NCL Staff Nurse Syllabus, Exam Pattern, Eligibility

Selection rests on your relative score in one Computer Based Test. For paramedical posts the test is held separately for each post, so Staff Nurse has its own paper.

• One mark a question, 90 minutes, one sitting.
• No negative marking. A blank scores zero, so attempt all 100.
• The paper is in English and Hindi. If the Hindi version has an error, the English one stands.

Minimum qualifying marks

Below this line you're out, not just lower down the list. Only those at or above it are called for document verification.

Normalisation

If the test runs in more than one shift, scores are normalised with the formula printed in the advertisement:

Xn = (S2 / S1) × (X − Xav) + Yav

S2 and Yav are the standard deviation and average of the shift with the highest average raw score, which is the base. S1 and Xav are the standard deviation and average of your own shift, and X is your raw score.

Ties

1. Higher score in Section A.
2. Then the older candidate.
3. Then alphabetical order of names.

NCL publishes an indicative syllabus as Annexure-B of the advertisement. These are its topics, in its order.

Section A: Staff Nurse, 70 questions

The list ends with "etc. as per the courses offered by the recognised institutes", so it is indicative. The real standard is the current B.Sc Nursing or GNM curriculum.

Section B: 30 questions, common to every post in the notice

Qualification

1. 10+2.
2. A recognised B.Sc Nursing or a recognised Diploma in General Nursing and Midwifery from a government approved institute.
3. Valid registration with any State Nursing Council. Any state will do; it doesn't have to be Madhya Pradesh or Uttar Pradesh.

Distance learning and part-time qualifications are not accepted. A higher relevant qualification is fine. There is no relaxation in the minimum qualification for any category.

Everything is judged as on 1 May 2026, the last date to apply: age, qualification, registration and the validity of every certificate, plus every reservation and relaxation claim.

Age

18 to 30 years on 1 May 2026, with these relaxations on the upper limit:

OBC means the central list. If your caste is only on your state's list, you can't claim OBC here. The certificate must be in the prescribed proforma, name the Act or order recognising the caste, and be valid on 1 May 2026.

How reservation works

• An SC, ST, OBC or EWS candidate who makes it on merit without any relaxed standard takes an unreserved seat.
• One who used any relaxation (age, a lower qualifying mark) is counted against a reserved seat.
• ESM and PwBD reservation is horizontal: each is adjusted within their own category.

PwBD: one of the 47 posts is earmarked. The suitable categories are hard of hearing, low vision, one leg, leprosy cured, dwarfism, acid attack victims, specific learning disability, and multiple disabilities among these. The disability must be at least 40 per cent. A scribe is allowed where the rules permit, with the scribe certificate in the advertisement's format.

Vacancies

The numbers are tentative and NCL can revise them.

Apply for one post only. Applying for two cancels your candidature for the whole notice. Your category can't be changed after you apply.

Selection is on your relative score in the Computer Based Test. There's no interview, skill test or descriptive paper.

1. Apply online and pay the fee by 1 May 2026.
2. Computer Based Test. You sit it on your own declaration of eligibility. Nothing is checked beforehand, and an admit card does not mean you're eligible.
3. Objection window on the NCL site, four days after the test, for four days.
4. Result on the NCL website.
5. Document verification for those at or above the qualifying mark, in order of marks, post by post, only as far as posts remain unfilled.
6. Provisional merit panel on the website, after ties are broken (Section A score, then age, then name).
7. Provisional appointment letters by merit, eligibility and reservation.

Every certificate (caste, qualification, EWS, PwBD, nursing registration) is checked with the office that issued it. If one fails at any stage, the candidature goes. Miss the verification deadline with your originals and you're out automatically.

After selection

• Medical examination under Coal India's Medical Attendance Rules. NCL advises reading them before you apply.
• Character and antecedent verification.
• If you work in government, a PSU or an autonomous body, bring a no objection certificate to verification and resign before joining.
• Posting anywhere in NCL, and transfer to any other Coal India subsidiary at any time.
• One year of training, then regularisation in T&S Grade C.

