IBPS PO Prelims 2025: Key rules, paper structure and practice questions
The preliminary exam will be an online objective test carrying 100 marks and lasting 60 minutes. It will have three sections:English Language -- 30 questions, 30 marks, 20 minutes (English medium)Quantitative Aptitude -- 35 questions, 35 marks, 20 minutes (English & Hindi)Reasoning Ability -- 35 questions, 35 marks, 20 minutes (English & Hindi)Each section will have its own cut-off marks. An overall cut-off will also be applied for shortlisting candidates for the Main Examination.All questions will be multiple-choice with a single correct answer. For every wrong answer, 0.25 marks will be deducted. Unanswered questions will not carry any penalty.CLICK FOR SAMPLE PAPERSSAMPLE QUESTIONSIBPS has released sample questions to familiarise candidates with the format. These include:English Language: grammar, vocabulary, comprehensionQuantitative Aptitude: basic calculations, data interpretationReasoning Ability: analogy, classification, logical relationshipsThe provided examples are only indicative. The actual questions in the exam may vary in type and difficulty.Candidates are encouraged to prepare thoroughly with attention to both speed and accuracy. Achieving a score well above the cut-off is essential for increasing the chances of progressing to the next stage of the recruitment process.- Ends
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Time of India
8 hours ago
- Time of India
Explained: The rise of fake productivity at work; how employees are ‘task-masking' to look busy
If your calendar looks like a Mumbai local at rush hour and Teams pings like a Diwali bazaar, you're not alone; that bustle may not be real productivity. But it may not be real productivity. A new workplace habit is spreading: Fake productivity, the theatre of looking busy while sidestepping high-impact work. One recent clue: A Workhuman poll found more than a third of UK employees (36%) admit to 'pretend productivity', driven by pressure to appear constantly active and to protect work–life balance. In parallel, leaders are wrestling with 'productivity paranoia': Microsoft's Work Trend Index reports 85% of managers say hybrid work makes it hard to trust productivity, even as employees themselves report feeling productive—an optics paradox tailor-made for performative busyness. The conditions are ideal for what social and workplace commentators now call task-masking—performative micro-tasks (reply-all, calendar clutter, meeting hopscotch) that signal effort without moving outcomes. Media analyses link the behaviour to return-to-office pressures and the surveillance vibe of 'bossware,' which nudge people to show activity over achievement. Meanwhile, collaboration load has ballooned: Microsoft shows people attend roughly three times more Teams meetings than in February 2020, while investigative summaries of Atlassian's State of Teams suggest tens of billions of work hours are lost yearly to pings, low-value meetings and duplicated effort. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Secure Your Child's Future with Strong English Fluency Planet Spark Learn More Undo Add the cognitive drain of video calls—Stanford's validated Zoom Exhaustion & Fatigue scale has tied specific design factors (mirror anxiety, close-up eye contact) to depleted energy—and you get a recipe for surface-level work that 'looks' productive but isn't. This is not simply a moral failing; it is a systems problem. Always-on messaging fuels telepressure—the compulsive urge to respond—which research in the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology connects to poorer sleep, higher burnout and worse work–life balance. People learn to survive the signal-choked day by doing visible tasks that keep the Slack dot green. The result: energy burns on the appearance of work, outcomes lag, and trust erodes. Understanding why task-masking thrives—and how to replace it with outcome-first habits—is now a core career skill. What exactly is 'task-masking' (and how is it different from simple busyness)? Task-masking is performative busyness: Behaviours that signal industriousness (typing loudly, darting between meetings, carrying a laptop everywhere) while avoiding deep, outcome-bearing work. The label has spread through Gen-Z-heavy social feeds and newsrooms. Analysts describe it as a productivity theatre tuned for the open-plan and the activity dashboard. The underlying prevalence is plausible given Workhuman's finding that 36% of UK workers confess to 'pretend productivity,' often to escape burnout or unrealistic expectations. The psychology and systems that fuel fake productivity Fake productivity doesn't emerge in a vacuum—it's shaped by systems that reward responsiveness, visibility and performative