Gujarat Metro SCTO Syllabus, Exam Pattern, Eligibility

An OMR test, in English, on paper

Multiple choice questions on an OMR sheet, held on one or more days, with the question paper in English. Duration is 120 minutes for every post.

Most large railway and metro recruitments have moved to computer based tests. GMRC's non-executive examination is still on paper, which is why candidates could later view and download their own scanned answer sheets.

The marking rule, which is unlike any other railway examination

All questions are to be attempted compulsorily. There is a negative marking of 0.25 marks for every unattempted question, for every wrong answer, and for an instance of multiple answers against a question. If a candidate does not know the answer to a particular question, he or she may mark option E on the OMR sheet for that question. Marking Option E against a question will be treated as an attempt and will not invite a negative marking.

So a blank costs 0.25, exactly what a wrong answer costs, where in almost every other examination in the country a blank costs nothing. Option E is a fifth bubble meaning "I do not know", and it counts as an attempt. A candidate who runs out of time and leaves the last twenty questions blank loses five marks; one who bubbles Option E on all twenty loses nothing.

The Gujarati section is qualifying

A candidate has to clear a minimum in it:

Out of 20 questions that is 12 marks and 10 marks. The marks themselves are not included in the calculation of the cut-off score, and GMRC's marks declaration repeats it: they shall not be taken into consideration for determining the merit or calculation of the cut-off marks. Two consequences follow. A candidate with no Gujarati is out whatever they score elsewhere, and a candidate strong in Gujarati gains nothing above the threshold.

That leaves 100 counted marks in 120 minutes, 60 seconds a question, with Technical Knowledge the largest counted block at 40.

The notification carries the section split and then says the syllabus for the respective post will be available on the GMRC careers page. So the notification is authoritative on weighting and the careers page on topics, and you want both.

Technical Knowledge, 40 of the 120 marks

A third of the paper and the largest single section. The eligible diplomas define its scope: Mechanical, Electrical, Computer, Electronics, and Electronics and Communications. GMRC does not set a separate technical paper per discipline for SC/TO, so five diploma streams sit one examination.

The job profile says what the corporation is testing for. An SC/TO is responsible for all duties in shifts including night shift, for operations of metro rail, depot control centres, operation control centres and customer care centres, and the role is interchangeable as metro operations require.

The eighty general marks

The psychometric test has no published syllabus

It is an aptitude battery, not a knowledge paper, and GMRC publishes no topic list for it. Candidates for SC/TO are called to it in a ratio fixed by GMRCL, and those who qualify go on to the medical and document verification.

A qualification rule that catches people

Where a diploma is the essential qualification, a degree in the specified discipline is also acceptable. The converse does not hold: a diploma or degree will not be considered as a higher qualification in place of an ITI where ITI is the essential qualification, so a diploma holder cannot apply for a Maintainer post on the strength of being over-qualified.

Educational qualification

Diploma in Engineering in Mechanical, Electrical, Computer, Electronics or Electronics and Communications, from a Government recognised University or Institute, held as on the date of the notification. A degree in the specified discipline is also acceptable. A final-year candidate may apply and sit the examination but must produce the original marksheet at document verification. A qualification from an unrecognised University or Institute is not considered.

Age

18 to 28 years as on the date of the advertisement, which for this notification is 29 April 2026. The Maintainer posts in the same notification run 18 to 25.

Note the first two rows: the relaxation for reserved categories is for candidates of Gujarat origin only. Reservation and relaxation follow the regulations, resolutions and orders of the Government of Gujarat, which is why the categories are named SEBC and EWS rather than the central OBC-NCL.

Medical standard A-1

SC/TO carries Aye-One (A-1), the highest standard in the notification. Junior Engineer is A-1 but not below Aye-Three, and Maintainer is Bee-One. The job is described as requiring the highest standard of medical fitness, including naked vision of 6/6, and only candidates meeting the required standards may apply. The detailed standards are published on the GMRC website and follow the Indian Railway Medical Manual.

• GMRC bears the cost of the first medical examination. A second one is at the candidate's expense.
• A candidate found medically unfit will not be considered eligible for any position in GMRCL.
• Candidates who have undergone Lasik surgery are not suitable for any posts, not only the A-1 ones.

The notification also states, in a single line under the vacancy table, that the positions advertised are technical posts and will not be available for persons with disability. That covers all six posts.

What the job asks of you

• The role is interchangeable, so Station Controller and Train Operator are the same post.
• Duties run in shifts including night shift, across metro stations, depot control centres, operation control centres and customer care centres, plus the upkeep of stations.
• Duty hours may range from 8 to 12 hours daily, depending on the ridership or footfall of the station or customer care centre.
• Allocation of departments after appointment is the sole discretion of the Management.
• Candidates cannot apply for more than one post under this notification.

