The UP APO syllabus is built around criminal law: two thirds of the prelims paper and four of the six mains papers test the BNS (the new penal code), the BNSS (criminal procedure), the BSA (evidence) and a list of special Acts, while the rest checks general knowledge, Hindi and English. UPPSC uses it to pick Assistant Prosecution Officers, who argue cases for the state in magistrate courts.
The latest advertisement brought a fresh scheme. Topics from the colonial era penal, procedure and evidence codes made way for the three new codes, and the mains grew to six papers worth 500 marks. Read on for the UP APO exam pattern at each level, what every paper asks, and how to divide your months of preparation.
Exam at a glance
Conducted by
Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission, PrayagrajPost
Assistant Prosecution Officer (APO), pay level 8Stages
Prelims (screening), Mains (written), InterviewPrelims
One objective paper, 150 questions, 150 marks, 2 hoursNegative marking
One third of a question's marks in prelimsMains
Six descriptive papers, 500 marksInterview
50 marksOfficial website
Three stages to an APO posting
- Preliminary exam: a single objective paper on general knowledge and law. Its job is just to filter the field for the mains; UPPSC sets that score aside after it picks mains candidates.
- Main exam: six written papers. This is the stage that actually settles your rank.
- Personality test: an interview of 50 marks that looks at efficiency, character, personality and physical fitness.
The final list adds your mains marks to your interview marks, so the merit total works out to 550. Since the written part carries ten times the weight of the interview, most of your energy should go into answer writing for the law papers.
UP APO syllabus and exam pattern in two tables
| Part | Questions | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| Part I: General Knowledge | 50 | 50 |
| Part II: Law | 100 | 100 |
| Total | 150 | 150 |
Each incorrect pick knocks a third off your total, and shading two bubbles is treated as wrong even when one of them is right.
| Paper | Marks | Time |
|---|---|---|
| General Hindi (high school standard) | 100 | 3 hours |
| General English (high school standard) | 50 | 1 hour 30 minutes |
| General Knowledge | 50 | 1 hour 30 minutes |
| Criminal Law and Procedure | 100 | 3 hours |
| Sakshya Adhiniyam (law of evidence) | 100 | 3 hours |
| Anya Adhiniyam (other Acts) | 100 | 3 hours |
| Total | 500 |
Prelims syllabus: the GK and law split
The commission publishes an approximate marks split for each topic, which is unusually helpful.
Part I: General Knowledge (50 marks)
- Current events, national and international: about 10
- General science: about 8
- History of India: about 8
- Indian National Movement: about 8
- Indian polity and economy: about 8
- World geography and population: about 8
Part II: Law (100 marks)
- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS): 30
- Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS): 25
- Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA): 20
- U.P. Police Act and Police Regulations: 15
- Constitution of India: 10
Law questions tend to be section based: which provision defines an offence, the punishment for it, the powers of a magistrate at a given stage, or the admissibility of a kind of evidence.
What each mains paper expects
General Hindi: essay (nibandh), letter or report style writing, grammar, sentence correction, idioms and comprehension, at high school level.
General English: comprehension, grammar and short composition, again at high school standard. It carries only 50 marks, but a weak score here can pull down an otherwise strong total.
General Knowledge: the same areas as prelims Part I, answered in short written form: history, geography, polity, economy, current affairs and elementary science.
Criminal Law and Procedure: the BNS (offences, general exceptions, punishments), the BNSS (investigation, arrest, bail, charge, trial, appeals) and the U.P. Police Act with its regulations. Questions mix theory with fact situations.
Sakshya Adhiniyam: the whole of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam: relevancy of facts, admissions and confessions, dying declarations, expert opinion, documentary and electronic evidence, burden of proof, presumptions and examination of witnesses.
Anya Adhiniyam: the special and local laws a prosecutor meets daily. Reports of the latest scheme list 16 Acts (match this against the printed annexure), including the Arms Act, POCSO Act, Dowry Prohibition Act, SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, Prevention of Corruption Act, Information Technology Act, Explosives Act, Essential Commodities Act, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Foreigners Act, and state laws on goondas, gangsters, cow slaughter, unlawful religious conversion and unfair means in public exams.
What changed in the latest UP APO exam syllabus
- New codes: the penal code of 1860, the procedure code of 1973 and the evidence law of 1872 gave way to the BNS, BNSS and BSA, in line with the criminal law reform that came into force across India.
- Six mains papers: General English and a separate paper on other Acts were added, taking the written total to 500.
- Interview: set at 50 marks.
Old section numbers still turn up in judgments and books, so keep a comparison table of old and new provisions. It saves confusion when you read case law written before the switch.
Who can sit the exam
The core requirement is an LLB from a recognised Indian university. The latest advertisement fixed the age window at 21 to 40 years as on 1 July of the advertisement year, with the usual Uttar Pradesh relaxations for reserved categories of the state. Two years in the Territorial Army or an NCC B certificate earns preference when other things are equal. UPPSC can alter the reference date and relaxation rules in a fresh advertisement; check the latest notification when it is released.
Planning to compare other prosecution posts? See the Bihar APO syllabus and the Rajasthan APO syllabus.
Five months of study weighted towards law
Since 100 of the 150 prelims marks and 300 of the 500 mains marks are law, read the bare Acts first and GK second.
- Month 1: BNS cover to cover, plus the Constitution articles on fundamental rights, the judiciary and emergency.
- Month 2: BNSS and BSA, with a one page chart of old and new section numbers.
- Month 3: U.P. Police Act and regulations, then the 16 special Acts, two or three a week.
- Month 4: GK topics, current affairs notes and daily MCQ practice for prelims.
- Month 5: answer writing: one law answer and one Hindi essay every day, timed.
Rely on the bare Acts, the official syllabus and NCERT books for history, geography and polity. A UP specific GK base also helps for the UPPSC syllabus if you plan to try the state services too. More state commission exams are listed in our civil services section.
Frequently asked questions
Will my UP APO prelims marks help my final rank?
No. It is used only to choose who writes the mains. Final merit is built from the six mains papers and the 50 mark interview.
Should I still read the old penal and procedure codes?
The current scheme names the BNS, BNSS and BSA. You do not need the old codes as separate subjects, but knowing the old section numbers helps you read older judgments and spot changes the examiners like to test.
How many papers does the UP APO mains have?
Six: General Hindi, General English, General Knowledge, Criminal Law and Procedure, Sakshya Adhiniyam and Anya Adhiniyam. Together they carry 500 marks, and all are descriptive.
Does UP APO have negative marking?
Yes, but only at the first stage. In the prelims each incorrect choice pulls a third off your score. The mains is all written answers, so no such deduction applies.
I am in my last semester of law. Am I eligible?
The advertisement asks for a law degree by the closing date it sets. Whether final year students are allowed depends on that clause, so read the eligibility part of the latest notification carefully.
Which Acts come in the Anya Adhiniyam paper?
Reports of the latest scheme list 16 central and state laws, among them the Arms, POCSO, dowry, atrocities, corruption, IT, explosives and UAPA Acts and several Uttar Pradesh laws. Reports differ slightly on the exact list, so print the annexure from the official notification and treat it as your checklist.