jhelum's origin, mountain passes/peaks, Hazratbal, papier-mâché, the Fourth Buddhist Council, Bulbul Shah, the Battle of Shopian, the Muslim Conference and dynastic chronology. Indian History (6) and General Science + Indian Geography (5 each) follow, with very recent current affairs (SIR, BioPharma SHAKTI Budget 2026-27, Tejas) and 2025 sports (Asia Cup Hockey, FIDE Blitz).
J&K-specific ██████████ 10
Indian History ██████ 6
General Science █████ 5
Indian Geography █████ 5
Current events ███ 3
Others (1–2 each)
6. Difficulty & question-type profile
| Type | Approx. count | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Single-concept calculation | ~28 | All of Mathematics |
| Statement / match / assertion-reason | ~22 | Heavy in GA & Science |
| Analogy / odd-one-out / series | ~15 | Reasoning |
| Chronology / ordering | 4 | Q90, Q111, Q119, Q120 |
| Direct factual / single-line | ~30 | English usage, GA one-liners |
| Reading comprehension | 5 | Q71–Q75 |
- Easiest scoring zones: the whole Mathematics section (clean one/two-step sums), reasoning analogies/series, and article/preposition/spelling items.
- Hardest / most current: the GA current-affairs and J&K-history questions, which need up-to-date and region-specific knowledge.
- Flawed/contested items: Q21 & Q44 (discarded), Q40 & Q84 (answers revised post-exam), Q38 (dual-keyed A & B), and Q71 (the "CPA" comprehension option is a debatable fit).
7. Which portions are most emphasized (overall takeaways)
- General Awareness & Science is the biggest block (36 marks) and is J&K-heavy (10 of 36). Highest-yield prep: J&K history (Sultans, Buddhist Council, Bulbul Shah, Battle of Shopian, Muslim Conference), geography (Jhelum, passes, Pir Panjal) and culture (Hazratbal, papier-mâché).
- Mathematics is the safest 28 marks — an even four-per-topic spread of simple, single-concept sums. Master percentage, average, ratio, time-work, HCF/LCM and mensuration basics.
- Reasoning is scoreable but was the least cleanly set — 4 per topic, but home to the discarded/revised/dual-keyed items. Practise analogies, blood relations, series and a Venn data-set.
- English hinges on a 5-mark comprehension passage plus vocabulary — build a moderately advanced word list and nail articles/prepositions/spellings.
- Current affairs is fresh and specific — Budget 2026-27 (BioPharma SHAKTI), SIR, Tejas, and 2025 sports (Asia Cup Hockey, FIDE Blitz) all appear. Stay current with the last 6–9 months.
- Assertion-Reason and match/statement formats are common in GA — with ¼ negative marking, verify each statement before answering.
8. Discarded / revised items (candidate-relevant)
- Q21 (LCM/HCF) — DISCARDED (inconsistent data).
- Q44 (direction sense) — DISCARDED (ambiguous set-up).
- Q38 (odd one out, 34/54/8/144) — both A and B accepted.
- Q40 (odd one out, 35/77/91/133) — answer revised D → B.
- Q84 (sentence rearrangement) — answer revised A → D.
9. One-line summary
A syllabus-faithful 28/28/28/36 paper whose identity is its 36-mark General Awareness & Science block — heavily J&K-focused and rich in fresh current affairs — supported by an unusually clean, evenly spread Mathematics section, a 4-per-topic Reasoning section (where all the exam's discarded/revised/dual-keyed items sit), and an English section anchored by a 5-mark comprehension passage, with ¼ negative marking rewarding accuracy over guesswork.
