PO EXAM 2023-24 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC/RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY

CANDIDATES

ESSAY WRITING

The purpose of the essay writing is to test the language proficiency of the candidate
along with his/her creativity, intellectual knowledge and understanding of the given
topic.

Format of Essay Writing

A well written essay is mainly divided into three parts:

(i). Introduction: It is the most important part of an essay. A brief summary of the topic
can be used to introduce the topic. Remember that it should be short and to the point.

(ii). Body: It contains all information about the topic. In this part, you can
explain/elaborate or discuss the topic in detail about its pros/cons or
advantages/disadvantages with relevant facts/figures/examples etc.

(iii). Conclusion: A strong conclusion is equally important to an essay. The concluding

paragraph should summarise the essay in a few lines which will provide the final (either
positive or negative) perspective on the topic. One however, should focus on the
positive perspective or should try to deal with the negative issue/problem concerned
by giving solutions/suggested improvements and end the essay on a positive note.

Note : The essay should not be too long for the reader. One must strictly stick to
the word-limit of the essay as instructed in the question. The Length of the essay
should not exceed the word –limit as prescribed.

Some sample essays on a few topics are as given below:

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PO EXAM 2023-24 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC/RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY
CANDIDATES
Importance of Compliance in Banks

The banking landscape of India is changing rapidly. With the evolution of technology,
the entire industry has undergone a massive transformation that has changed the way
financial procedures are carried out, and the way financial institutions operate. This
paradigm change has posed significant challenges to the banks as well as the
regulators. One of the important challenges is ‘compliance’; a very important aspect for
sustainable success story for any banking and financial system.

Compliance is defined as the act of following laws, rules, regulations, and various codes
of conducts including the voluntary ones. Although most of these arise from external
requirements, following the organization’s own internal rules, policies, and procedures,
acting in accordance with ethical practices is equally important. A strong compliance
culture should also ensure adherence to fair practice codes, manage conflicts of
interests, and treat customers fairly, with the larger objective of delivering efficient
customer service. Thus, compliance shall go beyond what is legally binding and
embrace broader standards of integrity and ethical conduct.

It is very important for banks to demonstrate a good compliance culture to maintain

their reputation and win the trust of customers, investors and regulators. Such culture
is important for banks to avoid poor conduct and loss of trust.

A good compliance culture can benefit banks in several ways; which includes: i) low
organizational and individual risk; ii) low reputational risk; iii) less hesitance and more
confidence among employees while performing their jobs; iv) Helps attract and retain
talent and ensure employee engagement. v) improved transparency which enables
better decisions; vi) enhanced relationship with regulators and other stakeholders and
vii) enhanced valuation among investors;

We, therefore, need to embrace compliance if we want customer satisfaction which

eventually leads to better return on equity.

Compliance risk is the risk of legal or regulatory sanctions, material financial loss, or
loss to reputation a bank may suffer as a result of its failure to comply with laws,
regulations, rules, related self-regulatory organization standards, and codes of conduct

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PO EXAM 2023-24 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC/RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY
CANDIDATES
applicable to its banking activities. On the other hand, an effective process would
identify compliance risks in each business line, product and process, and devise ways
to mitigate such risks. The processes and requirements should be properly
documented with a list of do’s and don’ts accompanying the same. The instances of
failure to adhere to proper conduct should be converted into case studies and
disseminated among the staff for education and entrenchment of desired attitudes.

Banks should eschew the tendency to treat compliance merely as cost and should
recognise that proper conduct saves the bank from possible reputational loss and
penalties – thus, generates hidden earnings which most banks do not quantify, and
hence do not realise.

A strong compliance culture will therefore, help in building organisations that are strong,
resilient, disciplined and enjoy the benefits of sustained growth and customer
confidence.