1. OMR based written test, 120 questions in 120 minutes. Marks obtained in the test shall be reckoned for shortlisting candidates for the subsequent stages.
2. Psycho aptitude test, for candidates called in a ratio fixed by GMRCL.
3. Document verification and a medical examination in Aye-One (A-1) category, for candidates who qualify the psychometric test.

The Junior Engineer and Maintainer posts in the same notification run a two-stage process, written test then document verification and medical. SC/TO is the only post with a psychometric stage.

How many go through

The notification publishes no ratio. It says that depending upon the number of vacancies, only those candidates who secure sufficient rank in merit will be called for further selection process in a ratio fixed by GMRCL, and that candidates shortlisted for SC/TO shall be called for the psychometric test in the ratio fixed by GMRCL. Against 89 vacancies, that is all a candidate is told in advance.

What the written test decides, and what it does not

Only the written test produces marks. The Gujarati section is excluded from the cut-off, so the merit runs on 100 counted marks, and the psychometric test and the medical are pass or fail.

GMRC states two limits plainly. The OMR viewing facility shall not confer any right upon any candidate to seek re-evaluation, re-checking, re-assessment, re-scanning, re-totalling of marks, or any other form of review, and no such request is entertained. And the publication of marks does not, by itself, confer any right upon the candidate for selection or appointment; the further process runs strictly on the notification, the applicable reservation provisions, merit and the eligibility conditions.

Selection is not appointment

Success in the selection process does not confer any right to appointment unless GMRC is satisfied, after such inquiry as it considers necessary, that the candidate having regard to character and antecedents is suitable in all respects for appointment to the service.

No reimbursement is made to candidates appearing for the written examination, the psychometric test, the medical or any other part of the process.

Read that sequence before anything else about the post. The advertised grade of ₹33,000 to 1,00,000 is not the entry pay. It is what you reach after two years on ₹18,000 a month, and then only on a five year contract.

The bond, and what you are signing

• Training cum probation runs two years, covers classroom, technical and on-the-job training, and has examinations to pass during it. GMRC may enhance or reduce the period.
• Services may be terminated during training, probation or the contract if performance falls short of the company's minimum standards.
• Resignation needs three months notice or leave salary in lieu, and the Management may decline to accept one.

SC/TO shares its IDA grade with the two Junior Engineer posts; what separates it is the A-1 medical standard, the psychometric test and the fact that 89 of the 383 vacancies in the notification are for this one post. Posting is to Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Surat or any other GMRCL project in Gujarat.

Online only, through the Careers link on the GMRC website, between the opening and closing dates. No other mode is accepted. Registration produces a One Time Registration (OTR) number, sent to the mobile number and email you enter; a candidate who already has one enters it with their date of birth and the details fill in automatically.

• You cannot apply for more than one post under this notification.
• There is no correction window. The notification says no change will be possible or entertained after clicking the submit button, so verify before you submit.
• Your name and your father's or husband's name must be spelt exactly as in the certificates, mark sheets and identity proof. Any change or alteration found may disqualify the candidature.
• Keep a valid personal email ID and mobile number active until the recruitment is complete. Everything goes there, and GMRC takes no responsibility for a wrong email ID, loss of it, non-functioning of it, or a change of mobile number.

Photograph and signature, specified tightly

Photograph: recent passport size colour picture on a light background, looking straight at the camera; no red-eye, and no reflections in spectacles; caps, hats and dark glasses are not acceptable, and religious headwear must not cover the face. Preferred 200 by 230 pixels, not more than 15 KB.

Signature: on white paper with a black ink pen, preferred 140 by 60 pixels, 15 KB. The signature taken at the examination should match the uploaded one, and in case of mismatch the candidate may be disqualified.

The fee

Both exclusive of bank charges, and once paid the fee and the bank charges are not refunded under any circumstances. Payment is online only, by debit or credit card, internet banking, IMPS, cash card, mobile wallet or UPI, and non-generation of the e-receipt means the payment failed. Check your eligibility and the closing date before you pay.

Gujarat Metro Rail Corporation (GMRC) Limited is a 50:50 Special Purpose Vehicle jointly owned by the Government of India and the Government of Gujarat, formerly Metro-Link Express for Gandhinagar and Ahmedabad (MEGA) Company Limited. It is entrusted with the Ahmedabad and Surat metro rail projects and with their operations and maintenance. Its registered office is at Karmayogi Bhavan, Sector 10/A, Gandhinagar, and it recruits on its own account.

The posts in this notification

All vacancies are provisional and subject to increase or decrease. Junior Engineers maintain electrical, electronics and mechanical systems and handle tower wagons and shunting; Maintainers work on lifts, escalators, track, traction, signalling, telecom, fare collection, coaches and permanent way. All of it in shift duty including nights, and every job profile is indicative only.

