RRB Technician Syllabus 2026: Grade 1 Signal and Grade 3 Exam Pattern

RRB Technician Syllabus 2026: Quick Answer

RRB Technician recruitment under CEN 02/2026 has a single computer-based test (CBT) — there is no CBT-2. Each grade gets its own 100-question paper for 100 marks in 90 minutes, with 1/3 mark deducted for every wrong answer. Technician Grade 1 (Signal) is weighted towards Basic Science and Engineering (35 questions) plus Computers (20), while Technician Grade 3 is weighted towards General Science (40 questions). Selection after the CBT is document verification and then a medical examination. The CBT for this cycle was held on 6 to 9 October 2026, the provisional answer key came out on 15 October 2026, objections closed on 22 October 2026, and the result date has not been announced. Total vacancies are 7,325 after Corrigendum No. 1 dated 16 October 2026 raised Grade 3 vacancies from 6,234 to 7,002; Grade 1 (Signal) stays at 323. No cut-off figure is published on this page, because the result — and therefore any cut-off — does not exist yet.

RRB Technician 2026 at a Glance

Two warnings before you read further. First, the vacancy figure: most preparation pages still show 6,557 (323 + 6,234), the total from the original detailed notification. That figure was superseded. Corrigendum No. 1 dated 16 October 2026 added 768 Grade 3 vacancies — Fitter, Carriage and Wagon and Welder trades across 11 RRBs, as reported — taking Grade 3 from 6,234 to 7,002 and the total to 7,325. This page uses 7,325 throughout. The corrigendum PDF itself was not read directly for this page, so the trade-wise break-up of the additional vacancies is not reproduced here; check the corrigendum on your regional RRB website for the RRB-wise figures.

Second, the pattern confusion: several pages describe Technician as a two-stage exam with a 75-question CBT-1 and a CBT-2 split into Part A (100 questions) and Part B (75 trade questions). That is not the CEN 02/2026 structure. Entri, AglaSem and Guidely, all writing directly from CEN 02/2026, agree that Technician has a single CBT of 100 questions per grade, with no second stage and no trade-specific Part B paper. The two-stage description appears to be borrowed from other RRB exams. If a page you are reading mentions Technician CBT-2, it is describing the wrong exam.

RRB Technician Grade 1 (Signal) Exam Pattern and Syllabus

Grade 1 (Signal) is a Level 5 post. Its paper is the more technical of the two, with 55 of its 100 questions coming from Basic Science and Engineering and Computers. The pattern, convergent across Entri, AglaSem, Guidely, Testbook and JagranJosh summaries of CEN 02/2026, is:

Time allowed is 90 minutes, or 120 minutes for PwBD candidates using a scribe. The syllabus topics for each subject, as listed in CEN summaries, are:

• Basic Science and Engineering (35): engineering science fundamentals — units and measurements, force, mass, weight and density, work, power and energy, speed and velocity, heat and temperature, electricity and magnetism, and simple machines. This section alone is more than a third of the paper, and it is where Grade 1 selection is usually decided.
• Mathematics (20): number systems, BODMAS, decimals and fractions, LCM and HCF, ratio and proportion, percentages, mensuration, time and work, time and distance, simple and compound interest, profit and loss, algebra, geometry and trigonometry, elementary statistics, square roots, age calculations, calendar and clock, and pipes and cisterns.
• Basics of Computers and Applications (20): computer fundamentals — hardware and software, operating systems, MS Office applications, the internet, email and basic computer applications, as covered in standard RRB computer syllabuses.
• General Intelligence and Reasoning (15): analogies, alphabetical and number series, coding and decoding, mathematical operations, relationships, syllogism, jumbling, Venn diagrams, data interpretation and sufficiency, conclusions and decision making, similarities and differences, analytical reasoning, classification, directions, and statement-arguments and assumptions.
• General Awareness (10): current affairs, Indian geography, culture and history including the freedom struggle, Indian polity and constitution, Indian economy, environmental issues, sports, and general scientific and technological developments.

