This preserved 2025-preparation URL now explains the historical NTPC cycle based on graduate CEN 05/2024 and undergraduate CEN 06/2024. Use it to understand those notices and audit old study material. It is not an open-application announcement or a substitute for your actual current stage instructions.
For the newer graduate CEN 06/2025 and undergraduate CEN 07/2025, use the separate NTPC guide for 2026 preparation. Similar exam names do not make different recruitment cycles interchangeable.
Editorially revised on 9 October 2026. Notice facts below are tied to the identified 2024 documents. Practice calculations and audit exercises are original illustrations, not official scores or selection predictions.
Start with the two official historical notices
The source documents are graduate CEN 05/2024 and undergraduate CEN 06/2024. Section 13 contains the examination scheme, syllabus and relevant later assessments.
Record the CEN identifier on every practice note. An article labelled “NTPC 2025” may refer to the year of preparation, a stage or a notice. Do not infer the recruitment identifier from the page title alone. Use the official notices index and your relevant RRB's instructions to identify the actual stage and later updates.
CBT pattern in the identified notices
Both documents specify the following ordinary CBT scheme. The section distribution is indicative and may vary. Eligible PwBD candidates accompanied by a scribe have the specified extended duration; check the notice's applicable conditions rather than assigning it automatically.
| Stage | Questions, sections and duration |
|---|---|
| CBT 1 | 100 questions: General Awareness 40, Mathematics 30, Reasoning 30; standard 90 minutes |
| CBT 2 | 120 questions: General Awareness 50, Mathematics 35, Reasoning 35; standard 90 minutes |
| Marking | One mark per question; one-third mark deducted for each wrong answer |
| Specified extended duration | 120 minutes for eligible PwBD candidates accompanied by a scribe |
CBT 1 screens candidates for CBT 2 through the specified normalised-mark process. A raw practice score is not the same thing as normalised marks. Do not turn a qualifying minimum into a predicted shortlist cutoff.
Read the official syllabus as a topic map
Mathematics includes numerical operations, fractions and decimals, LCM/HCF, ratio and percentage, work and distance, interest and profit, measurement, elementary algebra, geometry and trigonometry, and elementary statistics.
Reasoning includes sequences, analogies, coding, operations and relationships, analytical inference, syllogisms, puzzles, Venn diagrams, data sufficiency, conclusions and courses of action, decision-making, maps and graphs.
General Awareness spans current events, culture, sports, school-level science, history, geography, polity, economy, computing, environment, technology, transport, organisations, personalities and government programmes. These are grouped orientation notes, not a replacement for the complete official topic list.
When an old lesson omits a topic, check whether the omission comes from that lesson's scope or an incorrect syllabus claim. A resource covering only arithmetic should not be mistaken for the entire Mathematics section.
Keep the post-specific branches separate
In graduate CEN 05/2024, CBAT applies to Station Master. Typing applies to Senior Clerk cum Typist and Junior Accounts Assistant cum Typist. In undergraduate CEN 06/2024, typing applies to Accounts Clerk cum Typist and Junior Clerk cum Typist; the notice does not specify CBAT for that route.
The specified typing standard is 30 words per minute in English or 25 in Hindi. It is qualifying and excluded from merit; conditional exemption requires the prescribed evidence. Do not assign a typing or aptitude assessment to every NTPC post. Document and medical checks remain separate.
For actual assessment details, read the applicable notice and call letter. This historical summary does not certify an individual candidate's exemption or tell you that every stage of the old cycle has finished.
Audit an old practice resource in five checks
Cycle check: Does the resource name the same CEN as your preparation note? If it only names a year, mark the cycle as unresolved until you compare the source. Do not silently merge older and newer post lists.
Stage check: Is the question set designed for CBT 1, CBT 2 or a post-specific assessment? A useful subject drill may have a different length from a full paper. Keep that distinction visible when interpreting the result.
Scheme check: Compare total questions, section allocation, duration and penalty with the identified notice. A fictional 500-mark paper should not be presented as the official NTPC CBT scheme.
Topic check: Match each question with the official topic map. If a practice set covers selected topics, label it as a drill rather than claiming full syllabus coverage. Check disputed answers against appropriate sources.
Branch check: Does the resource identify the posts to which a later test applies? A Station Master aptitude lesson does not automatically apply to the undergraduate route.
Keep a short audit note: useful material, incorrect labels, unanswered questions and the source that resolved them. The goal is to make the resource's limits visible, not to discard all older practice material merely because its title is dated.
A fictional diagnostic session
Suppose a learner uses a 30-question quantitative drill, then reviews every error. They find three different issues: a fraction rule they did not understand, two misread conditions and a calculation copied incorrectly. One generic note saying “weak in maths” would hide the different fixes.
For the concept gap, the next action is an explanation and a small set of examples. For misreading, the learner marks the required quantity before calculating. For the transcription mistake, they check the copied value against the question. These are practice actions, not a guaranteed route to selection.
On a later session, repeat comparable tasks and inspect whether the specific error recurs. A higher score from an easier drill does not prove the original gap has closed. Record the question source and difficulty context so the comparison has meaning.
A raw practice-score calculation
In a fictional 100-question practice paper following the stated marking scheme, the learner answers 60 correctly, 21 incorrectly and leaves 19 unanswered. The raw calculation is 60 minus 21 divided by 3, which equals 53 marks.
This is arithmetic for a labelled practice example. It does not perform official normalisation, predict a cutoff or establish eligibility. The number of correct answers alone would overstate the raw result because it ignores the penalty.
Also review the distribution of errors. A total score cannot tell you whether mistakes arose from incomplete knowledge, rushed calculations or uncertain guesses. Choose a correction based on the actual question review, not an unsupported universal attempt target.
Maintain a revision log tied to the source
| Log item | What to record |
|---|---|
| Notice and stage | CEN identifier and assessment being practised |
| Topic | Official topic group and the specific task |
| Error | Concept, calculation, interpretation or unchecked assumption |
| Correction | The explanation or method used to resolve it |
| Next check | A comparable practice task and a review date |
| Open issue | An answer or stage condition still requiring verification |
Use practice resources that match the task. The NTPC practice hub can support preparation, but a catalog title alone does not certify correspondence with every historical notice. Compare the actual set and retain its limitations.
Keep post-specific preparation in its own branch of the plan. If typing is relevant, follow the applicable assessment conditions rather than assuming a general typing game reproduces the official test. If an aptitude stage is relevant, consult its prescribed instructions and do not improvise eligibility requirements from a coaching article.
Frequently asked questions
Does “2025 syllabus” identify a particular CEN?
No. The year label can describe preparation or a stage. This page explicitly uses CEN 05/2024 and 06/2024; use the identifier in the actual notice for your case.
Is CBAT required for every NTPC post?
No. In the identified graduate notice it applies to Station Master. The identified undergraduate notice does not specify CBAT. Do not transfer that summary to another cycle without checking it.
Can I predict selection from the example's 53 marks?
No. It is a fictional raw practice score, not official normalised marks or an actual shortlist result.
Should I stop using old question practice?
Audit its cycle, stage, scheme and topic coverage. Some material can support a clearly labelled subject drill even when it is unsuitable as a complete official-pattern mock.