RRB Group D Exam Date 2026

Reviewed by the OnJob Editorial Team — career researchers covering jobs, salaries and hiring across India. Questions? editorial@onjob.io

Railway Group D recruitment is the largest single hiring exercise most Indian job seekers will ever apply to, and it is also the one where rumour travels fastest. This guide sets out what the Railway Recruitment Boards actually publish, the sequence they publish it in, and what a candidate can plan around before a schedule is confirmed.

When is the exam expected?

No date is confirmed until the boards announce it, which happens only after the application process closes. Based on how previous recruitments have run, the computer-based test has followed roughly two to three months after the application deadline, and the detailed timetable appears about a fortnight before the paper.

What does the recruitment timeline look like?

The sequence below is drawn from previous cycles rather than from an announcement, so every row is an expectation. Its value is in the ordering: knowing that the physical test follows the CBT result, and document verification follows that, lets a candidate plan preparation in the right order.

Event	Expected Timeline	Status
Notification release	January–March 2026	Awaited
Online application opens	Within days of notification	Not Started
Last date to apply	30–45 days after opening	TBA
Exam timetable published	15–20 days before exam	TBA
Computer-Based Test (CBT)	April–September 2026 (expected)	TBA
CBT phases	Multi-phase over several weeks	TBA
Result	15–30 days after exam completion	TBA
Physical Efficiency Test (PET)	After CBT result	TBA
Document Verification	After PET	TBA
Medical Examination	After DV	TBA
Final Result	TBA	TBA

Because the CBT runs in phases across zones, two candidates applying to the same post can sit the paper weeks apart.

Which railway jobs match which qualification?

Railway recruitment is not one exam but a family of them, and the qualification you hold decides which ones you are eligible for. The table below maps the main entry routes, from matriculation-level posts through to engineering graduate intake.

Qualification	Key Railway Jobs 2026
10th Pass	RRB Group D, Apprentice, RPF Constable, ITI Helper
12th Pass	NTPC (Clerk), Ticket Clerk, Junior Clerk, Accounts Assistant
Graduate	Station Master, Goods Guard, RPF SI, Apprentice Roles
Diploma Holders	Junior Engineer, ALP, Technician, Section Engineer
Engineering Graduates	JE, ALP, Technical Roles, Management Trainee
Salary (JE)	₹35,400 – ₹70,000

What reservations and relaxations apply?

Reservation in railway recruitment operates on two axes at once — vertical categories such as SC, ST and OBC, and horizontal ones such as ex-servicemen and persons with disability. Both the quota share and the age relaxation are fixed by the notification and applied against valid certificates.

Women candidates

• Every Group D post is open to women

• No restriction on posts by gender

• Reduced application fee

OBC candidates

• 27% reservation

• 3 years age relaxation

• Fee of ₹500 with ₹400 refunded after appearing

SC and ST candidates

• 15% reservation for SC candidates

• 7.5% reservation for ST candidates

• 5 years age relaxation

Ex-servicemen

• Horizontal reservation across categories

• Age relaxation of length of service plus 3 years, up to a maximum of 48 years

• Preference in selection and recognition of service experience

Persons with disability

• 4% reservation

• 10 to 15 years age relaxation

• Specific posts identified as suitable

• Scribe facility available in the examination

Sports quota

• Direct entry for national and international level players

• Medal winners in recognised tournaments

• State-level representation considered in some cases

Cultural quota

• Classical music and dance performers

• Folk artists

• Theatre professionals

What are the physical standards for men?

The physical efficiency test comes after the written stage and is pass-or-fail rather than scored. Male candidates are measured on height, weight and chest, and then run a timed 1,000 metres. Missing any one standard ends the candidature for that cycle.

Height

• General/OBC/EWS: 152 cm

• SC/ST: 147 cm

• Hilly regions (Gorkhas, Garhwalis, Assamese, Kumaonis): 142 cm

Weight

• Proportionate to height and age

• Minimum 48 kg for general candidates

Chest

• Unexpanded: 79 cm minimum for general candidates

• Expanded: 84 cm minimum

• Minimum expansion of 5 cm required

Running test

• 1,000 metres in 4 minutes 15 seconds

What are the physical standards for women?

Female candidates are measured on height and weight and then run a timed 800 metres, with no chest measurement taken. The height requirement is lower than for male candidates in every category, and the relaxation for hill-region candidates applies in the same way.

