HPPSC Shimla ACF Mains English Paper Held on 24 February 2026
QUESTION PAPER SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS
Please read each of the following instructions carefully before attempting questions:
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There are FIVE questions and all questions are compulsory.
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The number of marks carried by a question/part are indicated against it.
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Attempt of a part/question shall be counted in sequential order. Unless struck off, attempt of a part/question shall be counted even if attempted partly. Any page or portion of the page left blank in the Question-cum-Answer Booklet (QCAB) must be clearly struck off.
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Answers must be written in legible handwriting.
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Re-evaluation/re-checking of answer book of the candidate is not allowed.
1. (a) Rewrite the following sentences after making necessary corrections, if any. Do not make unnecessary changes in the original sentences. (10)
(i) He gave me an useful advice.
(ii) Let you and me do it.
(iii) Whom do you believe him to be?
(iv) The train will arrive at 5 am in Sunday.
(v) We little knew about the matter.
(vi) We discussed about the more costlier funeral.
(vii) I have ordered for three cups of coffee.
(viii) She requested for my help.
(ix) He not only lost his ticket, but also his luggage.
(x) He only pays his income tax.
1. (b) Change the voice of the following sentences: (10)
(i) Sita loves Savitri.
(ii) The mason is building the wall.
(iii) The Principal finished him.
(iv) By whom was this poem written?
(v) Some boys were helping the wounded man.
(vi) Who taught you French?
(vii) The dog was hit by a stick.
(viii) We prohibit smoking.
(ix) The cat was teased by the boy.
(x) All his friends laughed at him.
2. (a) Use the following Idioms/Phrases in sentences of your own to bring out their meaning clearly without changing the form of the word. (10)
(i) To eat a humble pie
(ii) Not worth his salt
(iii) Flesh and blood
(iv) Through thick and thin
(v) Live from hand to mouth
(vi) No love lost
(vii) Sitting on the fence
(viii) Turn a new leaf
(ix) Gall and Wormwood
(x) Too many irons in the fire
2. (b) Give one word substitution for the following:
(i) A person who can speak many languages.
(ii) A book written by an unknown author.
(iii) One who loves mankind.
(iv) A place where books are kept.
(v) One who studies the stars and planets.
(vi) A speech delivered without preparation.
(vii) A child who has lost both parents.
(viii) One who believes in God.
(ix) A remedy for all diseases.
(x) A life history written by oneself.
3. Write an essay on any one of the following topics in about 800 (Eight Hundred) words: (30)
(i) The Role of Media in the Age of AI
(ii) Gender Budgeting & Women Empowerment
(iii) Digitalization in India: Problems and Potential Solutions
4. Read the passage carefully and answer the questions that follow: (10)
Digital revolution means that there has been a shift from the mechanical and analogue electronic technology to digital technology. The digital revolution also marks the beginning of the information age. The generation of digital computers in the 1940s was a paramount change in the history of technology. It means that electronic calculation, which was known in the past as data processing, now does not compute number only but other types of data. For instance, to calculate a sum, before it was input as several numbers then summed, but now it is in the form of the number to be calculated and the sum type selected. This change in how data is processed had led to change in the types of task that can be done with a computer. From the development of the computer came the development of the internet which was a major event in the digital revolution. The internet allows information and zeros to be transferred vastly and easily around the globe, which modern day is mostly audio and visual data. The ability to send data quickly and efficiently has in turn changed the way we communicate. Email is now a major form of communication in business and for personal use. This is because it is cheaper and quicker than posting a letter. Instant messaging is communication done in real time. This is done by typing text and pressing enter. It is received at the other end and can be responded to immediately.
Questions:
(i) What does Digital Revolution mean?
(ii) What led to the change in the type of tasks that can be done with computers?
(iii) What is a major event in digital revolution and why?
(iv) Why is Email now a major form of communication?
(v) Give synonym of ‘vast’ and ‘quick’.
5. Make a précis of the following passage in about one third of its length and give a suitable title. (20)
Energy is required for all activities. It is needed to cook, to provide light and heat, to propel vehicles and to drive machinery in industries. Energy can be generated from fuel minerals like coal, petroleum, natural gas, uranium and from electricity. Energy resources can be classified as conventional and non-conventional sources. Conventional sources include; firewood, cattle dung cake, coal, petroleum, natural gas and electricity (both hydral and thermal). Non-conventional sources include solar, wind, tidal, geothermal, biogas and atomic energy. Firewood and cattle dung cake are most common in rural India. According to one estimate more than 70% energy requirement in rural households is met by these two; continuation of these is increasingly becoming difficult due to decreasing forest area. Moreover, using dung cake too is being discouraged because it consumes most valuable manure which could be used in agriculture. In India, coal is the most abundantly available fossil fuel. It provides a substantial part of the nation’s energy needs. It is used for power generation, to supply energy to industry as well as in homes. Coal is formed due to compression of plant material over millions of years. Coal, therefore, is found in a variety of forms depending on the degrees of compression and the depth and time of burial. Decaying plants in swamps produce peat, which has a low carbon and high moisture contents and low heating capacity. Lignite is a low grade brown coal, which is soft with high moisture content. The principal lignite reserves are in Neyveli in Tamil Nadu and are used for generation of electricity. Coal that has been buried deep and subjected to increased temperatures is bituminous coal. It is the most popular coal in commercial use. Metallurgical coal is high grade bituminous coal which has a special value for smelting iron in blast furnaces. Anthracite is the highest quality hard coal. In India coal occurs in rock series of two main geological ages, namely Gondwana, a little over 200 million years in age and in tertiary deposits which are only about 55 million years old.
Petroleum or mineral oil is the next major energy source in India after coal. It provides fuel for heat and lighting, lubricants for machinery and raw materials for a number of manufacturing industries. Petroleum refineries act as a “nodal industry” for synthetic textile, fertiliser and numerous chemical industries. Most of the petroleum occurrences in India are associated with anticlines and fault traps in the rock formations of the tertiary age. In regions of folding, anticlines or domes, it occurs where oil is trapped in the crest of the upfold. The oil bearing layer is a porous limestone or sandstone through which oil may flow. The oil is prevented from rising or sinking by intervening non-porous layers.
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