Key dates
The Railway Recruitment Board released the detailed notification for CEN 02/2026 on June 29-30, 2026. Online applications opened June 30 and close July 29, 2026, at 11:59 pm, through rrbapply.gov.in or any regional RRB website. Fee payment must be completed by July 31, 2026.

Vacancy breakdown
The recruitment covers 6,557 posts across two cadres — 323 for Technician Grade 1 (Signal) and 6,234 for Technician Grade 3, spread across 25 post categories and 21 RRB zones. This year's total is notably lower than the previous cycle, which had offered 14,298 vacancies. Within Grade 3, Fitter (Production Units & Workshops) carries the largest single share at 1,109 posts, followed by Welder (PU & WS) at 584 and Carriage & Wagon at 501.

Eligibility
For Technician Grade 1 Signal, candidates need a B.Sc. in Physics, Electronics, Computer Science, Information Technology or Instrumentation, a three-year engineering diploma, or a full engineering degree in these streams. For most Technician Grade 3 posts, candidates need Matriculation/SSLC plus an ITI certificate from NCVT/SCVT, or Matriculation/SSLC plus a Course Completed Act Apprenticeship (CCAA) in the relevant trade such as Fitter, Electrician or Welder.

Age limit
Candidates need to be between 18 and 33 years for Technician Grade 1 (Signal), and 18 to 30 years for Technician Grade 3, with standard age relaxation for reserved categories as per Railway norms. All eligibility conditions, including qualification and category status, must be met by the application closing date — candidates still awaiting final exam results are not eligible to apply.

Reserved and horizontal categories
The recruitment includes 330 posts reserved for candidates with benchmark disabilities (39 visually impaired, 103 hearing impaired, 143 locomotor disability, 45 multiple disabilities) and 661 posts for Ex-Servicemen, both applied horizontally across the total vacancy count.

Application fee
Fees differ by category, with General category candidates paying more than reserved-category candidates. Fee payment is accepted only online — via internet banking, debit/credit card or UPI — and is partially refunded for candidates who go on to appear for the CBT. Applications submitted without the correct fee are summarily rejected.

Selection process
The recruitment is a single-stage CBT process — a Computer-Based Test, followed by Document Verification (shortlisted RRB-wise at a 1:1 ratio to vacancies based on CBT merit) and a Medical Examination. There is no separate physical fitness or skill test stage for most Technician posts, making this a comparatively streamlined selection process compared to some other RRB recruitment drives.

Pay scale
Technician Grade 1 (Signal) falls under Pay Level 5, with basic pay starting at ₹29,200, while Technician Grade 3 falls under Pay Level 2, with basic pay starting at ₹19,900 — both under the 7th CPC pay structure.

What candidates should do now
With the deadline just days away, candidates who haven't yet applied should prioritise getting their educational certificates and category documents in order immediately, since incomplete qualification verification is one of the most common reasons applications get rejected in high-volume drives like this one.