NABARD Grade A
Recruits Assistant Managers in Grade A into NABARD for Rural Development Banking Service (RDBS), Rajbhasha, Legal and Protocol & Security streams.
Eligibility
RDBS (General): bachelor's degree with 60% (55% SC/ST/PwBD) or postgraduate degree with 55%, or a CA/CS/ICWA; specialist RDBS disciplines (agriculture, finance, IT etc.) require degrees in that subject. Age 21-30 years with category relaxations. Indian citizens only.
Age limit: 21-30 years (category relaxations apply)
Exam pattern
Phase I is a 200-mark objective test of 120 minutes covering Reasoning, English, Computer Knowledge, Quantitative Aptitude, Decision Making, General Awareness, Economic & Social Issues (with rural focus) and Agriculture & Rural Development; some sections are qualifying. Phase II has Paper I (General English, descriptive, 100 marks) and Paper II (ESI and ARD for generalists, or the specialist subject, 100 marks, objective plus descriptive). An interview of 50 marks follows. A quarter-mark penalty applies to wrong objective answers.
Syllabus at a glance
ESI covers Indian economy, poverty, employment, inclusive growth and social sector issues. Agriculture & Rural Development (ARD) covers agronomy, soil and water conservation, animal husbandry, fisheries, agricultural extension, rural credit, cooperatives and government schemes. Phase I also tests general aptitude and NABARD/rural current affairs.
Upcoming dates
| Event | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|
| NABARD Grade A 2026 notification | Nov – Dec 2026 (expected; not released as of Oct 2026) | expected |
| Online application window | About 3 weeks after notification (tba) | tba |
| Phase I exam | Dec 2026 – Jan 2027 (expected) | expected |
| Phase II exam | Jan – Feb 2027 (expected) | expected |
| Interviews and final result | Mar – May 2027 (expected) | expected |
Expected dates follow the usual calendar; confirm on the official notification before planning.
Free prep material
Standard books
- Indian Economy – Ramesh Singh
- Indian Economy – Mishra & Puri
- Fundamentals of Agronomy – Gopal Chandra De
- Agricultural Economics – S. Subba Reddy, P. Raghu Ram et al.
- Rural Development: Principles, Policies and Management – Katar Singh
- Objective General English – S.P. Bakshi
How toppers play it
- ESI and ARD carry the bulk of Phase I and all of Phase II Paper II for generalists, so start ARD early; non-agriculture graduates need 4-5 months for it.
- Read NABARD's own annual report and key schemes (RIDF, PACS computerisation, FPOs, KCC); questions frequently draw on them.
- Phase I has sectional minimums; do not neglect the qualifying aptitude sections even though they are easier.
- For Phase II, write timed descriptive answers with data points, diagrams and scheme names, which examiners reward.