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PO EXAM 2023-24 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC/RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY
CANDIDATES
How Good Ethics Will Help You Build A Strong Business
Good Ethics is an important factor to build a strong business and culture just like other
factors such as salary, fulfilling work, good management, and more. Studies have
revealed that workplace culture and responsibility are key factors that determine how
successful a business will be, which underlines how important this is to build a strong
business.
What this means is that for the current generation filling up the workforce, good ethics
are crucial to the long-term success and growth of a company.
Good ethics help people make better decisions that are in the long-term interests of
the company, therefore helping to build a strong business. In fact, it’s fair to say that
poor ethics have actually played a role in the demise of many companies. A classic
example of this is Enron. Enron had a toxic culture that played a major role in the
collapse of that company. In essence, the absence of good ethics from the company
sowed the seeds for the company’s demise.
Whereas a company with a great culture, that focuses on good ethics, is more likely
to hire and retain staff that will make good decisions that aid the long term growth and
success of the company.
This makes clear how important it is for companies to develop an ethics programme
that encourages good ethics throughout the business and to develop the behaviour
amongst their workforce.
Misconduct in the workplace is always an issue for companies. One of the most
effective ways to reduce it is via good ethics. If companies have workplaces where
good ethics are fostered and encouraged, it means that there will be less chance for
misconduct to occur. Furthermore, it also means that employees are much more likely
to report any observed misconduct.
It’s abundantly clear that good ethics plays a major role in the kind of decision making
processes used by staff in an organisation, which affect the ability to build a strong
business. Decisions are made everyday in a business that shape the future of a
company, make sure your employees are making decisions that are going to shape
the company’s future positively rather than negatively (as was the case with Enron).
Similarly, by focusing on developing a workforce that practices good ethics,
misconduct can be reduced and the workforce becomes stronger and more company-
oriented. In a nutshell, good ethics are vital if you want to build a strong business.

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PO EXAM 2023-24 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC/RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY
CANDIDATES
Global Warming and Climate Change

Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. These
shifts may be natural, such as through variations in the solar cycle. But since the
1800s, human activities have been the main driver of climate change, primarily due to
burning fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas.

Burning fossil fuels generates greenhouse gas emissions that act like a blanket wrapped
around the Earth, trapping the sun’s heat and raising temperatures. Examples of
greenhouse gas emissions that are causing climate change include carbon dioxide and
methane. These come from using gasoline for driving a car or coal for heating a building,
for example. Clearing land and forests can also release carbon dioxide. Landfills for
garbage are a major source of methane emissions. Energy, industry, transport, buildings,
agriculture and land use are among the main emitters. And emissions continue to rise. As
a result, the Earth is now about 1.1°C warmer than it was in the late 1800s. The last decade
(2011-2020) was the warmest on record.

Many people think climate change mainly means warmer temperatures. But temperature
rise is only the beginning of the story. Because the Earth is a system, where everything is
connected, changes in one area can influence changes in all others. The consequences of
climate change now include, among others, intense droughts, water scarcity, severe fires,
rising sea levels, flooding, melting polar ice, catastrophic storms and declining biodiversity.

Climate change can affect our health, ability to grow food, housing, safety and work.
Conditions like sea-level rise and saltwater intrusion have advanced to the point where
whole communities have had to relocate, and protracted droughts are putting people at risk
of famine. In the future, the number of “climate refugees” is expected to rise. In a series
of UN reports, thousands of scientists and government reviewers agreed that limiting global
temperature rise to no more than 1.5°C would help us avoid the worst climate impacts and
maintain a liveable climate. Yet policies currently in place point to a 2.8°C temperature
rise by the end of the century.

Switching energy systems from fossil fuels to renewables like solar or wind will reduce the
emissions driving climate change. While a growing coalition of countries is committing to net

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PO EXAM 2023-24 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC/RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY
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zero emissions by 2050, about half of emissions cuts must be in place by 2030 to keep
warming below 1.5°C.

The need of the hour is to follow the path of sustainable development to effectively
address the concerns of climate change by minimising the use of fossil fuels, and
adopting alternative sources of energy, such as hydropower, solar and wind energy to
make a progressive transition to clean energy. This will help in curbing the menace of
climate change.

