JKSSB JE Civil key terms

The maximum pressure the ground beneath a foundation can carry without shear failure or excessive settlement. It decides footing size and type, and is usually expressed in kN per square metre.

The allowable soil pressure obtained by dividing the ultimate bearing capacity by a factor of safety, so that both shear failure and permissible settlement are avoided under working loads.

The downward movement of a structure caused by compression of the supporting soil. Uniform settlement is usually harmless, but differential settlement tilts walls, cracks masonry and damages frames.

A field test in which a square or circular steel plate is loaded in a pit and load-settlement readings are recorded. Results estimate soil bearing capacity and probable settlement at prototype level.

A workability test in which freshly mixed concrete fills a standard cone, the cone is lifted, and the drop in height is measured. It suits ordinary concrete but is unreliable for very dry or very wet mixes.

How easily a concrete mix can be transported, placed, compacted and finished without segregation. It is judged by slump, compaction factor or vee-bee time, and improves with water and paste content.

A laboratory test measuring the ratio of the mass of concrete actually filling a cylinder after free fall to the mass when fully compacted. It is useful for dry mixes where slump is not sensitive.

The mass of water divided by the mass of cement in a mix. Lowering it raises strength and durability but reduces workability; the theoretical minimum for full hydration is about 0.23.

Keeping concrete moist and at a favourable temperature after placing so that cement hydration continues. Ponding, wet gunny bags, curing compounds or steam are used, typically for 7 to 14 days.

Separation of coarse aggregate from mortar or paste during handling, caused by too wet a mix, excessive drop height or over-vibration. It produces honeycombed, weak and permeable concrete.

Expelling trapped air from fresh concrete by vibration, tamping or spinning so that it fills the formwork densely. Adequate compaction raises density, strength and impermeability; over-vibration causes segregation.

A concrete mix specified by volume proportions such as 1:2:4 (cement:sand:aggregate) rather than by tested strength. Permitted only for lower grades, since actual strength varies with materials and site control.

A designation such as M20 or M25 where the number is the characteristic compressive cube strength in N/mm² at 28 days. It fixes the mix design and permissible use in structural members.

The ratio of ultimate or failure load to working load, giving a margin against uncertainty in loads, material strength and analysis. Structural codes set different values for concrete, steel and foundations.

A design approach checking that a structure does not become unfit for use, either by collapse (ultimate limit state) or by discomfort and damage (serviceability). Partial safety factors are applied to loads and materials.

Internal actions in a beam: shear force is the algebraic sum of transverse forces on one side of a section, bending moment is the sum of their moments about it. Diagrams locate maximum values.

A section in a beam where the bending moment changes sign, so the curvature reverses. It occurs in fixed and continuous beams and is where reinforcement for hogging may be curtailed.

The distance between points of support used in design calculations, taken as clear span plus effective depth or support width, whichever is smaller. It governs bending moment and deflection values.

The ratio of the elastic modulus of steel to that of concrete, used in working stress design to convert steel area into an equivalent concrete area. It reflects creep and long-term behaviour.

Surveying operation in which height differences are found with a level and staff, and reduced levels are computed by height of instrument or rise-and-fall method relative to a benchmark.

A fixed point of known reduced level, permanently marked on a stable object, from which other levels are derived. Permanent, temporary and arbitrary benchmarks serve different survey purposes.

An imaginary line on a map joining points of equal elevation. Closely spaced contours mean steep ground, widely spaced mean gentle ground, and contours never cross except at an overhang.

The horizontal angle a survey line makes with a reference meridian, measured clockwise from north in the whole-circle system. Fore bearings and back bearings differ by 180 degrees.

Deflection of a magnetic needle by nearby iron, steel, cables or magnetic rock, producing wrong bearings. It is detected by comparing fore and back bearings and removed by correcting the affected stations.

A sudden rise in water surface when supercritical flow becomes subcritical, dissipating large energy. Stilling basins below spillways and weirs rely on it to prevent downstream scour.

The energy per unit weight of liquid at a channel section measured above the channel bed, equal to depth plus velocity head. Its curve shows critical depth at minimum specific energy.

