What the lecturette and the GD test
The lecturette is a short talk of about three minutes that you give alone to your group on a topic you pick from a card, and the group discussion is a leaderless discussion among your group on a topic the Group Testing Officer gives. Both are GTO tasks; per the UPSC NDA and NA (II) 2026 and CDS (II) 2026 notifications (read 21 October 2026), Stage II of the SSB comprises the interview, Group Testing Officer tasks, psychology tests and the conference, and there is no separate weightage for each test. The GTO is watching for power of expression, self-confidence, organising ability and the ability to influence the group, four of the officer-like qualities listed on our five-day procedure page. Below are 120 topics in six groups, each with three to five key points written by TalkDrill as speaking angles rather than facts to recite; add that week's facts from a national newspaper or an official release and name the source when you speak. Everything else on this page is about delivery, because in our judgement most weak lecturettes fail on structure and time, not on knowledge.
At a glance:
- Lecturette: pick a card, choose one of four topics, short preparation, about three minutes of talk (as reported by candidates; the boards publish no task-level timing).
- Structure: opening line, three points with one example each, a close. About fifteen sentences.
- GD: two rounds, as candidates report; the first usually offers a choice of topics, the second does not. No leader, no conclusion required.
- The English needed is plain. Short sentences, one idea each, and a steady pace win over vocabulary.
- Practise with a timer on the extempore generator and in a group discussion room.
The three-minute lecturette structure
By our estimate, three minutes is about 350 to 400 words at a steady speaking pace, which is roughly fifteen sentences. Build every talk on the same frame so that the preparation time goes into content, not shape.
| Part | Time | What to say | Example (TalkDrill, topic: women in combat roles) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Opening | 0:00 to 0:20 | Name the topic, say why it matters now, announce three points. | "Friends, my topic is women in combat roles. The question has moved from whether to how. I will speak on three things: where we are, what the objections are, and what I think should happen next." |
| Point 1 | 0:20 to 1:05 | The situation. One fact you are sure of, one example. | "The UPSC notification for the National Defence Academy now lists vacancies for women separately and says women candidates are encouraged to apply. The Officers Training Academy runs a separate course for women through the CDS exam." |
| Point 2 | 1:05 to 1:50 | The other side, fairly. Shows balance. | "The objections are practical: field conditions, unit cohesion and physical standards. These deserve answers, not dismissal, and the answers are training standards that are the same for everyone." |
| Point 3 | 1:50 to 2:35 | Your view and one step. | "My view is that the test should be the task, not the gender. Set the standard for the job, test everyone against it, and post on merit." |
| Close | 2:35 to 2:50 | One sentence that repeats the thread. Then stop. | "Same standard, same test, same respect. Thank you." |
Three habits make or break it. Count your points on your fingers during preparation so that you do not lose one. End early rather than late; aim to finish at two minutes forty-five. Look at the group, not the GTO; the talk is to them. Hindi-medium candidates in our experience lose the talk in point 2, where the sentences get long; keep every sentence under fifteen words and the English holds.
How the lecturette runs on the day
The sequence below is as reported by candidates at every board; the boards publish no task description we could read this week (the Army portal sits behind a captcha and the Air Force site is JavaScript only). The group sits in a semicircle. Candidates go in chest-number order. The candidate whose turn it is picks a card, which carries four topics; while one candidate speaks, the next prepares. You choose one topic, prepare in silence, stand in front of the group, and speak. The GTO gives a warning before time is up and a signal at the end. Then the next candidate stands. There is no questioning afterwards, so the talk itself is the whole performance.
Choosing the topic: pick the one on which you can say three points in your own words, not the hardest. A clear talk on "importance of sports" beats a muddled one on "India's nuclear doctrine". Use the preparation time for the three points and the opening line only; the close is always the opening line repeated.
GD conduct: entry, argument, concession, summary
The GTO GD is leaderless and usually runs in two rounds. In the first, as reported, the GTO offers two or three topics and the group picks one; in the second the GTO sets the topic. Nobody is asked to conclude. The GTO is watching who moves the group, who listens, and who stays steady when it gets noisy. A complete performance is four contributions:
| Move | When | Line (TalkDrill) |
|---|---|---|
| Entry | In the first minute | "Friends, before we take sides, can we agree what the topic is asking? I read it as ... and on that reading my first point is ..." |
| Argument | Minutes two to five | "I agree with the point on cost, and I would add a second reason: ... For example, ..." |
| Concession or build | When someone makes a good opposing point | "That is a fair point, and it changes my view on one thing: ... but it does not change the main point, because ..." |
| Summary line | Last two minutes | "We seem to agree on two things and differ on one: ... Perhaps the one we differ on is the one that matters." |
Three rules: never cut a speaker off mid-sentence; if two people speak at once, give way with a hand gesture and come back; and when the room becomes loud, lower your voice. A quiet, clear sentence into a noisy room is heard by the GTO even when the group does not hear it. Our GD phrases post has more lines for entering, disagreeing and summarising, and the group discussion rooms let you run a live round with other candidates.