Unfair means or impersonation can lead to prosecution and a ban from future NCL selections. False particulars get you terminated, even after confirmation. Canvassing disqualifies you.

On top of basic pay you get dearness allowance, attendance bonus, special allowance, transport subsidy and medical facility, under Company rules and the National Coal Wage Agreement XI. Pay in Coal India is set by that wage agreement with the unions, not by a pay commission, and its DA moves on its own index.

NCL takes no liability for any bond, salary, leave salary or pension contribution from your previous job.

Pay online only. The fee is non refundable, and a form without it is rejected outright. OBC candidates pay the full fee.

Apply on nclcil.in: Career, then Recruitment, then the employment notice, then Apply Online.

Uploads

• Colour passport photo, no older than three weeks (JPG/JPEG)
• Signature in black ink (JPG/JPEG)
• Matriculation certificate (PDF)
• Caste certificate for OBC (NCL), SC, ST and PwBD, self attested
• EWS income and asset certificate on 2025-2026 income, valid for 2026-2027
• 10+2 certificate, B.Sc Nursing degree or GNM diploma, and State Nursing Council registration (PDF)

Before you submit

• One post only. Two applications cancel both.
• No corrections after submission, and no change of category later.
• Keep your e-mail and mobile number working for at least a year. That's where NCL writes.

Form problems go to the Help Desk in your login portal. Anything else: rectt.ncl@coalindia.in. NCL says it has no agents, and anyone trying to influence selection is disqualified.

The employer is Northern Coalfields Limited, a Miniratna subsidiary of Coal India Limited. Recruitment is run from the Recruitment Department, Post Singrauli Colliery, District Singrauli, Madhya Pradesh 486889 (phone 07805-256573, rectt.ncl@coalindia.in).

Staff Nurses work across NCL's mines, establishments, hospitals and dispensaries in the Singrauli district of Madhya Pradesh and the Sonbhadra district of Uttar Pradesh. You can also be transferred to any other Coal India subsidiary during service.

Coal India's Medical Attendance Rules set the fitness standard, and its list of identified posts decides the PwBD reservation. Pay follows NCWA-XI.

The advertisement doesn't list exam cities. They appear in the online form, where you pick preferences, and you can't change them after submitting. NCL can allot a different city, add or drop cities, and reschedule. Once a centre is allotted, it can't be changed.

Fare for SC and ST candidates

SC and ST candidates called for the test get up to second class non AC fare. Fill the TA claim format from the advertisement and hand it to the invigilator after the test, with your caste certificate and the onward ticket, which is mandatory. Late or incomplete claims are refused. Distance is counted from your permanent address or where you actually travelled from, whichever is shorter. With only an onward ticket, the claim is capped at double the onward fare.

No TA or DA is paid for document verification or for joining.

NCL ran its last paramedical recruitment earlier: its archive has a merit list for paramedical and statutory (mines) posts dated 11 August 2020, followed by cancellation and last-chance verification notices.

The admit card is only available on nclcil.in, through your login portal. Nothing is posted, and downloading it is your job. In 2026 the download opened on 26 June, ten days before the 6 July test, and NCL said it would also send SMS and e-mail alerts.

An admit card is permission to sit, nothing more. Your eligibility is checked only after the test, against your original documents.

Bring the printed admit card. A PwBD candidate using a scribe needs the scribe certificate in the advertisement's Appendix-I and Appendix-II format. SC and ST candidates claiming fare need the TA claim form, caste certificate and onward ticket.

The objection window opens on the NCL site and in your login portal four days after the test, for four days only. In 2026 that was midday on 11 July to the morning of 15 July. Objections by any other route aren't accepted.

Then the result goes up on nclcil.in, followed by document verification for those above the qualifying mark, a provisional merit panel, and appointment letters. As at 12 September 2026 there was no result yet for this notice.