The CEN notes that listed topics are illustrative and not necessarily exhaustive, so a question can come from just outside the list. For Basic Science and Engineering in particular, revise from Class 10 and 11 physics and basic engineering science rather than memorising a topic list: the questions test whether you can apply formulas, not whether you have seen the exact topic heading before.

RRB Technician Grade 3 Exam Pattern and Syllabus

Grade 3 is a Level 2 post covering trade posts such as Fitter, Welder, Electrician and Carriage and Wagon work, with each post mapped to eligible ITI trades in the CEN. Its paper drops the engineering and computers sections entirely and tests General Science instead. The pattern, convergent across the same CEN summaries, is:

Time allowed is the same 90 minutes (120 minutes for PwBD candidates using a scribe), with the same 1/3 negative marking. The syllabus topics are:

• General Science (40): Physics, Chemistry and Life Sciences up to the Class 10 CBSE syllabus. This is the largest section in either Technician paper. Its numerical part — motion, electricity, work and energy, light, the mole concept — is calculation-based and rewards candidates who practise with formulas rather than reading theory alone.
• Mathematics (25): the same arithmetic and mensuration ground as Grade 1, with slightly higher weightage: number systems, ratio and proportion, percentages, profit and loss, interest, time and work, time and distance, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, statistics, calendar and clock.
• General Intelligence and Reasoning (25): the same reasoning families as Grade 1 — series, coding, syllogism, Venn diagrams, directions, relationships, data interpretation and sufficiency, and decision making.
• General Awareness (10): the same GA coverage as Grade 1, including current affairs of the last several months, geography, history, polity, economy, environment, sports and science and technology developments.

There is no separate trade test and no skill test for Technician posts, and no computer-based aptitude test (CBAT). Your ITI trade matters for eligibility — which posts you can apply for — not as a separate exam paper. Candidates sometimes prepare for a "trade paper" that does not exist; do not spend revision time on one. The trade knowledge that helps is the trade science inside General Science and, for Grade 1, inside Basic Science and Engineering.

RRB Technician Qualifying Marks, Normalisation and Selection

These minimums are reported convergently by AglaSem and JagranJosh from CEN 02/2026. For PwBD candidates the minimums may be relaxed by 2 marks where there is a shortage of PwBD candidates against reserved vacancies. Qualifying marks are only a floor. Because the CBT ran in multiple shifts, RRB normalises marks across shifts before shortlisting, so a raw score computed from the answer key is an estimate, not a final score. Selection is on normalised merit within each RRB, post and category, followed by document verification and a medical examination against the medical standard for the post.

Eligibility, as reported in CEN summaries and to be re-checked against the CEN PDF: Grade 1 (Signal) requires a diploma or degree in a relevant engineering discipline, while Grade 3 requires an ITI certificate or Act Apprenticeship in the relevant trade, with the trade-to-post mapping given in the CEN. The reported age limit is 18 to 33 years, with the usual relaxations for SC, ST, OBC (Non-Creamy Layer), PwBD and ex-servicemen candidates. Because the CEN PDF was not read directly for this page, treat both the qualification mapping and the age limit as "as reported" and confirm them against the notification on your regional RRB website before relying on them for an application decision.

RRB Technician Answer Key, Objections and Result Status

The provisional answer key for the October CBT was released on 15 October 2026, with the question paper and individual response sheets, and objections closed on 22 October 2026 at ₹50 per question, as reported by Careers360 and CareerPower. If you appeared, your score estimate from the key is (correct × 1) − (wrong × 1/3), before normalisation. The result date has not been announced as of 7 November 2026. Testbook expects the result in the 4th week of November 2026, but that is a third-party expectation, not an RRB announcement, and this page does not repeat it as a date. When the result is published, RRB will release it RRB-wise and post-wise on the regional websites, followed by the document verification schedule. No cut-off figure is published here: cut-offs can only be computed from the result, and inventing one now would mislead candidates preparing for document verification.

