RRB Technician Grade 1 Syllabus, Exam Pattern, Eligibility

Pattern for Pay Level 5, Technician Grade-I Signal:

• 90 minutes, about 54 seconds a question.
• One third of a mark off for every wrong answer.
• Marks are normalised if the CBT runs in several shifts.
• The CEN says the split is indicative and the syllabus topics illustrative, not exhaustive.

General Awareness is only 10 marks, so don't prepare this like an NTPC paper.

Minimum marks to be considered

Ex-servicemen go by community. For PwBD the minimum can drop by 2 marks if there aren't enough PwBD candidates for reserved posts.

Grade III is also 100 questions in 90 minutes with the same penalty and minimums, but set at 10th standard, with General Science covering Physics, Chemistry and Life Sciences of 10th standard.

From Para 16.1 of CEN 02/2026, for Technician Grade-I Signal.

General Awareness (10)

Current affairs; Indian geography; culture and history including the freedom struggle; polity and constitution; economy; environmental issues concerning India and the world; sports; scientific and technological developments.

General Intelligence and Reasoning (15)

Analogies; alphabetical and number series; coding and decoding; mathematical operations; relationships; syllogism; jumbling; Venn diagram; data interpretation and sufficiency; conclusions and decision making; similarities and differences; analytical reasoning; classification; directions; statement, arguments and assumptions.

Basics of Computers and Applications (20)

Computer architecture; input, output and storage devices; networking; operating systems such as Windows, Unix and Linux; MS Office; data representation; internet and email; websites and browsers; computer viruses.

Mathematics (20)

Basic Science and Engineering (35)

The electronics block is the working content of railway signalling equipment.

Qualification (Annexure A)

It's open to computer science and IT graduates as well as electronics and instrumentation. For Grade III, an engineering diploma or degree isn't accepted in lieu of ITI or Act Apprenticeship (and a Graduate Act apprentice isn't accepted in lieu of Course Completed Act Apprenticeship), so the two grades don't overlap.

You must hold the qualification by 29 July 2026, the closing date. If you're awaiting your final result, don't apply. If your certificate is dated after the closing date, bring to DV the consolidated marks sheet showing the result date, or every semester's marks sheet with dates, or a Board or University certificate giving the result date.

Age as on 1 July 2026

18 to 33 for Grade-I Signal (Grade III: 18 to 30), with relaxations for listed categories on production of certificates. Your date of birth must match your Matriculation, SSLC or equivalent certificate.

Medical and disability

Medical standard B-1 (Grade III posts range across A3, B1, B2 and C1). PwBD suitability is locomotor only: OL, LC, DW, AAV, and SD or SI without neurological or limb dysfunction. Visual, hearing, other and multiple disabilities are marked "No".

Applications

Multiple applications for the same Pay Level, to any RRB, are all rejected and you're debarred from all future RRB and RRC exams. Applying once at each level is allowed. Applications are also rejected, at any stage, for not following the live photo or signature upload instructions, or if your name is on any RRB or RRC debarred list. Rejected applications are listed on each RRB's website. If you're employed, you'll need a No Objection Certificate from your employer.

1. Computer Based Test
2. Document Verification, for as many candidates as there are vacancies, on CBT merit for that pay level
3. Medical Examination by the Railway Administration

No second CBT, no skill test, no interview. The CBT decides merit. Equal marks go to the older candidate, then alphabetically by given name, not surname.

At DV, bring originals. No extra time is given, and missing originals can forfeit your candidature.

Appointment also needs final document checks and verification of antecedents and character. RRBs only recommend names; the Railway Administration issues the offer. For shortfalls, RRBs can go further down the merit list, but that gives no vested right.

Schedules and venues come through the RRB websites, SMS and email, and no request to postpone or change venue, date or shift is entertained.

That's nearly fifty per cent more at entry than Grade III. ₹29,200 is the first cell of Level 5, not take-home; add DA, HRA by city class, Transport Allowance and railway allowances, minus NPS and health scheme contributions.

The post sits in the Signal and Telecommunication (S & T) department, Signal sub-department: interlocking, signalling and track circuits, axle counters, block instruments and the telecom network. A Grade III post, Technician Grade III (S & T), with 320 vacancies at Level 2, works alongside it.

Apply online only through the link on the RRB websites, all reachable from rrb.indianrailways.gov.in.

"Create an Account" is permanent

Nothing in it can be changed later, including your mobile number and email. The modification window covers the application form, not the account, and the chosen RRB can't be changed either. OTPs go to your mobile and email, and the exam schedule comes by SMS and email, so get them right. If you have an account from an earlier RRB CEN, use it.

Verify through DigiLocker or Aadhaar. Applicants using another photo ID face significantly stricter scrutiny at every stage.

Fee

The fee is per pay level, and only those who sit the CBT get a refund. EBC isn't OBC or EWS, and isn't the Extremely Backward Class certificate some states issue.

The Railway Recruitment Boards under the Ministry of Railways issue the CEN jointly, and each publishes it on its own site. You apply to one RRB.

The Grade III categories in the same notice: Track Machine, Blacksmith, Bridge, Carriage and Wagon, Diesel Electrical, Diesel Mechanical, Electrical/TRS, Electrical (GS), Electrical (TRD), EMU, Fitter, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning, S & T, Welder, Crane Driver, Carpenter, Machinist, Mechanical, Millwright, Painter and Trimmer, across open line, production units and workshops. The largest is Fitter (PU and WS), 1,109 posts.

