Current 2026 recruitment status
Not announced yet. NABARD's official career-notice page does not currently carry a Grade A 2026 notification. Current-cycle vacancies, dates, fee, age cutoff and application link are therefore intentionally not stated.
What is NABARD Grade A?
NABARD recruits Assistant Managers in Grade A for the Rural Development Banking Service (RDBS) and, when notified, specialist services such as Legal and Protocol & Security. The work supports an all-India development-finance institution focused on agriculture, rural infrastructure, supervision, policy implementation and institutional operations.
Evergreen basis: latest official 2025 notification
The eligibility, pattern and pay details below are historical/evergreen guidance based on Advertisement 05/Grade A/2025-26, the latest official Grade A notification available. They are not presented as 2026 recruitment facts and can change in the next notice.
Latest-notification vacancies
The 2025 notification advertised 91 posts: 85 RDBS across General and specialist disciplines, 2 Legal and 4 Protocol & Security. This is historical context only and is not a vacancy estimate for 2026.
Latest-notification eligibility and age
RDBS General required a bachelor's degree in any subject with 60% aggregate (55% for SC/ST/PwBD) or a postgraduate degree/MBA/PGDM with 55% (50% for SC/ST/PwBD), or CA/CS/CMA/ICWA or PhD. Specialist disciplines had their own qualifications.
The qualifying result had to be declared by 1 November 2025; candidates whose final result came later were not eligible for that cycle.
Age was 21 to 30 years as on 1 November 2025. Upper-age relaxation was OBC 3 years; SC/ST and eligible ex-servicemen 5 years; PwBD 10/13/15 years. Protocol & Security had distinct age/relaxation rules.
Latest-notification selection process
RDBS and Legal selection used Phase I Preliminary Examination, Phase II Main Examination, a mandatory 90-minute Psychometric Test and Interview. Main plus Interview formed final selection, subject to appearing in the Psychometric Test. Protocol & Security followed the distinct process specified for that service.
RDBS / Legal Phase I pattern
| Test | Questions | Marks | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reasoning | 20 | 20 | Composite 120 minutes |
| English Language | 30 | 30 | Composite 120 minutes |
| Computer Knowledge | 20 | 20 | Composite 120 minutes |
| Quantitative Aptitude | 20 | 20 | Composite 120 minutes |
| Decision Making | 10 | 10 | Composite 120 minutes |
| General Awareness | 20 | 20 | Composite 120 minutes |
| Economic & Social Issues, rural focus | 40 | 40 | Composite 120 minutes |
| Agriculture & Rural Development | 40 | 40 | Composite 120 minutes |
| Total | 200 | 200 | 120 minutes |
Reasoning, English, computer knowledge, quantitative aptitude and decision making were qualifying sections. Shortlisting for the main examination used the merit-section scores: General Awareness, Economic & Social Issues, and Agriculture & Rural Development.
RDBS General Phase II pattern
| Paper | Format | Questions | Marks | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper I General English | Online descriptive | 3 | 100 | 90 minutes |
| Paper II ESI + Agriculture & Rural Development | Objective | 30 | 50 | 30 minutes |
| Paper II ESI + Agriculture & Rural Development | Descriptive: answer 4 of 6 | 6 shown | 50 | 90 minutes |
| Psychometric Test | Mandatory MCQ | As notified | Not merit-scored | 90 minutes |
| Interview | Interview | — | 50 | As notified |
Negative marking
The 2025 notification deducted one-fourth of the marks assigned to a wrong objective answer in both Phase I and Phase II. Descriptive answers are not objective questions.
Syllabus and preparation scope
For RDBS General, preparation spans reasoning, English, computer knowledge, quantitative aptitude, decision making, general awareness, economic and social issues with a rural focus, and agriculture and rural development. The main examination emphasizes descriptive English plus ESI and ARD. Specialist candidates must follow their stream-specific qualification and Paper II scope rather than the General syllabus.
Latest-notification fee and pay
In 2025, SC/ST/PwBD candidates paid ₹150 intimation charges and no application fee; other candidates paid ₹700 application fee plus ₹150 intimation charges. GST was extra. Starting basic pay was ₹44,500 in the ₹44,500–89,150 scale, with official allowances and benefits; NABARD stated approximate initial gross monthly emoluments of ₹1,00,000. These are latest-cycle historical figures, not a 2026 announcement.
Job and career context
Grade A officers may work in rural credit, development programmes, refinance, supervision, project appraisal, policy implementation or institutional support, depending on discipline and posting. NABARD may assign specialist officers other work for administrative convenience. Promotions and transfers follow institutional service rules without a promised timeline.
Frequently asked questions
Has NABARD Grade A 2026 been announced? No, not on the official careers page as verified on 10 September 2026.
Does the latest RDBS process have an interview? Yes, after main examination and mandatory Psychometric Test.
Do all Phase I sections determine main shortlisting? No; the latest notice used only the merit-section scores for shortlisting.
Can the 2025 fee or dates be assumed for 2026? No.