After a gap of six years, the Railway Recruitment Board operating under the Ministry of Railways has brought out recruitment for 32,000 jobs in Level 1 of the 7th CPC Pay Matrix. The Centralized Employment Notification (CEN No. 08/2024) was officially released, providing detailed guidelines and timelines for the application process. While the announcement has brought a glimmer of hope to many, it has also left lakhs of students disappointed, who view it as insufficient given the prolonged wait.
One of the disappointed candidates penned out:
The recruitment of @RailMinIndia is coming after 6 years, and even after such a long wait, recruitment is being given for only 32,000 posts. This is very disappointing for lakhs of students. Such low recruitment was not expected from a big organization like Railways.
These vacancies, with a starting pay of ₹18,000, are available to applicants from the age of 18 to 36 years as are as on July 1, 2025, up to a relaxation of three years of age granted cumulatively as a special case, after COVID-19.
The alert points out that the vacancies are area-specific, with regional-specific distribution contained in Annexure B of the CEN. Apprenticeship training in Railway Establishments has been provided for special with respect to the CCAA scheme. Selection will be conducted via a Computer-Based Test (CBT).
Application Fee Details for Railway Recruitment Board Jobs
- General candidates need to pay ₹500, of which ₹400 will be refunded after the deduction of the CBT.
- Concessions have been allowed toward PwBD, female, transgender, SC/ST, minority, and economically backward candidates, who have to pay only ₹250 (refundable after CBT).
Despite the structured recruitment plan, the relatively low number of vacancies compared to the massive unemployment backlog has left aspirants disheartened. Taking to social media, students voiced their frustration. Waiting for six years for just 32,000 jobs from a company of the Railways’ size is discouraging,” an individual said, for example. Such people also doubted the government’s intention to tackle the problem of unemployment, and called the recruitment program “a drop in the ocean.
Topping the disappointment in the aspirants’ psyche is the dearth of increase in job prospects, particularly due to the past RRB recruitments providing job opportunities to vastly larger numbers. With students on digital platforms actively demanding certain redress, the government is under tremendous force to extend some better employment facilities.
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