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PO EXAM 2023-24 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC/RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY
CANDIDATES
Rise of Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the biggest technological revolution of 21st century

having the potential to disrupt almost all aspects of human existence. It is the
simulation of human intelligence processes by machines which include
acquisition of information and creation of rules using the information to reach
to approximate or definite results/conclusions and self correction.

Artificial intelligence has transformed all the sectors of economy and has
emerged as a new factor of production, supplementing the traditional factors of
production, such as labour, capital and innovation. It has the potential to
overcome the limitations of traditional factors and has the power to open up
new sources of value and growth.
AI has great potential to transform the social economic system as its impact on
every industrial or service sector is indisputable.
It will turn the world over a new leaf through automation, intelligence and
creation. Hence, we must work towards leveraging this potential for creating a
better future.

But going forward, some believe that it will steadily take over all the sectors of
the work force and it will bring mass scale unemployment and social unrest as
it has the potential to automate tasks that are monotonous which will gradually
turn certain roles obsolete. Examples include activities involved in customer
care, call centre operations, documents classification, etc which are based
more on technology and less on human work. Transportation sector will also
witness reduced demand of professional drivers as fully automatic cars, which
are safer, more efficient and effective will take on the roads. Further the
customer service segment will be totally taken over by fully automated robots
navigating the space to collect products and execute customer orders.

According to report from World Economic Forum (WEF) called ‘The Future of
Jobs’ report, the use of AI in workplace is expected to create 133 million Euros
but cause 75 million jobs to be displaced by the year 2022.

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PO EXAM 2023-24 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC/RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY
CANDIDATES
In order to properly leverage the power of AI we need to address the issues at
the educational level as well as in the business arena. Education system needs
to focus on training students in rows directly associated with AI including
machine learning programmers, data analysts etc.

AI will change the world both inside and outside the workplace. Instead of
focusing on fear surrounding automation business , authorities all over need to
embrace new technologies to ensure that they implement the most effective AI
systems to enhance and complement human intelligence.

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PO EXAM 2023-24 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC/RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY
CANDIDATES

Social Media: Blessing or Curse for the Society

Social media these days has facilitated a lot in reshaping communication industry and
redefining the ways in which we communicate and express ourselves. It engages
people constantly and assimilates everyone in some of the other trending activities.
People have embraced social media so persistently that it has become an interior part
of our lives now. It is being used not only by individuals but also businesses,
organizations and governments, who are utilizing social media platforms for constant
engagement with the masses.

However there are number of evidences from different studies that shows that increase
in the usage of smartphone and social media leads to mental distractions, self-injurious
behaviour and societal tendency especially among the youth. In India, millions of
people use social networking sites for various purposes. India is home to over 400
million people that use social media platforms. Every social media has two sides bright
and dark it can either be a help or a hindrance depending on the way how people use
it. The bright side indicates a lot of advantages in favour of the social media. It is a
known fact that social media sites have been used for years for purposes that have
brought a revolution in the society. It connects us with people all over the world whom
we have never met in person yet we are still able to develop strong relationships with
them. There is an equivocal expression, as a person can express his/her opinions
without any outside influence. Both small and large businesses have the same
opportunities to advertise their products through social media platforms.

On the other hand, there have also been various negative consequences through
social media platforms. As the reach of social media is increasing, there’s both real
and fake information to be found via social content. People can find fake news laid out
as real. Social media is addictive and quite detrimental for personal lives and causes
a lot of health issues. There have also been instances of data leakage and breach of
privacy of its users.

Social media platforms have grown tremendously and are here to stay and grow leaps
and bounds. Thus, there is need to strictly regulate the flow of misinformation, abuse,
fake news etc. If social media is regulated properly, it will bring enormous benefits for
everyone.