The written test is an OMR based paper in English, 120 questions in 120 minutes, held on one or more days. In this cycle it was held on 5 July 2026. GMRC notifies the centre on the call letter, and no travel or other cost is reimbursed for any stage of the process.

What to carry, and the signature check at the venue

The call letter, and the same signature you uploaded. The applicant's signature obtained on the call letter and attendance sheet at the time of the examination should match the uploaded signature, and in case of mismatch the candidate may be disqualified.

The later stages, and where they are held

Candidates shortlisted for SC/TO are called for the psycho aptitude test in a ratio fixed by GMRCL, and those who qualify go on to document verification and the medical. The medical is conducted by a Medical Board constituted and headed by the Civil Surgeon at Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar and other districts in Gujarat.

GMRC bears the cost of the first medical examination; a second one is at the candidate's expense. No reimbursement is made to candidates appearing for the examination, the medical, the psychometric test or any other part of selection.

The dates that trip people

• The fee has its own deadline. Applications closed 28 May 2026 but the fee could be paid until 31 May 2026, and it is non-refundable under any circumstances.
• There is no correction window. No change is possible after clicking submit.
• The OMR viewing window is short. It ran 6 to 19 July 2026 only, and GMRC said no request for access afterwards would be entertained. Download and save the PDF.
• Age and qualification are both reckoned as on the date of the advertisement, which for this notification is 29 April 2026, not a separate cut-off date.

The psychometric test, document verification and medical follow at dates GMRC notifies on its careers pages. And two years of training cum probation on a stipend come before the advertised IDA scale applies.

The call letter and every other communication reach you by email and SMS. A candidate must keep a valid personal email ID and mobile number active until the recruitment process is complete: all vital communications go to the ones registered with GMRCL, and GMRCL will not be responsible for any wrong email ID, loss of email ID, non-functioning of email ID or mobile number change.

The signature on your call letter has to match

The applicant's signature obtained on the call letter and attendance sheet at the time of the examination should match the uploaded signature. In case of mismatch, the candidate may be disqualified.

Sign the same way on the day as you did on the upload, which must be on white paper with a black ink pen. If the face or signature came out unclear, re-upload before final submission.

What to carry to document verification

• Your diploma or degree certificate and marksheets. A candidate who applied in the final year must produce the original marksheet or is disqualified.
• Your SSLC or equivalent for date of birth.
• Original category certificates. Relaxation for reserved categories applies to candidates of Gujarat origin only.

GMRC published this cycle in four steps. The OMR based written examination was held on 5 July 2026. A provisional answer key went up and objections were invited within a stipulated period, after which the objections were examined and the key reviewed and finalised. A facility to view and download your own scanned OMR answer sheet ran from 6 to 19 July 2026, through a login using the written test roll number and date of birth. Marks were declared in August 2026 on the final key, in six annexures, one per post.

Each annexure gives the application number, roll number, date of birth, gender, ex-servicemen status and two marks columns: questions 1 to 100, and questions 101 to 120, the second being the Gujarati section that does not count towards merit. For the Maintainer posts the Gujarati block is questions 81 to 100 instead.

Two limits GMRC states plainly. The viewing facility confers no right to seek re-evaluation, re-checking, re-assessment, re-scanning, re-totalling of marks or any other form of review. And the publication of marks does not, by itself, confer any right to selection or appointment.

GMRC publishes no cut-off table for SC/TO. It publishes every candidate's marks by post instead, as it did in August 2026 on the GMRC careers page. The shortlisting ratio is fixed but not published; the one published floor is the Gujarati mark, 12 of 20 for General and 10 for reserved categories.

Learn the marking rule before you learn anything else

Leaving a question blank costs 0.25 marks, the same as getting it wrong, and the escape is Option E, which counts as an attempt and carries no penalty. Rehearse it until it is automatic: never leave a bubble empty. If you can eliminate two of the four options, guess. If you can eliminate none, mark E, which costs nothing where a guess costs you a quarter mark on average.

Score your practice papers the same way, with 0.25 off every blank. No commercial practice set will do it for you.

Do not skip Gujarati, and do not over-invest in it

Twenty questions, qualifying only, at 12 marks out of 20 for General and 10 for SC, ST, SEBC and EWS. Below that you are out; above it you gain nothing. Prepare it to a comfortable pass and put the rest of the time into the hundred marks that count.

Technical Knowledge is 40 of those hundred

The largest section by far, and it draws on your own diploma. GMRC publishes the post-wise syllabus on its careers page, and that is where to start.

Sixty seconds a question, on paper

120 questions in 120 minutes is more generous than most computer based railway papers, but it is an OMR sheet, so bubbling time is real time. Practise on paper, not on a screen.

