Insurance · Government Exams

NIACL AO Exam Pattern

NIACL AO deducts a quarter mark per wrong answer at both phases, times every section separately, and treats the descriptive test as a pass-or-fail gate.

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NIACL AO · checked 19 September 2026

The dates, vacancies and rules below are read on the conducting body’s own site and rewritten as each notice appears. The guide beneath carries the full pattern, syllabus, cut-offs and free mock tests.

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19September 2026

Checked 19 September 2026

NIACL AO: the facts that matter now

01
Advertisement 7 August 2025; applications 7–30 August 2025; Phase I 14 September 2025; Phase II 29 October 2025; interviews and pre-employment…
2025 cycle
02
The New India Assurance Company Limited, Mumbai; recruitment documents at newindia.co.in → Recruitment
Conducted by
03
Administrative Officer (Scale I) — Generalists and Specialists (Finance and Accounts, Legal, Automobile, Health, IT and others as notified)
Posts
04
Phase I prelims (100 marks, qualifying) → Phase II mains (200 objective plus 30 descriptive) → interview → medical
Stages

Pattern

NIACL AO — How the paper is structured

The pattern below is the 2025 advertisement’s. It is a bank PO pattern in structure but with equal-weight mains sections, and the company states the descriptive pass mark and the shortlisting ratio in the advertisement itself.

NIACL AO exam pattern — the 2025 advertisement.
Stage and section	Questions	Marks	Time
Phase I — English Language	30	30	20 min
Phase I — Reasoning Ability	35	35	20 min
Phase I — Quantitative Aptitude	35	35	20 min
Phase II Generalist — Reasoning	50	50	40 min
Phase II Generalist — English Language	50	50	40 min
Phase II Generalist — General Awareness	50	50	30 min
Phase II Generalist — Quantitative Aptitude	50	50	40 min
Phase II Specialist — four sections of 40 plus technical and professional knowledge 40	200	200	150 min
Phase II — Descriptive English: letter 10, essay 20	2	30	30 min

How the marks work

A quarter of the marks of a question is deducted for each wrong answer in both objective phases; unanswered questions cost nothing. Phase I is qualifying. The descriptive test must be passed (15 of 30; 13.5 for SC, ST and PwBD) but its marks are not added. Scores across sessions are equated. Final merit is drawn from the Phase II objective marks and the interview.

Three rules matter. The quarter-mark penalty makes accuracy the strategy: an unanswered question is free and a wrong one costs. The section timers mean pacing is per section, with no rescue from a strong section. And the descriptive test, though not counted, must be passed — 15 of 30, or 13.5 for SC, ST and PwBD — and is marked only for candidates who clear the objective cut-off, so it is the last gate before the interview.

What counts where.
Stage	Counts towards	Note
Phase I (100)	Shortlisting only	About 15 times the vacancies advance
Phase II objective (200)	Interview shortlist and final merit	Sectional minimums set by the company
Descriptive (30)	Qualifying only	15 of 30 (13.5) to pass; not added
Interview	Final merit	Weighted with the Phase II objective score