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PO EXAM 2023-24 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC/RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY
CANDIDATES
LETTER WRITING

Following are suggested Dos and Don’ts for writing a Formal letter:

 DOs
1. Keep the language of the letter very formal and concise.
2. Address the concerned person by : Madam/ Dear Sir
3. Keep the tone of the letter very mild and polite
4. Use the conventional date form with month, day and year and letter No.
5. The return address should be captured in the letter, mostly the address is
printed on letter head.
6. For external communication (from SBI to RBI/GOI/ customers etc) always
send letters on letterhead.
7. For internal communication, always mention your Name, designation and
Contact Number.
8. The mailing address should be complete (including pin code), with the title
of person addressed to: for eg-
Mr XYZ
Designation
Company/ Office Name
Address
9. The salutation you chose should be based on familiarity/ seniority with the
reader and formality of the situation. As a general rule , if writer and reader
are well known then salutation may be first name- (Dear Arun), else last
name (Dear Shri Verma) , senior (Madam/ Dear Sir)
10. Preferably always address ladies as Ms….., irrespective of marital status.
11. Also when addressing to a group of Ladies/Gents , salutation should say,
Madam/ Dear Sir.
12. Always include a subject line in the letter so that both the sender and
receiver can quickly identify the subject of correspondence, eg: Sub:
Request for Leave on medical ground
13. The content of the letter should bring out the intent of writing the letter in
initial paragraphs itself. Thereafter it should be followed by proposed
courses of action/ suggestions.

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PO EXAM 2023-24 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC/RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY
CANDIDATES
14. References of any previous correspondence in regard to subject matter of
the letter should be brought in the beginning of the letter.
15. The closing of the letter should be with gratitude eg- Thanking you for your
kind consideration…, Assuring you of our best services ..
16. The most commonly used complimentary close is yours sincerely and it
should be followed by your name, designation and signature.

DONTs

1. Do not stretch the letter too long. Normally 2-3 paragraphs should be good
enough.
2. Do not use harsh words, slangs or too complicated words while writing the
letter.
3. Do not forget to give reference of outcomes of any previous letters/ meetings/
correspondence and action taken ( if applicable)
4. Do not make spelling mistakes in the Name of sender/receiver and content of
letter.
5. Do not make grammatical errors in the content of the letter.
6. Do not engage in long sentences/ paragraphs and try to be as precise as
possible
7. Do not use capitals in the content of letter. Always use Sentence case.
8. Do not use BOLD and Capital (unless necessary) as this tantamount to be
loud.
9. Don’t use informal words/phrases/smileys etc in the letter.
10. Do not delay in sending the Letter – keep the time limit reasonable for writing
and sending of the letter.
11. Do not jump the deadlines in responding to the letters received.
12. Do not write the letter too brief to understand.
13. Do not abbreviate designations of recipients for eg – CGM should be
expanded as Chief General Manager (see below), also in the subject line do
not use abbreviations for eg- Data on PMFBY should be written as Data on
Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY). Subsequently abbreviations
may be used in body of letter while referring to PMFBY.

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PO EXAM 2023-2024 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY
CANDIDATES
Note : The letter should not be too long for the reader to read. One must strictly
stick to the word-limit of the letter. The Length of the letter should not exceed
the word–limit as prescribed.

Suggested Format of Letter:

A: Letter to External recipients / Govt authorities (Use Bank letter head)

(Complete Address of the receiver)

Letter No……. dated……

Madam/Dear Sir,

Subject Line : ………………………………………………..

Body of the letter (write 2-3 paragraphs including reason behind the letter )
Thanking you for your kind consideration.

Yours sincerely
Name
Designation
Contact Number

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PO EXAM 2023-2024 : PRE-EXAMINATION TRAINING FOR SC/ST/OBC RELIGIOUS MINORITY COMMUNITY
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B: Letter to customers (Use Bank letterhead)

(Complete Address of the receiver)

Letter No……. dated……

Madam/Dear Sir,

Subject Line : ………………………………………………..

Body of the letter (write 2-3 paragraphs including reason behind the letter )
Assuring you of our best services,

Yours sincerely
Name
Designation
Contact Number

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