Check the medical before you spend a year on this

A-1, including naked vision of 6/6, and the notification says only candidates meeting the required standards may apply. Candidates who have had Lasik surgery are not suitable for any post in this notification, not only the A-1 ones, and a candidate found medically unfit is not eligible for any position in GMRCL.

Get the paperwork right, because there is no correction window

No change is possible after clicking submit, so preview and verify first. Your name and your father's or husband's name must be spelt exactly as in your certificates. Your signature at the examination must match the uploaded one. And keep your email and mobile live until the process ends.

Choose your one post deliberately

You cannot apply for more than one. With a diploma you are eligible for SC/TO and for Junior Engineer, so weigh the vacancy counts: SC/TO 89, Junior Engineer Electronics 38, Junior Engineer Electrical 4. A diploma does not make you eligible for a Maintainer post, where an ITI is the essential qualification. And read the bond and the contract before you accept: two years on a stipend, a five year contract, a ₹2,50,000 bond covering three years, shifts including nights and duty hours of 8 to 12 depending on ridership.

No sample papers are available for this exam as of now. GMRC keeps no past-paper archive. After each paper it posts a provisional answer key and opens a short window to download your own scanned OMR sheet, both on the GMRC careers page, along with the post-wise syllabus.

GMRC's medical standards for each post are published on the corporation's website and referred to throughout the notification.

What is Gujarat Metro SCTO?

Station Controller / Train Operator in Gujarat Metro Rail Corporation (GMRC) Limited, a 50:50 SPV of the Government of India and the Government of Gujarat, recruited under Notification No. GMRCL/HR/RECT/O&M/2026/15 of 29 April 2026, for 89 vacancies.

What qualification and age are needed?

A Diploma in Engineering in Mechanical, Electrical, Computer, Electronics or Electronics and Communications from a Government recognised University or Institute; a degree in the specified discipline is also acceptable, and a final-year candidate may apply but must produce the original marksheet at document verification. Age 18 to 28 as on the date of the advertisement, with 5 years for SEBC, EWS, SC and ST men of Gujarat origin, 10 for women of those categories, 5 for unreserved women, and length of service plus 3 years to a maximum of 45 for ex-servicemen.

Is it a computer based test?

No. It is an OMR based test on paper, 120 questions in 120 minutes, in English: Technical Knowledge 40, Gujarati 20, Logical ability and Reasoning 20, Quantitative aptitude 20, General English 20. That is why candidates could later view and download their own scanned answer sheets.

So I lose marks for leaving a question blank?

Yes, unless you mark Option E. There is 0.25 negative marking for every unattempted question as well as every wrong answer and every instance of multiple answers, and the notification provides that marking option E will be treated as an attempt and will not invite a negative marking.

Do the Gujarati questions count towards my rank?

No. The Gujarati test is qualifying only. You need 60 per cent if General and 50 per cent if SC, ST, SEBC or EWS, and the marks are not included in the calculation of the cut-off score.

What are the stages, and how many get through?

Written test, psycho aptitude test, then document verification and a medical in Aye-One (A-1). SC/TO is the only post in this notification with a psychometric stage. The notification gives no shortlisting number, only that candidates with sufficient rank in merit are called in a ratio fixed by GMRCL.

I have had Lasik surgery. Can I apply?

No. Candidates having undergone Lasik surgery are not suitable for any post in this recruitment, and the standard for SC/TO is A-1 including naked vision of 6/6. The notification also states that the positions advertised are technical posts and will not be available for persons with disability.

What will I actually be paid?

A stipend of ₹18,000 a month during the two year training cum probation, then a consolidated ₹20,000, and only after that the advertised IDA scale of ₹33,000 to 1,00,000, on a five year contractual appointment. There is a surety bond of ₹2,50,000 covering three years of service, and resignation needs three months notice or leave salary in lieu, which the Management may decline to accept.

Can I apply for more than one post?

No. And a diploma or degree will not be considered as a higher qualification in place of an ITI where ITI is the essential qualification, so you cannot apply for a Maintainer post instead.

What is the application fee?

₹600 for unreserved male candidates, ₹300 for SC, ST, SEBC, EWS, women and ex-servicemen, exclusive of bank charges and non-refundable under any circumstances.

Can I correct my application, or ask for a re-check?

Neither. No change is possible after clicking submit, and the OMR viewing facility confers no right to re-evaluation, re-checking, re-assessment, re-scanning, re-totalling or any other form of review.

Where will I be posted, and what are the hours?

Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Surat or any other project of GMRCL, anywhere in Gujarat, with department allocation at the Management's sole discretion. Duty is in shifts including night shift, and hours may range from 8 to 12 daily depending on the ridership or footfall of the station or customer care centre.