Vacancies are small board by board

Annexure B splits the 323 Grade-I Signal posts by RRB and zone. RRB Ahmedabad has 37 (Western Railway); RRB Ajmer has one (North Western Railway) and nine (West Central Railway). With DV at 1:1 and no second CBT, your RRB choice largely decides your competition.

The CEN gives no exam dates or venues. They're sent through the RRB websites, SMS and email, and no request to postpone or change venue, date or shift is entertained at any stage. Grade I and Grade III are separate CBTs on separate occasions.

Scribe-eligible candidates must enter scribe details on the portal between 11 and 15 August 2026. The scribe undertaking is Annexure V(C), the specified-disability certificate Annexure V(D).

Age is reckoned on 1 July 2026; the qualification on 29 July 2026. After 10 August, no modification requests are entertained. Watch your RRB's site, linked from rrb.indianrailways.gov.in.

Everything comes from the RRB you chose, under its standing headings, roughly in this order: rejected applications, Exam Schedule, City Intimation, E-Call Letters, Mock Test Link, answer keys under Objection Tracker, then Exam Results, Document Verification, Medical Examination and Selection List. You'll also get SMS and email, so keep your registered number and address working.

For DV, bring your degree or diploma (with result-date proof if issued after 29 July 2026), your Matriculation certificate, community and EBC documents, an employer NOC if employed, and any PwBD or scribe certificates (Annexures V(A) to V(D)).

Results for the CBT, DV and empanelment are posted on the website of the RRB you chose, under Exam Results, Document Verification, Medical Examination and Selection List (all RRBs are linked from rrb.indianrailways.gov.in). Rejected applications are listed there too, so check it rather than waiting for a call letter.

No cut-off is published in advance. Above the minimum percentages, the bar is a 1:1 DV shortlist: exactly as many candidates as vacancies, for your community, in your chosen RRB. One paper decides it, so the line can be sharp, and it differs board by board.

Each RRB publishes its own category-wise cut-offs with the CBT result under Exam Results on its site (linked from rrb.indianrailways.gov.in). They're normalised if the CBT ran in several shifts, so don't compare them with a raw answer-key score. Grade I and Grade III have separate merit lists.

• Weight it like the paper. Science and engineering 35, computers 20, maths 20, reasoning 15, general awareness 10. Fifty-five marks are science and computers.
• Start with your gap in electronics. The electronics and measurements block (microcontrollers, microprocessors, range extension methods, oscilloscopes, transducers) is where a B.Sc. Physics graduate is usually weakest and an electronics diploma holder strongest.
• Don't skip sets and statistics. They're senior secondary topics most railway papers don't touch, along with quadratic equations, AP, coordinate geometry and trigonometry.
• Bank the computer section. Twenty marks on a short, well-defined list, including Unix and Linux.
• Guess carefully. Three wrong answers cancel one right one. A guess between two options usually pays; among four it doesn't.
• Check practice material is Grade I. Most "RRB Technician" material is for Grade III. A Grade I set has Basic Science and Engineering at 35 marks, sets and standard deviation in maths, and microprocessors in science.
• Use the official mock test when it appears under Mock Test Link on your RRB's site before the exam.
• Pick your RRB with the vacancy table in front of you (Annexure B).
• Sit the CBT even if underprepared: the refund depends on it.

The RRBs don't keep a previous-paper archive for this post. After each CBT, the answer key and your response sheet are posted under Objection Tracker on your RRB's website, where you can also raise objections; save them while the window is open.

Before the exam, a mock test on the real CBT platform appears under Mock Test Link. The CEN and its FAQ are under Recruitment (CENs) > Notification on every RRB site (linked from rrb.indianrailways.gov.in).

• Railway Recruitment Boards: links to every RRB site, where all notices, call letters and results for your Board appear
• Detailed CEN No. 02/2026 (Technician Categories), 30 June 2026: vacancies, dates, eligibility, fee, both patterns and syllabi; Annexure A (post-wise qualifications) and Annexure B (vacancies by RRB and zone)
• FAQ on CEN 02/2026 (Technicians), 30 June 2026, on each RRB site
• Employment News, which carried the Indicative Notice on 23 May 2026

What exactly is RRB Technician Grade I?

One post, Technician Grade-I Signal: Level 5, ₹29,200, in Signal and Telecommunication, with 323 vacancies under CEN 02/2026.

What qualification do I need?

A B.Sc. in Physics, Electronics, Computer Science, IT or Instrumentation (or a combination), or a three-year engineering diploma in those streams, held by 29 July 2026.

Can I apply with an ITI?

Not for Grade I. ITI is the route for Grade III.

What is the age limit?

18 to 33 on 1 July 2026, with category relaxations.

What is the exam pattern?

One CBT, 100 questions in 90 minutes, with a one-third penalty per wrong answer.

Is there an interview or skill test?

No. CBT, DV and medical only.

Can I apply for both Grade I and Grade III?

Yes, if eligible. It's a separate CBT and a separate fee.

What if I apply twice for the same post?

All your applications are rejected and you're debarred from future RRB and RRC exams.

What is the fee?

₹500 (₹400 back if you sit the CBT), or ₹250 for concession categories, fully refunded on the same condition.

Can I change my email or mobile later?

No. Nothing in "Create an Account" can be changed.

When is the exam?

The CEN doesn't say. Dates come on the RRB websites and by SMS and email.