A dimensionless ratio of inertial to gravity forces in open-channel flow. Values below 1 mean subcritical flow, above 1 supercritical flow, and exactly 1 critical flow.

Duty is the area of land irrigated per unit discharge, usually hectares per cubic metre per second; delta is the total depth of water applied over a crop season. Base period links the two.

The total water taken up by a crop for transpiration plus that evaporated from the adjacent soil, expressed as a depth. It is the basis for designing irrigation supply.

A field test driving a split sampler into soil with a 63.5 kg hammer falling 750 mm, counting blows for the last 300 mm. The N value correlates with density, strength and liquefaction potential.

A ratio compares two quantities of the same kind; a proportion states that two ratios are equal. Problems often need dividing an amount in a given ratio or finding a missing term.

A percentage expresses a number as parts per hundred and is used for increase, decrease, profit, loss, discount and simple interest. Successive percentage changes must be applied one after another, not added.

Simple interest is principal times rate times time divided by 100. Compound interest adds interest to principal each period, so the amount grows geometrically and exceeds simple interest after the first period.

The sum of a set of values divided by their count. It is the basis of many speed, age and mixture problems, and changes predictably when a value is added or replaced.

Speed equals distance divided by time, with consistent units. Trains crossing poles, platforms or each other, and boats in streams, are common variants requiring relative speed.

A reasoning question giving two or more statements treated as true, from which valid conclusions must be drawn. Only conclusions necessarily implied by every possible arrangement are accepted.

Reasoning puzzles describing family links through statements or symbols, asking how two people are related. Drawing a small family tree with clear gender and generation marks prevents errors.

Puzzles placing people around a circle or in a row using clues about left, right, facing direction and adjacency. Fixing one person first and testing each condition usually solves them quickly.

A sequence of numbers following a hidden rule such as addition, multiplication, squares or alternating patterns, with one term to be found. Checking differences first often reveals the rule.

Questions in which words or letters are converted by a rule and the candidate must apply the same rule to a new word. Letter positions, shifts and reversals are the usual devices.

A set of items in which all but one share a common property such as a letter pattern, category or numerical relation. The task is to identify the item that breaks the shared rule.

Words such as a, an, the, some and each placed before nouns. The choice between a and an depends on sound, not spelling, and the definite article marks something already specified.

The rule that a verb matches its subject in number and person. Phrases between them, collective nouns, and either-or constructions are the usual traps in error-spotting questions.

Small words such as in, on, at, since and between that show relation of time, place or manner. Fixed combinations with verbs and adjectives must be learnt as whole units.

Fixed expressions whose meaning cannot be worked out from the individual words, such as 'at the eleventh hour'. Questions ask for the correct meaning or a suitable replacement.

Words with the same or nearly the same meaning, and words with opposite meaning, tested as direct vocabulary items. Context matters because many words have more than one sense.

A single word replacing a descriptive phrase, such as 'one who studies birds' for ornithologist. These are learnt as vocabulary pairs and appear in most general English papers.

The three-tier system of rural local self-government in India, with village, block and district levels, given constitutional status by the 73rd Amendment Act of 1992.

Rights guaranteed in Part III of the Indian Constitution, including equality, freedom, protection from exploitation and constitutional remedies. They are enforceable through writs in the High Courts and Supreme Court.

Guidelines in Part IV of the Indian Constitution directing the State towards social and economic welfare. They are not enforceable in courts but are fundamental in governance and guide law-making.

Parliament consists of the President and two Houses, the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha; states have Legislative Assemblies and, in some cases, Legislative Councils. They make law within divided powers.

The seasonal reversal of winds over South Asia, bringing heavy summer rain. Differential heating of land and sea, the shift of the ITCZ and the Himalayan barrier drive the system.

The Jhelum rises near Verinag and flows through the Kashmir Valley; the Chenab, Ravi and Tawi drain the Jammu region. Their waters are shared under the Indus Waters Treaty.

Power schemes converting falling water into electricity through turbines. In Jammu and Kashmir notable examples include Salal, Baglihar, Dulhasti and Uri, built on the Chenab and Jhelum systems.

Indian agriculture has kharif crops sown with the monsoon, rabi crops grown in winter, and zaid crops in the short summer season. Rice, wheat and maize are the leading food grains.