Indian Railways is popularly known as the ‘lifeline of India’ and this is because of the fact that it holds the pride of being the largest railway network all over the world. Both passenger and freight transportation is taken care by this major employer in India.
Right from the first day, which is the 16th of April 1853, when the first train was flagged by around 400 guests from Mumbai to Thane, many great improvements are experienced by this field.
Recruitment by Indian Railways: Indian Railways stands to be the largest employers in the nation and recruitment is made by the Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) and here is the list of RRBs functioning in India:
| Ahmadabad | Ajmer | Allahabad | Bangalore | Bhopal | Bhubaneswar |
| Chandigarh | Chennai | Gorakhpur | Guwahati | Jammu | Kolkata |
| Malda | Mumbai | Muzaffarpur | Patna | Ranchi | Secunderabad |
| Siliguri | Trivandrum |
These 21 RRBs functioning in India issue employment notification, then and there for different positions calling for applications from suitable candidates. You can check latest railway jobs here.
Different Career Options in Indian Railways
Here are the details about different job positions available in Indian Railways for which recruitment drives are conducted then and there:
Junior Engineer Group:
Under the junior engineer category, candidates are appointed for different positions like Junior Engineer, Depot material superintendent, chemical and metallurgical assistant. Candidates are appointed to these positions in different departments like works, bridge, drawing and design, estimator, etc.…..
Payscale: The grade pay of Rs.4200 is offered to this position and candidates appointed for this position will come under the pay-band of Rs.9300-34800.
Age requirement: Candidates must be within the age group of 18-33 years. Upper age limit relaxation of three years and five years respectively is applicable for OBC and SC/ST candidates.
Educational qualification: The educational qualification requirement will be a diploma or Bachelor of Science in engineering and the branch required, will differ according to the department for which the candidates are recruited. For instance, in the case of junior engineer works, the candidates must have completed their diploma in civil engineering or B. Sc in Civil Engineering from a recognized university/institution.
Senior Section Engineer Group:
Under the senior section engineer category, candidates are appointed for different positions like senior section Engineer and Chief Depot material superintendent. Candidates are appointed to these positions in different departments like works, bridge, drawing and design, estimator, etc.…..
Payscale: The grade pay of Rs.4600 is offered to this position and candidates appointed for this position will come under the payband of Rs.9300-34800.
Age requirement: Candidates must be within the age group of 20-35 years. Upper age limit of three years and five years respectively is applicable for OBC and SC/ST candidates.
Educational qualification: The educational qualification requirement will be Bachelor of engineering and the branch required, will differ according to the department for which the candidates are recruited. For instance, in the case of senior section engineer works, the candidates must have completed their four-year degree course in civil engineering from a recognized university/institution.
Assistant loco pilot and Technician:
Generally, recruitment notification for this position is announced by different RRBs then and there for selection of candidates for this position to work in different zonal offices of Indian railways.
Payscale: For this position, candidates are appointed in the payscale of Rs.5200-20200+1900.
Age requirement: Candidates must be within 18-30 years and this age limit should be satisfied by the candidates as per the date specified in the employment notification for which they apply.
Educational qualification: Candidates must have completed their matriculation class 10 examination and they should also have course completion certification for ITI approved by NCVT or SCVT or Apprenticeship in the respective trade from a recognized university or institution.
Recruitment: Recruitment will be based on the performance of candidates in Single stage examination that will be followed by aptitude test and document verification. For technicians, the aptitude test will not be conducted.
Junior Accounts Assistant Cum Typist:
For selection of candidates for this position is different zonal offices of railways, employment notification is issued by different RRBs in India then and there.
Payscale: For this position, candidates are appointed in the payscale of Rs. 5200-20200+2800.
Age requirement: Candidates must be within 18-33 years and this age limit should be satisfied by the candidates as per the date specified in the employment notification for which they apply.
Educational qualification: Candidates must have completed their graduation or they should have an equivalent certification from a recognized university. Candidates with first or second class Master’s degree with honors will be given preference. It is important that candidates must have completed their typing in Hindi or English.
Para Medical Categories:
Under this category, not only for staff nurse, recruitments for different positions like health and malaria inspector, pharmacist, ECG Technician etc…… are jointly announced by RRB then and there.