Defence and security (20 topics)
Key points written by TalkDrill as angles. Add one fact from that week's official release or a national newspaper and name it.
| # | Topic | Key points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Agnipath and the Agniveer soldier | What the scheme changes for recruitment; the argument on youth and cost; the argument on experience and morale; the welfare of those who leave; what an officer owes every recruit regardless. |
| 2 | Women in combat roles | Where the law stands after the permanent commission judgments; practical objections and the training answer; one standard for the task; the NDA admitting women cadets. |
| 3 | Theatre commands and jointness | Why three services fighting one war need one commander in a theatre; the role of the Chief of Defence Staff; the resistance from service cultures; what joint training at the academies should look like. |
| 4 | Self-reliance in defence manufacturing | Why importing weapons is a strategic risk; the public sector and private sector roles; the time it takes to build an aerospace industry; quality and timelines as the real test. |
| 5 | Drones and the changing battlefield | What recent conflicts showed about cheap drones; defence against them; India's own drone programmes; the soldier's new skill set. |
| 6 | Cyber warfare as the fifth domain | Power grids and banks as targets; attribution is hard; the need for a trained cyber corps; the citizen's role in basic hygiene. |
| 7 | India's nuclear doctrine | No first use and credible minimum deterrence in plain words; the triad; why the doctrine is debated; stability over bravado. |
| 8 | Border infrastructure in the Himalayas | Roads, tunnels and airstrips as deterrence; the cost of altitude; local communities and employment; the logistics of a winter deployment. |
| 9 | The Indian Ocean and the Navy's role | Trade routes and energy supplies; the Navy as first responder in disasters; island territories; cooperation with neighbours. |
| 10 | Terrorism and the response of a democracy | Security versus liberty; intelligence as the first line; the role of local police; why the response must stay within law. |
| 11 | Should military training be compulsory for every citizen? | Discipline and national integration as the case for; cost, freedom and the quality of a conscript force as the case against; the NCC as the middle path. |
| 12 | Space as a military domain | Satellites for navigation and communication; anti-satellite capability; debris and the shared commons; India's space agency and the services. |
| 13 | The soldier and social media | Operational security; morale and family contact; misinformation aimed at troops; a simple personal rule for a cadet. |
| 14 | Veterans: resettlement and One Rank One Pension | The early retirement age of soldiers; second careers and skill certification; pension fairness; what society owes. |
| 15 | Artificial intelligence in warfare | Faster decisions and autonomous systems; the ethics of a machine choosing a target; the human in the loop; training officers to use and question AI. |
| 16 | Coastal security after 26/11 | Fishing fleets as eyes; coordination between Navy, Coast Guard and police; identity cards and radar chains; the gaps that remain. |
| 17 | Should defence spending rise? | Security needs against development needs; the share going to pensions and salaries; capital for modernisation; efficiency before more money. |
| 18 | The role of the armed forces in disaster relief | Why the forces reach first; floods, earthquakes and evacuations abroad; the cost to training; civil agencies must grow too. |
| 19 | Leadership lessons from a war you have read about | Pick one: Kargil, 1971 or 1965; one decision, one leader, one lesson; why junior leadership decided the battle; what you will take to the academy. |
| 20 | Discipline: the foundation of a fighting force | Discipline as self-control, not fear; small habits that build it; discipline and initiative are not opposites; a personal example. |
National issues and governance (20 topics)
| # | Topic | Key points |
|---|---|---|
| 21 | One Nation, One Election | Cost and governance continuity as the case for; federal balance and the fate of a fallen state government as the case against; constitutional changes needed; a phased option. |
| 22 | Uniform Civil Code | What the Directive Principles say; equality before law; religious freedom and consultation; the experience of states that have moved first. |
| 23 | Reservation: time to revisit? | Why it was created; the creamy layer debate; economic criteria; the danger of deciding by slogan on either side. |
| 24 | Corruption and the common citizen | Where a citizen meets it; technology that removed middlemen; whistle-blower protection; the officer's example in a unit. |
| 25 | Freedom of the press in India | Why a democracy needs it; misinformation and accountability of the press itself; laws that chill reporting; the reader's duty to pay for news. |
| 26 | Judicial delays | Pending cases and what they do to a poor litigant; vacancies and infrastructure; alternative dispute resolution; technology in courts. |
| 27 | Centre-state relations and federalism | Shared taxes and the Finance Commission; governors and state governments; disasters and health as shared subjects; cooperation over confrontation. |
| 28 | Role of youth in nation building | The demographic window; skills over degrees; voting and local participation; the one thing a cadet can do this year. |
