SSC CGL — answer keys, marks and what RTI can still get you

Every CGL cycle floods RTI forums with the same three questions: why did my Tier-I score drop after normalization, where did my Tier-II marks go, and can I get the sheet re-checked. The 2026 notice answers the third in advance — no. That makes the drafting matter more, not less: you cannot ask for marks to change, but you can ask for every record that produced them.

• Two tiers — a computer-based Tier-I that shortlists candidates category-wise, and Tier-II with Paper-I, Paper-II and Paper-III (Paper-III only for Assistant Audit Officer/Assistant Accounts Officer posts)
• Tier-I only shortlists — merit is built on “overall performance of candidates in Tier-II Examination only”
• Tentative answer keys are published; representations go online within the given window on payment of ₹100 per question, non-refundable, with the Commission's decision final
• No re-evaluation or re-checking of scores of any stage or tier — para 13.7 — and no correspondence on it
• Skill tests — DEST in Section-IV of Paper-I of Tier-II, per the scheme in the notice

Read that list as a map of what is closed and what is open. Re-checking: closed. Answer-key challenge: open, priced, time-boxed. Everything documentary — normalization, cut-offs, question-wise keys, your response sheet: open, and that is RTI territory.

1. Copy of my normalized score and raw score, Tier-I, Roll No. ____, with the normalization formula applied to my shift.
2. The final answer key of the shift I appeared in, and the questions dropped, if any, with reasons.
3. Category-wise cut-off marks applied to shortlist candidates for Tier-II, and the number shortlisted in my category.
4. Copy of my Tier-II response sheet and question-wise marks awarded, Roll No. ____.
5. The number of answer-key representations received for question ____ of my shift, and how many were upheld.

Point 5 is the quiet weapon: it goes to whether the key you were marked on survived scrutiny. Point 1, asked with the formula, usually settles the normalization grievance — most score drops after normalization are arithmetic, not malice, and seeing the shift statistics proves it either way.

• SSC is a public authority — applications go to its Central Public Information Officer at Headquarters, or through the RTI section linked from ssc.gov.in
• Regional offices matter — the CGL notice itself lists every regional office with its website (ssc-cr.org for the central region, and so on); write to the region that conducted your examination for exam-centre records, and to HQ for keys, normalization and cut-offs
• Online: rtionline.gov.in carries central bodies — search for the Commission when you pick the public authority
• Fee ₹10, paid online; first appeal to SSC's First Appellate Authority within 30 days; second appeal to the Central Information Commission within 90 days

Para 13.7 bars re-evaluation — it does not bar access. Evaluated answer sheets of public examinations are “information” under §2(f), as the Supreme Court held in CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay (2011). SSC's own practice of selling candidate response sheets during the answer-key window is a subset of the right; the RTI route reaches the rest — question-wise marks, moderation records, key-revision files. Frame every point as a document, never as a plea.

Real example. Dr. Shrawan Kumar Pathak missed a Tier-II shortlist by 0.4 marks. No re-checking lay, so he filed for the category cut-off, the number shortlisted, and his normalized-versus-raw score with the shift statistics. The reply showed a dropped question had shifted the cut-off, and his score arithmetic was clean — closure in 24 days, and a template he has reused since.

No. Notice para 13.7 for CGL 2026 excludes re-evaluation and re-checking at every tier. Use the answer-key window and RTI for the records.

No — ₹100 per question, non-refundable, even when the representation is upheld.

Women candidates and SC, ST, PwBD candidates, plus ex-servicemen eligible for reservation — notice para 10.2.

No. Tier-I shortlists; the final selection is on overall Tier-II performance.

1800 309 3063, the notice's toll-free helpline, for registration and exam-process issues — not for marks disputes.

• Answer sheets under RTI — the 2011 judgment and how to use it
• IBPS exams — route RTI through the banks
• File RTI online — the 12-step guide
• The RTI Playbook

• ssc.gov.in — SSC CGL 2026 Notice of Examination — paras 10.1-10.2 (fee and exemptions), 13.1-13.7 (tiers, answer keys, no re-evaluation), 16.1-16.6 (cut-offs and merit), helpline 1800 309 3063
• rtionline.gov.in — online RTI filing for central public authorities

Last reviewed: 26 August 2026. Every rule cited is from the CGL 2026 Notice of Examination text published on ssc.gov.in.