Railway NTPC Pattern Practice Collection

Exam Pattern, Stages and Attempt Strategy

This chapter explains the structure of the RRB NTPC (Non-Technical Popular Categories) Computer Based Tests, the stages that follow them, and the attempt strategy the rest of this book depends on. Every pattern figure, time-sensitive value and negative-marking rule used later is set out here. The CEN 05/2024 and CEN 06/2026 Graduate figures are taken from the official notice text (paras 13.1 to 13.6); figures for the Undergraduate CEN 07/2026 cycle come from secondary reports and are labelled as reported. The practice items at the end are original exam-pattern questions, not questions from past papers.

KarmSakha preparation topics covered

• Questions, marks, duration and subject split for CBT 1 and CBT 2
• Negative marking and the expected value of guessing
• Stages after the CBTs: typing test, CBAT, document verification and medical examination
• Normalised marks and CBT 2 shortlisting
• Reading the notice: CEN numbers, vacancies, age limits, dates and eligibility
• Time budgets for 100-question and 120-question papers
• An error log for practice sets

What the CBT 1 and CBT 2 papers test

The RRB NTPC selection process starts with CBT 1, a computer based objective test in General Awareness, Mathematics, and General Intelligence and Reasoning. Each question is a multiple-choice item with four options and one correct answer. CBT 1 is the screening paper that decides who is shortlisted for CBT 2. The Graduate notice CEN 05/2024 (para 13.1) fixes this structure at 100 questions of one mark each, 100 marks in total, and 90 minutes, and it adds that the section-wise split is indicative, so a paper may vary slightly from it. The detailed CEN 06/2026 Graduate notice (paras 13.1 and 13.2.1) carries the same CBT 1 and CBT 2 pattern, negative marking and 120-minute scribe provision. The Undergraduate CBT 1 pattern is reported to be the same, but that is as reported, not read from a Graduate notice; confirm it in the Undergraduate notice in force.

CBT 2 is taken by candidates shortlisted from CBT 1. For the Graduate track CEN 05/2024 (para 13.2.1) sets 120 questions, 120 marks and 90 minutes, split into General Awareness 50, Mathematics 35 and General Intelligence and Reasoning 35. Reports disagree on the Undergraduate (12th pass) CBT 2. Most give the same 120-question split, including reports on the CEN 07/2025 Undergraduate CBT 2 of September 2026 (50, 35 and 35 in 90 minutes), but one guide reports 100 questions and 100 marks. This chapter uses 120 for both tracks, marks the conflict in the table, and leaves the choice to the notice.

Both papers run for 90 minutes. Under CEN 05/2024 the duration was 120 minutes for eligible PwBD candidates accompanied by a scribe (paras 13.1 and 13.2.1). The eligibility conditions, the certificate needed and the rules for scribes are set out in the notice, so a candidate who depends on extra time should read that wording directly. The arrangement changes the clock, not the question count: 120 minutes for 100 questions is 72 seconds per question, and for 120 questions it is 60 seconds. Confirm the clause before practising.

Stages after the CBTs

Selection does not end with CBT 2. Depending on the post, candidates may face a typing test, a computer based aptitude test (CBAT), document verification and a medical examination. Under CEN 05/2024 (paras 13.0 to 13.6) the sequence was CBT 1, then CBT 2 for those shortlisted, then the Typing Skill Test or CBAT where the post required it, then document verification and medical examination. The notice's post-wise table decides which stages apply to which post. Under CEN 05/2024 a Station Master applicant faced one more stage (the CBAT) than a Goods Train Manager applicant. The detailed CEN 06/2026 Graduate notice lists only Goods Train Manager, Chief Commercial-cum-Ticket Supervisor, Junior Accounts Assistant-cum-Typist and Senior Clerk-cum-Typist, so no CBAT arises in that cycle. Its para 13.0(c) states that the typing skill test is dispensed with for the two typist posts; typing proficiency is assessed after joining. The Undergraduate cycle has its own notice, so check it for the stages that apply.

The difference between a qualifying stage and a merit stage matters. A qualifying stage is passed or failed, and its result adds nothing to the ranking score; under CEN 05/2024 the typing test worked this way (para 13.4). A candidate who fails a qualifying stage is not ranked, however well he or she did in the CBTs. The CBAT was different under CEN 05/2024: a candidate had to score a T-score of at least 42 in every test battery, and the Station Master merit list then weighted CBT 2 marks at 70 per cent and CBAT marks at 30 per cent (para 13.3). A typing or aptitude requirement can therefore end an application even when the CBT score is high, so check in the current notice whether a typing test or CBAT applies to the post you want.

This book gives no practice for the typing test, the CBAT, document verification or the medical examination, but their rules are worth knowing early. For CEN 05/2024 the Computer Based Typing Skill Test (CBTST) notice issued by RRB Chennai set a 10-minute evaluated test after one minute of warm-up typing, with at least 300 words in English or 250 words in Hindi, which works out to 30 and 25 words per minute. English is the default language, Hindi typists need Krutidev or Mangal, and certain PwBD candidates could claim exemption with a medical-board certificate. A new notice can change any of this.

How normalised marks decide CBT 2 shortlisting

A large CBT runs over several days and in several shifts, and the papers in different shifts are not identical. One paper can be harder than another, so raw marks from different shifts are not directly comparable. Normalisation adjusts the scores so that candidates from different shifts can be placed on a common scale before ranking. CEN 05/2024 states that CBT 2 shortlisting uses normalised CBT 1 marks (para 13.1). The notice does not print the normalisation formula in its scheme, so this chapter does not state one.

Normalisation changes a candidate's rank, not the answers on the paper. Two raw scores of 70 from different shifts can produce different normalised marks, and the rank follows the normalised figure. Ranking therefore compares candidates across shifts, not within one shift alone. Two practical points follow. Practice sets should be judged by raw score and by correct answers within each section, because those are the figures a candidate controls. A raw score also settles nothing on its own, since the shortlist depends on how every other candidate in every shift performed.

The shortlisting logic is a ranking exercise. Candidates are arranged in descending order of normalised CBT 1 marks, and the shortlist is the top group whose size the notice fixes. CEN 05/2024 shortlisted 15 times the community-wise vacancies for CBT 2 (para 13.2), and the detailed CEN 06/2026 notice (para 13.2) keeps the same 15 times, with the Railways reserving the right to raise or lower the limit. The notice can also set a minimum mark for eligibility: CEN 05/2024 required at least 40 per cent (UR and EWS), 30 per cent (OBC-NCL and SC) or 25 per cent (ST) in each CBT, relaxable by 2 marks for PwBD candidates if PwBD candidates are short. Clearing that floor makes a candidate eligible but does not by itself place him or her on the shortlist, which is a relative cut, not an absolute one.

Reading the notice: a checklist