How to Prepare for RRB Technician: Weightage First

With 90 minutes for 100 questions, you have 54 seconds per question on average, and the 1/3 penalty means blind guessing has an expected value of zero. Prepare in weightage order. For Grade 1, Basic Science and Engineering plus Computers decide the list: give them more than half your revision time, and practise numerical problems under timed conditions. For Grade 3, General Science decides the list: work through Class 10 physics, chemistry and biology with numerical practice, and treat the 40 questions as four 10-question blocks to be finished in about 35 minutes. In both papers, Mathematics and Reasoning together are 35 to 50 questions of mostly solvable, formula-based marks — finish them first in the exam, then GA, then return to the questions you marked for review. Do not attempt every question: with the penalty, an attempted question you get wrong costs you a third of a correct one, so leave a question blank when you cannot eliminate even one option.

RRB Technician Syllabus 2026 FAQs

Is there a CBT-2 for RRB Technician? No. Under CEN 02/2026 there is a single CBT of 100 questions per grade, followed by document verification and a medical examination. Pages describing a Technician CBT-2 are describing a different exam's structure.

What is the exam pattern for Technician Grade 1 Signal? 100 questions, 100 marks, 90 minutes: Basic Science and Engineering 35, Mathematics 20, Basics of Computers and Applications 20, General Intelligence and Reasoning 15, General Awareness 10. Negative marking is 1/3 per wrong answer.

What is the exam pattern for Technician Grade 3? 100 questions, 100 marks, 90 minutes: General Science 40, Mathematics 25, General Intelligence and Reasoning 25, General Awareness 10. Negative marking is 1/3 per wrong answer. There is no separate trade paper.

How many vacancies are there for RRB Technician 2026? 7,325 in total after Corrigendum No. 1 dated 16 October 2026: 323 for Grade 1 (Signal) and 7,002 for Grade 3. The older figure of 6,557 shown on many pages was superseded by the corrigendum.

What are the qualifying marks for RRB Technician? 40% for UR and EWS, 30% for OBC (Non-Creamy Layer) and SC, and 25% for ST, as reported from CEN 02/2026. These are minimum floors; selection is on normalised merit.

When will the RRB Technician result 2026 be declared? No date has been announced as of 7 November 2026. The answer key came out on 15 October and objections closed on 22 October. Check your regional RRB website for the result notice.

Sources and What Is Still Unconfirmed

• Entri, RRB Technician Syllabus 2026 (CEN 02/2026): single CBT, 100 questions, 90 minutes, −1/3, no CBT-2, Grade 1 and Grade 3 subject splits, normalisation.
• AglaSem, RRB Technician Syllabus and Exam Pattern (CEN 02/2026): Level 5 and Level 2 paper splits, qualifying marks 40/30/30/25, PwBD relaxation, common Maths and Reasoning topic lists.
• Guidely, RRB Technician Syllabus 2026: single CBT for each grade, 100 questions and 90 minutes, subject splits, no separate syllabus PDF — the syllabus sits inside CEN 02/2026.
• JagranJosh and Testbook, RRB Technician Syllabus 2026: Grade 1 and Grade 3 pattern tables, 1/3 negative marking, 6,557 vacancies in the original notification (superseded by the corrigendum).
• Careers360 and CareerPower, RRB Technician answer key: key out 15 October 2026, objections closed 22 October 2026, ₹50 per question; result date not announced.
• Corrigendum No. 1 dated 16 October 2026 (Grade 3 6,234 to 7,002; total 7,325): as reported convergently; the corrigendum PDF was not read directly for this page.
• Still unconfirmed as of 7 November 2026: the trade-wise break-up of the additional 768 vacancies, the exact eligibility and age-limit text of CEN 02/2026, the detailed Basic Science and Engineering topic list beyond CEN summaries, and the result date. No cut-off figure is published on this page. As of 7 November 2026, check the CEN and corrigendum on the official RRB websites before acting on any figure here.

Practice Next

No Technician mock test exists on this site yet — that gap is flagged for the site team, and this page will link to Technician mocks when they are built. Until then, the closest practice for the shared Maths and Reasoning ground is the RRB JE sectional mocks, which use the same 1/3 negative marking:

• Shared ground: RRB JE Maths Mock Test 01, RRB JE Reasoning Mock Test 01
• Pattern and syllabus: RRB JE syllabus 2026, RRB NTPC syllabus 2026, RRB ALP syllabus 2026