RRB Group D Complete Guide: Posts, Eligibility, Pattern & Salary

RRB Group D is the biggest entry-level recruitment in Indian Railways — a single computer-based test, a 10th-pass eligibility bar, and lakhs of posts across the railway zones. That combination makes it one of the most-applied government exams in the country, with crore-scale applicant pools.

This guide covers what RRB Group D is, who can apply, the exam and physical test, the salary, and how selection works. Vacancy numbers, the age band and exact dates change with each Centralised Employment Notice (CEN), so always confirm against the official CEN on the RRB websites.

What is RRB Group D and which posts does it fill?

RRB Group D is a centralised recruitment by the Railway Recruitment Boards for Level 1 posts across Indian Railways zones and production units. The posts are mostly operational and maintenance roles, including:

• Track Maintainer Grade-IV
• Pointsman and Assistant Pointsman
• Helper / Assistant in departments such as Electrical, Mechanical, S&T and Engineering (Assistant Loco Shed, Assistant TL & AC, Assistant C&W, and similar).

Eligibility and age limit

• Education: 10th (matriculation) pass, OR an ITI / National Apprenticeship Certificate (NAC) from a recognised institution. Some posts specify ITI in a relevant trade.
• Age: typically around 18–33 years for the current cycle (it has varied between CENs — an earlier cycle used 18–36 as a one-time relaxation), with the exact band set in the CEN.
• Age relaxation: +3 years for OBC-NCL, +5 for SC/ST, and more for PwBD and ex-servicemen, as per rules.

Exam pattern (single CBT)

Unlike NTPC, Group D has just one Computer Based Test (no second tier, no interview):

• 100 questions, 100 marks, 90 minutes (120 minutes for eligible PwBD candidates).
• Sections: General Intelligence & Reasoning (30), Mathematics (25), General Science (25), and General Awareness & Current Affairs (20).
• Negative marking of one-third (0.33) of a mark per wrong answer.
• Minimum qualifying marks: 40% for UR/EWS and 30% for OBC-NCL/SC/ST (relaxable subject to vacancies).
• Because the CBT runs in many shifts, marks are normalised across shifts to offset differences in difficulty, and the normalised score decides the cut-off.

Physical Efficiency Test (PET)

After the CBT, shortlisted candidates take a qualifying PET (pass/fail, not scored). The commonly used standards are:

• Male: lift and carry 35 kg for 100 m in 2 minutes in one chance (without setting it down), and run 1000 m in 4 minutes 15 seconds in one chance.
• Female: lift and carry 20 kg for 100 m in 2 minutes in one chance, and run 1000 m in 5 minutes 40 seconds in one chance.
• Exact standards are specified in each CEN.

Selection process

1. Computer Based Test (CBT)
2. Physical Efficiency Test (PET) — qualifying
3. Document Verification (DV)
4. Medical Examination (fitness standards by post)

Salary

RRB Group D posts are in Pay Level 1 of the 7th Pay Commission, with basic pay of ₹18,000. With Dearness Allowance, House Rent Allowance (by city class) and Transport Allowance, in-hand pay is commonly around ₹22,000–₹25,000 a month depending on the posting. Railway staff also get valuable non-cash benefits like travel passes and railway medical facilities.

Recruitment cycles

Group D recruitment comes in large but irregular cycles. The recent notices were CEN 08/2024 (around 32,438 vacancies) and CEN 09/2025 (around 22,195 vacancies, with the CBT expected in the second half of 2026). These figures and dates are as reported and tentative — confirm the exact numbers on the official CEN. Track the live RRB Group D notification and CBT updates on GovtNaukri365.