| 29 | Electoral reforms | Money in elections; criminal records of candidates; voter awareness; the Election Commission's independence. |
| 30 | India's foreign policy: strategic autonomy | Non-alignment to multi-alignment; relations with the US, Russia and neighbours; the Quad and other groupings; interests before slogans. |
| 31 | India and China: competition and coexistence | The boundary question; trade dependence; infrastructure race in the neighbourhood; talking and preparing at the same time. |
| 32 | India and Pakistan: is dialogue possible? | Terror and talks cannot run together; people-to-people contact; water and trade as levers; patience as policy. |
| 33 | India's neighbourhood first policy | Why small neighbours matter; aid and connectivity; the perception of a big brother; consistency over grand gestures. |
| 34 | Internal security: left-wing extremism | Development gaps and alienation; policing and roads; surrender and rehabilitation; the shrinking map and what remains. |
| 35 | Population: dividend or burden? | Working-age numbers; jobs and skills decide which; health and education as investment; the regional differences within India. |
| 36 | Local self-government: are panchayats working? | Powers on paper and in practice; funds and functionaries; women sarpanches and proxy politics; one example from your own district. |
| 37 | Language policy and the three-language formula | Unity and identity; the place of English; mother-tongue learning in early years; the Hindi debate handled with respect. |
| 38 | Citizen duties versus citizen rights | Fundamental duties in the Constitution; rights need a functioning state; small daily duties; the officer as a citizen in uniform. |
| 39 | Urbanisation and the future of Indian cities | Migration and housing; transport and air; municipal finance; what a well-run city looks like. |
| 40 | Is India ready for a presidential system? | Stability versus accountability; what the Constituent Assembly chose and why; coalition politics; reform within the parliamentary system. |
Economy and development (20 topics)
| # | Topic | Key points |
|---|---|---|
| 41 | Make in India: progress and gaps | Manufacturing's share of jobs; electronics and defence as bright spots; land, power and logistics costs; skills as the bottleneck. |
| 42 | Unemployment among educated youth | Degrees without skills; the formal sector's size; apprenticeships; the government job as the only dream in small towns. |
| 43 | Inflation and the common household | Food and fuel prices; who it hurts most; the central bank's tools; what a family can do. |
| 44 | Digital payments and financial inclusion | Bank accounts for all; UPI in the village shop; fraud and literacy; cash is not dead yet. |
| 45 | Farm income and the MSP debate | Small holdings; price support and market reform; water and crop choice; the farmer as entrepreneur. |
| 46 | Startups: bubble or backbone? | Jobs and innovation; funding cycles; profits over valuations; the small-town founder. |
| 47 | Privatisation of public sector units | Efficiency and fiscal space; strategic sectors; workers and transparency; case by case rather than ideology. |
| 48 | Goods and Services Tax: has it worked? | One market; compliance for small traders; rate structure; the revenue picture for states. |
| 49 | Infrastructure as the engine of growth | Highways, rail freight and ports; the multiplier for jobs; quality and maintenance; private finance. |
| 50 | Gig economy and the new worker | Flexibility and income; no social security; platform power; a basic protection floor. |
| 51 | Tourism as a job creator | Heritage, hills and coasts; infrastructure and cleanliness; local ownership; safety and reputation. |
| 52 | Energy security and the shift to renewables | Import dependence on oil; solar and wind growth; storage and grid; coal's role in transition. |
| 53 | Should India move to a four-day working week? | Productivity and well-being; sectors where it cannot work; the informal majority; choice rather than mandate. |
| 54 | Brain drain or brain gain? | Why talent leaves; remittances and networks; returnees and startups; making staying attractive. |
| 55 | Women in the workforce | Participation and what holds it back; safety, transport and childcare; the economic case; a change you have seen at home. |
| 56 | Rural-urban divide | Income, services and opportunity; the smartphone narrowing some gaps; agriculture's low returns; small towns as the bridge. |
| 57 | Public health spending | Out-of-pocket cost; primary care versus hospitals; insurance schemes; doctors in villages. |
| 58 | Should higher education be free? | Access and quality; who pays and who benefits; loans and scholarships; vocational routes. |
| 59 | Trade: protectionism versus openness | Protecting infant industries; costs to consumers; export competitiveness; free trade agreements and their fine print. |
| 60 | Cash transfers versus subsidies | Leakage and dignity; what cash cannot buy if the market is missing; targeting; evidence over slogans. |
Science and technology (20 topics)
| # | Topic | Key points |
|---|---|---|
| 61 | Artificial intelligence: opportunity or threat? | Productivity and new jobs; routine jobs at risk; bias and accountability; skills for a cadet's generation. |
| 62 | India's space programme | Low-cost missions and what they proved; the Moon and Sun missions; private launch companies; human spaceflight ambitions. |
| 63 | Social media: connecting or dividing? | Voice for the voiceless; outrage and misinformation; the attention economy; a personal rule. |