A result can still be undone by a certificate that fails verification, missing the verification deadline, false information found even after appointment, or failing the medical or antecedent check. Disputes go to the High Court of Madhya Pradesh at Jabalpur.

No cut-off has been published for this cycle, and no result either, as at 12 September 2026. The 50 and 40 marks in the exam pattern are minimum qualifying marks, not a cut-off. When NCL publishes the result it will be on nclcil.in under Career and Recruitment.

What NCL has published is how many people turned up (Notice No. 283, 18 July 2026):

That's 464 candidates per post. Just under 6,200 admit card holders stayed away, about 78 per cent attendance (81 per cent for General, 73 per cent for SC). Across the whole notice, 59,125 of 77,565 admit card holders appeared. SC candidates were the largest group, so the 9 SC posts face a bigger pool than the 21 unreserved ones. For comparison, Pharmacist drew 3,954 admit cards and Physiotherapist 1,518.

Attempt every question. There's no negative marking, so a blank is a sure zero. If you've practised on papers with a quarter-mark penalty, drop the habit of leaving questions out.

Prepare from NCL's own list. The 21 topics in Annexure-B are specific, so use them. Topics 1 to 6 are fundamentals and ward procedure: asepsis, body mechanics, admission, hygiene, elimination, hot and cold applications, medicines, injections, discharge, the nursing process. People revise diseases and skip these, and NCL put them first.

Don't ignore Section B. Thirty marks matter when 21,805 people sit for 47 posts. Synonyms and antonyms are asked in both Hindi and English, so work on whichever language is weaker.

Practise full papers against the clock. Ninety minutes for a hundred questions leaves under a minute each. Sit whole mocks of 70 nursing and 30 general questions with no penalty, and use your own B.Sc Nursing or GNM course papers for the nursing half.

Sort out the paperwork early. Your State Nursing Council registration must be valid on 1 May 2026 and every certificate is checked with its issuer. Read Coal India's Medical Attendance Rules before you get attached to the job.

Note your answers on exam day. The objection window lasts four days and you can't use it without knowing what you marked.

No previous year papers or answer keys are available for NCL Staff Nurse. NCL hasn't released the paper for this cycle or its 2020 one.

The closest official guide is the syllabus in Annexure-B of the advertisement. The questions themselves are visible for four days during the objection window, which opens on nclcil.in four days after the test.

• Northern Coalfields Limited, Career then Recruitment, where every notice is published
• Employment Notice No. 125 of 6 April 2026, English, with the syllabus in Annexure-B
• The same notice in Hindi (the English version governs)
• Notice No. 212 of 15 June 2026, scheduling the test
• Notice No. 226 of 1 July 2026, admit card download
• Notice No. 250 of 11 July 2026, objection window
• Notice No. 283 of 18 July 2026, candidates who appeared, by category

How many Staff Nurse posts are there?

47: 21 UR, 4 EWS, 9 SC, 2 ST and 11 OBC, with 1 for PwBD and 4 for ex-servicemen within those.

Does my nursing registration have to be from MP or UP?

No. Registration with any State Nursing Council is accepted.

Is there negative marking?

No. Attempt all 100 questions.

Is there an interview?

No. Selection is on the test score alone, followed by document verification.

What was the cut-off?

None has been published yet. The minimum qualifying marks are 50 for UR and EWS and 40 for everyone else, but clearing them only gets you considered.

My caste is on my state's OBC list. Can I claim OBC?

Only if it's also on the Central Government's list.

Can I apply for two posts in the notice?

No. Applying for more than one cancels your candidature for the whole notification.

Where will I be posted?

Anywhere in NCL's area in Singrauli (MP) or Sonbhadra (UP), and you can be transferred to any other Coal India subsidiary.

Can I object to a question?

Yes, through the objection link on the NCL site and in your login portal, open for four days starting four days after the test.