hustle. At the centre is telepressure: the compulsive need to answer messages instantly, regardless of urgency. Multiple studies in occupational psychology link this behaviour to poor sleep, elevated burnout and fractured work–life boundaries. But the pressure isn't confined to pings and emails. According to Microsoft's 2023 Work Trend Index, employees now attend nearly three times as many Teams meetings as they did before the pandemic. That explosion in meeting load may aim to increase coordination, but it comes at the cost of cognitive fragmentation and depleted focus time. The problem is compounded by the medium itself. Stanford's research on Zoom fatigue finds that constant video calls introduce non-verbal stressors—close-up eye contact, mirror anxiety, and reduced mobility—that accelerate exhaustion across the day. Layered on top is the rise of digital presenteeism—the compulsion to appear online and 'active' even when unwell or mentally drained. According to the CIPD & Simplyhealth Health and Wellbeing at Work survey (2022), 81% of UK organisations reported presenteeism among remote workers, compared to 65% in physical workplaces. The numbers expose a system where visibility trumps well-being—and where looking busy matters more than being effective. Together, these factors fuel task-masking: a survival strategy in a workplace architecture built for appearances. Why Gen Z is over-indexed on task-masking Gen Z did not invent pretend work, but they are operating in a post-pandemic labour market where visibility is often misread as value. Return-to-office rules, legacy KPIs and leader distrust make 'being seen' a protective strategy. Coverage of task-masking consistently spotlights younger workers navigating visibility politics while fearing job loss or AI displacement. At the same time, values have shifted: Deloitte's 2025 global survey finds Gen Z prioritises well-being, balance and learning ; they will comply with optics if outcomes and boundaries are unclear, but they are quick to disengage from rituals that feel meaningless. Several surveys show that many Gen Z workers resist full-time office returns, increasing the temptation to 'signal' productivity when present rather than to refactor the work itself. Task-masking and quiet quitting: Cousins, not twins Quiet quitting is disengagement to the contractual minimum; task-masking is disengagement disguised as hustle. According to Gallup's State of the Global Workplace 2024 report, only 21% of employees worldwide were actively engaged at work. The majority were either disengaged or quietly quitting, creating ideal conditions for fake productivity to flourish. In such environments, workers are more likely to adopt surface-level behaviours that signal busyness, such as excessive meetings or constant online presence, rather than contributing to meaningful outcomes. When trust is low and objectives are fuzzy, people hedge: They keep the lights blinking, attend everything, and avoid risk. In that sense, task-masking can be the performative arm of quiet quitting—a way to stay safe while mentally stepping back. How managers create (or crush) faux productivity Leaders can unintentionally train teams to optimise for optics: Obsessing over green dots, input metrics and time online. Microsoft's 2022–2025 data calls this 'productivity paranoia,' visible when managers track activity rather than outcomes and calendars swell to compensate. A related body of research, Atlassian's State of Teams report, highlights the enormous time sink caused by pings, meetings, and duplicated effort. It estimates that billions of work hours are lost annually to ineffective collaboration. The fix is not more dashboards; it is clarity (what is the outcome, who owns it), cadence (fewer, sharper meetings) and evidence (show progress with artefacts, not attendance). Bottom line Fake productivity isn't laziness—it's a symptom of misaligned systems. In today's workplace, visibility has become a proxy for value. When calendars are packed and Slack is never silent, activity becomes the performance, not the means to an end. Employees aren't defying work; they're adapting to cultures where being seen outweighs producing results. Task-masking emerges as the rational response to environments that reward optics over output. Quiet quitting and fake productivity aren't opposites—they're parallel forms of disengagement. One retreats quietly, the other performs loudly. Both thrive when trust is low, goals are vague, and measurement skews toward motion instead of meaning. In this landscape, the green dot—the little status indicator once meant to show availability—has evolved into a badge of allegiance, a digital placeholder for presence. Ready to navigate global policies? Secure your overseas future. Get expert guidance now!