| 64 | Electric vehicles in India | Air quality and oil imports; charging and battery supply; two-wheelers first; the power source matters. |
| 65 | Data privacy in a digital India | What is collected and by whom; the new data protection law in outline; consent in practice; security of government databases. |
| 66 | 5G and the connected village | Telemedicine and education; towers and cost; devices and literacy; what 4G already did. |
| 67 | Nuclear energy: should India build more? | Clean baseload power; safety and waste; cost and time; small modular reactors. |
| 68 | Semiconductors and strategic technology | Why chips matter for defence and phones; the global supply chain; India's new fabrication plans; talent as the real asset. |
| 69 | Online education after the pandemic | Reach and flexibility; the digital divide; learning loss; the teacher is still the centre. |
| 70 | Genetic engineering and GM crops | Yield and pest resistance; safety and regulation; farmer choice; the Bt cotton experience. |
| 71 | Deepfakes and the truth problem | What they are; elections and reputations; detection and law; media literacy as defence. |
| 72 | Water technology: desalination, recycling, drip irrigation | Cities running dry; cost of each technology; agriculture uses the most water; behaviour change comes first. |
| 73 | Should coding be taught from primary school? | Logic and problem solving; teacher availability; screen time at young ages; thinking skills over syntax. |
| 74 | Cryptocurrency: ban, regulate or ignore? | Speculation and fraud; the technology behind it; central bank digital currency; regulation as the middle path. |
| 75 | Robotics and the factory of the future | Quality and safety; jobs displaced and created; small firms left behind; reskilling. |
| 76 | Science education in India | Rote learning versus experiment; teacher training; research funding; curiosity as the goal. |
| 77 | Satellite navigation and India's own system | Why depending on another country's system is a risk; civilian uses; defence uses; coverage and devices. |
| 78 | Telemedicine for rural India | Doctors are in cities; a phone consultation's limits; diagnostics at the village level; trust. |
| 79 | Should mobile phones be allowed in schools? | Learning tools versus distraction; safety and contact with parents; rules that can be enforced; the teacher decides. |
| 80 | Technology and the Indian soldier | Night vision, communication and protection; training burden; indigenous equipment; the soldier remains the weapon. |
Society, education and environment (20 topics)
| # | Topic | Key points |
|---|---|---|
| 81 | Climate change and India | Heatwaves, floods and farming; coal and growth; adaptation at the district level; international fairness. |
| 82 | Plastic pollution | Single-use bans and enforcement; alternatives and cost; waste collection as the real gap; a habit you changed. |
| 83 | Air pollution in north Indian cities | Sources: vehicles, stubble, construction, industry; health cost; what has worked elsewhere; regional, not one city's, problem. |
| 84 | Role of sports in national life | Health and discipline; recent international results; grassroots infrastructure; sport in the forces. |
| 85 | New Education Policy | Early years and mother tongue; flexibility in streams; vocational exposure; implementation is everything. |
| 86 | Coaching culture and the pressure on students | Why families choose it; mental health; school quality as the cause; what a healthy preparation looks like. |
| 87 | Mental health: the silent problem | Stigma in families; access to help; the forces' own efforts; a cadet looking after a friend. |
| 88 | Women's safety | Policing and lighting; fast trials; attitudes taught at home; men as part of the change. |
| 89 | Drug abuse among the young | Border states and supply; peer pressure and unemployment; treatment over punishment for users; sport as prevention. |
| 90 | Old-age care in a changing family | Nuclear families and migration; pensions and health; dignity; what you will do for your own parents. |
| 91 | Caste in modern India | Constitutional equality; where it persists; inter-caste marriage; the mess hall as a model. |
| 92 | Cleanliness as a national habit | Toilets built and used; waste segregation; public spaces; the role of fines. |
| 93 | Road safety | Deaths and who dies; helmets, speed and drink; road design; enforcement that is not corrupt. |
| 94 | Should the voting age be lowered to 16? | Maturity and information; other responsibilities at 16; the experience of other countries; engagement before enfranchisement. |
| 95 | The joint family: relevant today? | Support and childcare; privacy and conflict; the economic logic; a middle form. |
| 96 | Water scarcity | Groundwater fall; crop choice; rainwater harvesting; the city and the village compete. |
| 97 | Forest and wildlife conservation | Tigers and habitat; people living in forests; development projects; tourism done right. |
| 98 | Child labour | Why it persists; schools and midday meals; enforcement; the consumer's choice. |
| 99 | Regionalism versus national integration | Pride in identity; politics of division; the forces as the integrated institution; a shared language of respect. |
| 100 | Fitness of Indian youth | Screen time and diet; school sport periods; the SSB's own physical tests; a personal routine. |
Abstract and personal topics (20 topics)
Abstract topics are the fourth line on many cards and the one candidates fear. They are the easiest to structure: define the word, give one example from life and one from history, and say what it means for an officer.
