The way candidates land a job in Indian Railways is changing fast. On Friday, Rail Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw carried out a review of the entire Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) hiring process and made it clear that the priority going forward will be greater speed, transparency and accuracy in selection. As part of that push, a key decision has been taken: all departmental examinations will now be held only through CBT, the computer-based test format.
Technology to Speed Up Selection
The minister examined the RRB process in detail during a high-level meeting with senior Railway officials. He argued that for an organisation of this scale, a technology-driven system is the most reliable way to make hiring trustworthy and error-free. With that goal in mind, the Railways is also set to widen the use of tablet-based testing, so that conducting exams becomes simpler and more dependable.
Thousands Hired in a Single Year
Vaishnaw said that in financial year 2025-26 the Railways handed jobs to a total of 43,781 candidates. According to him, it was precisely this organised, technology-led framework that allowed such a large volume of recruitment to be completed on schedule.
पिछले वित्त वर्ष में रेलवे ने 18 हजार 799 असिस्टेंट लोको पायलट, 14 हजार 298 टेक्नीशियन और 1 हजार 376 पैरामेडिकल स्टाफ की भर्ती की। सालाना भर्ती कैलेंडर के तहत निकली वैकेंसी की जानकारी को उम्मीदवारों ने काफी पसंद किया: अश्विनी वैष्णव
Recruitment Across Six Categories for 47,084 Posts
In the minister's words, 'भारतीय रेलवे ने वित्त वर्ष 2025-26 में भर्ती प्रक्रिया में तेजी लाते हुए, 6 प्रमुख कैटेगरी में 47 हजार 84 वैकेंसी के लिए भर्ती प्रक्रिया पूरी कर 43,781 उम्मीदवारों को नौकरी दी है। इनमें असिस्टेंट लोको पायलट के लिए 18 हजार 799, टेक्नीशियन के लिए 14 हजार 298, सब-इंस्पेक्टर के लिए 452, कॉन्स्टेबल के लिए 4 हजार 208, जूनियर इंजीनियर (JE)/DMS/CMA के लिए 7 हजार 951 और पैरामेडिकल कैटेगरी के लिए 1,376 वैकेंसी शामिल हैं।'
The category-wise break-up of posts was as follows:
- Assistant Loco Pilot (ALP): 18,799 posts
- Technician: 14,298 posts
- Sub-Inspector (SI): 452 posts
- Constable: 4,208 posts
- Junior Engineer (JE)/DMS/CMA: 7,951 posts
- Paramedical category: 1,376 posts
- Total: 47,084 posts
Exam Conducted in 15 Languages
An official press release noted that the RRB recruitment process is highly complex and runs on a massive scale, with exams held across numerous cities and centres throughout the country. Because the number of applicants is so large, this computer-based test is conducted in multiple shifts. Notably, to accommodate candidates from different linguistic backgrounds, the examination is offered in 15 languages.