Height

• General/OBC/EWS: 142 cm

• SC/ST: 137 cm

• Hilly regions: 132 cm

Weight

• Proportionate to height and age

• Minimum 40–42 kg, varying by category

Running test

• 800 metres in 5 minutes 45 seconds

What should you know before the physical test?

The test is qualifying in nature, so a strong performance adds nothing to your merit position while a failure removes you entirely. That asymmetry is why candidates who clear the written paper comfortably still lose a cycle here, having trained for marks rather than for the run.

1. The test is qualifying only, not counted toward merit

2. Failure means cancellation of candidature

3. A medical certificate is required before appearing

4. Retakes are generally not allowed

5. Pregnant candidates may request postponement with a medical certificate

What do candidates ask most often?

The questions below account for most of the search traffic around this recruitment, and several of them have answers that contradict what circulates on social media. Each answer reflects the boards’ published practice and previous notifications rather than any unconfirmed claim.

When will the exam date be announced?

Announcement follows the notification and the close of applications, in that order. Previous cycles put the computer-based test roughly two to three months after the application deadline, with the detailed timetable published around a fortnight earlier. The official board websites carry it first.

Is the schedule the same in every zone?

No — the examination is conducted zone-wise and phase-wise, so dates differ between boards including Allahabad, Mumbai, Patna, Kolkata, Chennai and Chandigarh. The region-wise and state-wise distribution is published in the official timetable, and candidates are allotted a centre within their chosen zone.

How many vacancies are expected?

Expectations for the coming cycle run to roughly 70,000 posts across zones, which would make it one of the largest single recruitments in the country. That figure is an expectation drawn from earlier drives, and the confirmed vacancy count exists only in the notification itself.

What is the last date to apply?

The application window has typically stayed open for 30 to 45 days from the notification, but the exact closing date is fixed in each notification and nowhere else. Applying in the first week avoids both the closing-day server load and the risk of a payment that fails to clear in time.

What does the syllabus cover?

Four sections make up the paper: mathematics with 25 questions, reasoning with 30, general science with 25, and general awareness with 20. The syllabus is published in the notification, in Hindi as well as English, and it has stayed broadly stable across recent recruitment cycles.

What is the exam pattern?

The computer-based test carries 100 questions for 100 marks in 90 minutes, taken on screen at an allotted centre. Negative marking applies at one-third of a mark for each wrong answer, which makes blind guessing a losing strategy across a paper of this length.

Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility rests on four conditions: age between 18 and 33 years with category relaxations, a 10th pass certificate or equivalent, fitness against the prescribed medical standards, and qualifying the physical efficiency test. Age is counted as on the cut-off date stated in the notification.

What is the salary per month?

Group D posts sit at Level 1 with a basic pay of ₹18,000. Adding dearness allowance, house rent allowance and transport allowance brings gross monthly pay to roughly ₹31,000 to ₹34,000, and in-hand pay after deductions to about ₹26,000 to ₹30,000.

Which posts are filled?

Recruitment covers operational and support roles across railway departments rather than a single job title. The post list includes Track Maintainer Grade-IV, helpers and assistants in electrical, mechanical, S&T, engineering and stores, assistant pointsman, level crossing gateman, porter and hospital attendant roles.

How do you apply online?

The whole process is online, through the board’s recruitment portal. Register with your basic details, complete the application form, upload the required documents, pay the fee and submit before the closing date — then save the confirmation, which is your only proof of application.

1. Visit the official recruitment portal

2. Register with basic details

3. Fill in the application form

4. Upload documents

5. Pay the application fee

6. Submit before the last date

What does the job involve day to day?

Duties depend on the post allotted and the department it sits in. Work spans track maintenance, technical assistance to skilled staff, station and platform support, and departmental helper roles — all of them operational positions rather than desk jobs, often on shift rosters.

What are the promotion prospects?

Career growth runs upward through pay levels rather than sideways. Staff move from Level 1 to Level 2 skilled posts, then to Level 3 and above through departmental examinations, with lateral movement between departments and skill upgradation training available across a career that commonly spans thirty years.

What should you do from here?

Prepare against the syllabus and the negative marking rather than against a rumoured date, and train for the physical test in parallel rather than after the result. Track the official board websites for the notification, apply in the first week of the window, and treat forwarded schedules as unverified until the boards publish them.

Disclaimer: This guide is based on previous railway recruitment patterns. For official and current information, always refer to the Railway Recruitment Board websites and the notification PDF when it is released.