Staff nurse qualification:
Candidates must hold certification as Registered Nurse and Midwives, after completion of 3-years' course in general nursing and midwifery from the school of nursing or other institutions that is recognized by the Indian Nursing Council.
Even candidates with B. Sc in Nursing can apply. Payscale and age limit will be 9300-34800 with a grade pay of Rs.4600 and Age limit is 20-40 years respectively.
Health and malaria inspector:
Age requirement is 18-33 years for general category candidates and educational qualification is B. Sc Chemistry plus with 1 year Diploma in Health/ Sanitary Inspector or 1 year National Trade Certificate (NTC) in the Health / Sanitary Inspector awarded by the National Council for Vocational Training, Ministry of Labor and Employment. The pay scale is Rs.9300-34800 with grade pay of Rs.4200.
Pharmacist:
Candidates recruited for this position will come under the GP of 2800 under the scale 5200-20200. Those between the age group of 20-35 years can apply.
Candidates with 10+2 in science group along with two-year diploma in Pharmacy can apply. Candidates must also have registered themselves with the Pharmacy Council of India or any State Pharmacy Council.
ECG Technicians:
Candidates must hold one-year certification course completion certificate from a recognized institution in ECG Technician in addition to 10+2 qualification from a recognized board.
The pay scale will be 5200-20200 with a grade pay of Rs.2400 and Age limit is 18-33 years respectively.
X-ray Technician/radiographer:
Age requirement is 19-33 years for general category candidates and educational qualification is higher secondary with Physics & Chemistry or any science graduation plus Diploma in Radiography/ X-ray Technician/Radio Diagnosis Technology (2 years course) from a recognized institution.
Of course, candidates with graduation will be given preference. The pay scale is Rs.5200-20200 with grade pay of Rs.2800.
Lab assistant:
Candidates recruited for this position will come under the GP of 2000 under the scale 5200-20200. Those between the age group of 18-33 years can apply.
Candidates with matriculation with science along with a diploma in Medical lab technology or certificate in medical lab technology with course duration of one year can apply.
During the course period, candidates must have got training on a full-time basis.
Lab superintendent:
Candidates must have completed their B. Sc in microbiology/biochemistry/life science or equivalent plus diploma in medical lab technology or B. Sc in medical technology from a recognized institution.
The pay scale will be 9300-34200 with a grade pay of Rs.4200 and Age limit is 18-33 years respectively.
Dialysis technician:
Age requirement is 20-33 years for general category candidates and educational qualification is B. Sc in haemo-dialysis or two-year satisfactory in-house training in this field.
The pay scale is Rs.9300-34800 with grade pay of Rs.4200.
Cardiology technician:
Candidates recruited for this position will come under the GP of 2400 under the scale 5200-20200. Those between the age group of 18-33 years can apply.
Candidates with higher secondary in science group along with a diploma or certification in cardiology lab investigations consisting of ECG, Holter and TMT can apply. Candidates with training in ECG will be given preference.
Autometrician-cum-speech therapist:
Candidates must have completed their B. Sc and diploma in Audio and speech therapy with two years experience in this field. The pay scale will be 5200-20200 with a grade pay of Rs.2800 and Age limit is 18-33 years respectively.
Physiotherapist:
Age requirement is 18-33 years for general category candidates and educational qualification is 10+2 in science with a diploma or degree in physiotherapy from a recognized university or institution can apply for this position.
The pay scale is Rs.9300-34800 with grade pay of Rs.4200.
Recruitment: Recruitment of candidates for the different positions will be done on the basis of written examination and the announcement for the same is made then and there.
Candidates can check for the same form the official website of the RRB. Generally, recruitment is done through the performance of candidates in the preliminary written examination.
If the number of candidates is more, candidates clearing the written test will be called for interview. For some positions, skill test is also conducted.
Even, for positions related to operational safety, psychological test will be conducted.
In addition to the above-mentioned 15 job positions, announcements are made by RRBs then and there for many other positions. Candidates interested for a career in Railways, can keep checking the RRB website for employment notifications and can accordingly apply.