| # | Topic | Key points |
|---|---|---|
| 101 | Courage | Physical and moral courage; fear is normal; one historical example; the courage to say "I was wrong". |
| 102 | Leadership | Leading from the front; listening; taking blame and sharing credit; a leader you have seen up close. |
| 103 | Discipline versus freedom | Discipline makes freedom possible; self-discipline over imposed rules; a daily example; the academy as the test. |
| 104 | Honesty is the best policy | Short-term cost, long-term trust; the small lies that grow; honesty with oneself; the PIQ as a case in point. |
| 105 | Failure is the first step to success | What failure teaches that success hides; the difference between failing and quitting; your own failure; what you changed. |
| 106 | Time management | Priorities over lists; the morning hour; saying no; a routine that survived exams. |
| 107 | Teamwork | A team is not a group; roles and trust; the weakest member; the progressive group task as the example. |
| 108 | Patriotism in daily life | Not only in war; paying tax, keeping the street clean, voting; respect for other Indians; the quiet kind. |
| 109 | Role of a teacher | Knowledge and character; a teacher who changed you; the state of teaching jobs; the officer as teacher. |
| 110 | Hard work versus smart work | Smart work is hard work with direction; the danger of shortcuts; preparation for this SSB as the example; both, in that order. |
| 111 | Patience | Waiting without stopping; long-term goals; a time patience paid; impatience as a strength in emergencies. |
| 112 | Ambition | Healthy ambition and envy; the goal behind the rank; ambition for the team; your own, stated plainly. |
| 113 | Responsibility | Taking it before it is given; owning results; a responsibility you carried at home or school; the officer's first duty is to his men. |
| 114 | Change is the only constant | Technology, family and the forces are changing; adapting without losing values; one change you handled; the habit of learning. |
| 115 | Friendship | What makes a friend; friends and honesty; friends in uniform; one friend of yours. |
| 116 | Money cannot buy happiness | Money buys security, not meaning; the poor and the rich both say it; the forces' pay and purpose; your own view. |
| 117 | Pen is mightier than the sword | Ideas outlast force; the sword protects the pen; the Constitution as an example; both in a democracy. |
| 118 | Unity in diversity | Languages, faiths and food; the strains; the regiment as a model; a personal example of a friend from elsewhere. |
| 119 | My role model | One person, one quality, one incident; what you copy; a flaw you accept; why not a celebrity. |
| 120 | If I were the Chief of the Army Staff for a day | One thing you would ask about, not order; the limits of a day; listening to a soldier; humility as the point. |
Practise with a timer
- Daily, one lecturette. Draw a topic from the extempore generator or from the tables above; prepare in silence for the short time the GTO allows, then speak for three minutes into the recording tool. Listen back for the three points and the close.
- Twice a week, a GD. Join a group discussion room on a topic from the GD topic generator; practise the four moves and no more.
- Weekly, add the headlines. Add five topics from that week's news to the bank with three points each, sourced to the paper you read.
- Before the board. Pick your ten strongest topics across the six groups and speak each one twice. On the day, choose the card topic closest to one of them.
The lecturette and the GD are two of eight spoken tasks in the five days; the five-day procedure page shows where they fall, and the IO questions page covers the longest one. For reporting details and the boards' addresses, see SSB dates, centres and call letters; the Navy's own Instructions for SSB page is the one official instruction page we could read in full this week.