News18
9 hours ago
- News18
Dividend, Bonus & Split This Week: HAL, Coal, P&G, Godfrey Philips, PowerGrid, RVNL, IRCTC
Last Updated: Several companies announced dividends, stock splits, and bonuses for investors between August 18-23, 2025. Upcoming Dividends, Bonuses, Splits and Rights Issues: A host of listed companies have announced various corporate actions for investors, with dividend announcements, stock splits, bonus issues and rights offerings, with ex-dates and record dates falling this week from August 18 to August 23, 2025. Among the major dividend declarations, Apollo Hospitals announced a final dividend of Rs 10 per share, while Coal India approved a payout of Rs 5.15 per share. Hindustan Aeronautics also rewarded its shareholders with a hefty Rs 15 per share dividend. The biggest surprise came from Godfrey Phillips India, which declared a massive Rs 60 per share dividend, and Procter & Gamble Health, which announced Rs 45 per share. Other notable payouts include Industrial & Prudential Investment Company offering Rs 110 per share, KFin Technologies at Rs 7.5 per share, LIC Housing Finance at Rs 10 per share, and APL Apollo Tubes with Rs 5.75 per share. These announcements are expected to keep dividend-focused investors highly engaged. On the corporate restructuring front, Algoquant Fintech announced both a bonus issue in the ratio of 8:1 and a stock split from Rs 2 to Re 1, with effect from August 18. Chandrima Mercantiles too declared a stock split from Rs 10 to Re 1, effective August 20. Dev Information Technology followed with a split from Rs 5 to Rs 2 on August 21. Adding to the trend, Bemco Hydraulics not only announced a stock split from Rs 10 to Re 1 but also a one-for-one bonus issue, both effective on August 22. These moves are likely to improve liquidity and attract small investors by lowering the entry price of shares. Meanwhile, Josts Engineering Company announced a rights issue of equity shares, with the record date fixed for August 20, 2025. top videos View all Disclaimer: The views and investment tips by experts in this report are their own and not those of the website or its management. Users are advised to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. About the Author Varun Yadav Varun Yadav is a Sub Editor at News18 Business Digital. He writes articles on markets, personal finance, technology, and more. He completed his post-graduation diploma in English Journalism from the Indian More Click here to add News18 as your preferred news source on Google, Stay updated with all the latest business news, including market trends, stock updates, tax, IPO, banking finance, real estate, savings and investments. Get in-depth analysis, expert opinions, and real-time updates. Also Download the News18 App to stay updated. tags : bonus dividend split view comments Location : New Delhi, India, India First Published: August 16, 2025, 11:05 IST News business » markets Dividend, Bonus & Split This Week: HAL, Coal, P&G, Godfrey Philips, PowerGrid, RVNL, IRCTC Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
India.com
10 hours ago
- India.com
Neither an engineering degree nor studied at IIT, IIM, IIIT, or VIT, yet got record breaking package at Microsoft as… she is…
It is often believed that only students from IITs and IIMs do well and secure the top placements in the best companies. But it is not true. Several students who pursue their courses from other institutes and colleges also secure jobs in leading companies, including Infosys, TCS, Meta, Apple, Google, and Microsoft. One such inspiring person is Rushali Pawar, currently working at Microsoft in Bengaluru, Karnataka. Rushali Pawar is a Communications Specialist at Microsoft India Development Center. What makes her journey phenomenal is that she did not attend a leading institution such as IIT and IIM. However, she is working for one of the biggest companies, Microsoft. Where did she complete her education? From the very beginning, Rushali showed a strong interest in writing, communication, and content creation, as reflected on her LinkedIn profile. She has experience in corporate communication, content strategy, research, and storytelling. According to her LinkedIn profile, Rushali completed her Bachelor of Arts – BA, English Language and Literature/Letters at Stella Maris College, followed by her Master of Arts – MA, English Language and Literature/Letters at the University of Leeds. In her career, she focused primarily on brand messaging, internal communication, and strategic content. She worked as a Trainee Journalist at the Times of India in 2012. Later, she worked as a Junior Writer at Time Out Group plc and became a Sub-Editor at Deccan Chronicle Holdings Ltd. Later, she worked as a Cortana Writer at Microsoft in 2018. She joined Microsoft in August 2021 as a Senior Content Writer. In October 2023, she joined Microsoft India Development Center as a Communications Specialist. 'A meticulous, innovative writer with experience in corporate communications, content strategy, research, and storytelling,' reads ber LinkedIn bio. Today, many people believe that without a degree from IITs or some prestigious institution, it is impossible to land a job in top tech companies. Rushali was able to prove otherwise. She showed that it is very much possible to connect with global companies without going through 'big-name' institutions—with talent, effort, and skills.
