In this guide
A chart asks you to do one thing a table does not: read the numbers yourself. Once the values are on your rough sheet, the questions are the same percentages, ratios and averages you use for tables. So the skill that separates candidates on chart DI is not calculation. It is reading the scale correctly, writing the values down once, and noticing when two charts have different totals.
Reading each chart type
Bar graphs
Check the axis label and the scale first. Gridlines are often at 50 or 100, and bar tops usually sit on a gridline or halfway between two. In a multiple bar graph (two or three bars per year or per zone), use the legend to see which bar is which before reading any value. In a stacked bar, each segment is the difference between the top and bottom of that segment, not the height from the axis.
Line graphs
A line graph is a bar graph with the tops joined. The slope shows the change: a steeper upward line means a larger rise in absolute terms. It does not tell you the largest percentage rise, because the percentage also depends on the starting value. A rise of 30 from 200 is 15%; a rise of 30 from 300 is 10%.
Pie charts
A pie shows shares of one total. It can be labelled in percentages or in degrees. The link is simple: the full circle is 360° and the whole is 100%, so 1% = 3.6° and 1° = 1/3.6%.
| Share | Degrees |
|---|---|
| 5% | 18° |
| 10% | 36° |
| 12.5% | 45° |
| 25% | 90° |
| 40% | 144° |
| 50% | 180° |
To find an amount from a pie in degrees, compute angle ÷ 360 × total. To find it from a pie in percentages, compute share ÷ 100 × total.
Worked set 1: a line graph of premium income
A line graph shows an insurer's premium income (₹ crore). The values read from the graph are below. Made-up figures for practice.
| Year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premium | 200 | 230 | 276 | 300 | 345 |
Q1. What was the growth from 2022 to 2023?
Rise = 46. 46 ÷ 230 = 1/5 = 20%.
Q2. In which year was year-on-year growth highest?
2022: 30/200 = 15%. 2023: 20%. 2024: 24/276 ≈ 8.7%. 2025: 45/300 = 15%.
2023. The biggest rise in crore was in 2025 (45), but the biggest rise in percentage was 2023.
Q3. What was the average premium over the five years?
Sum = 200 + 230 + 276 + 300 + 345 = 1,351. 1,351 ÷ 5 = ₹270.2 crore.
Q4. What was the total growth from 2021 to 2025?
Rise = 145. 145 ÷ 200 × 100 = 72.5%.
Worked set 2: a multiple bar graph of claims
A bar graph shows claims received and claims settled (in number) in four zones in one year. Made-up figures for practice.
| Zone | Received | Settled |
|---|---|---|
| North | 500 | 480 |
| South | 640 | 608 |
| East | 400 | 360 |
| West | 560 | 532 |
The settlement ratio of a zone is settled ÷ received × 100.
Q1. Which zone had the highest settlement ratio?
North 480/500 = 96%. South 608/640 = 95%. East 360/400 = 90%. West 532/560 = 95%.
North.
Q2. How many claims were pending across all zones?
20 + 32 + 40 + 28 = 120.
Q3. What was the average number of claims settled per zone?
480 + 608 + 360 + 532 = 1,980. 1,980 ÷ 4 = 495.
Q4. What is the ratio of claims received in South to those in East?
640 : 400 = 8 : 5.
Worked set 3: two pie charts
Claims paid by an insurer, by type. Made-up figures for practice.
| Type | Year 1 share | Year 2 share |
|---|---|---|
| Death | 45% | 40% |
| Maturity | 40% | 42% |
| Survival benefits | 10% | 12% |
| Others | 5% | 6% |
| Total paid | ₹8,000 crore | ₹10,000 crore |
Q1. How much was paid in death claims in year 1?
45% of 8,000 = ₹3,600 crore.
Q2. What is the central angle for maturity claims in year 1?
40 × 3.6 = 144°.
Q3. How much more was paid in death claims than maturity claims in year 1?
The gap is 5 percentage points. 5% of 8,000 = ₹400 crore. Working with the difference of shares saves two multiplications.
Q4. Did death claims paid rise or fall from year 1 to year 2, and by how much?
Year 2: 40% of 10,000 = 4,000. Year 1: 3,600.
They rose by ₹400 crore, about 11.1%, even though the share fell from 45% to 40%.
Traps that cost marks
- Scale misread. A gridline every 25 read as every 20 changes every value. Check two labelled gridlines before reading bars.
- Slope read as percentage. The steepest line segment is the largest absolute rise, not the largest percentage rise.
- Stacked bars read from the axis. The middle segment's value is its top minus its bottom.
- Percentage points versus per cent. A share rising from 10% to 12% is a rise of 2 percentage points, but a 20% rise in the share itself.
- Degrees used as percentages. 72° is 20%, not 72%.
Practice set
Use the three sets above.
- What was premium growth from 2024 to 2025? 15%. 45/300.
- What is the central angle for survival benefits in year 1? 36°. 10 × 3.6.
- How much was paid in survival benefits and others together in year 1? ₹1,200 crore. 15% of 8,000.
- What was the average premium over 2023–2025? ₹307 crore. (276 + 300 + 345) ÷ 3 = 921 ÷ 3.
- What was the overall settlement ratio across the four zones? About 94.3%. 1,980 ÷ 2,100.
- By what percentage were claims received in South more than in East? 60%. 240 ÷ 400.
- By what percentage did maturity claims paid rise from year 1 to year 2? 31.25%. 3,200 to 4,200 is a rise of 1,000; 1,000 ÷ 3,200 = 0.3125.
- What is the central angle for maturity claims in year 2? 151.2°. 42 × 3.6.
What to do next
- Practise one bar, one line and one pie set this week, each timed at about six minutes.
- Learn the percentage–degree table above until 18°, 36°, 45° and 90° are instant.
- If tables still feel slow, go back to table DI for LIC AAO.
- Next, take on paragraph-style data in caselet DI.
A note on dates and numbers. Exam patterns, vacancies and schedules change from year to year. Always confirm the current details in the latest notification on the Life Insurance Corporation of India website .
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