NABARD Grade A Syllabus 2026 - Check Prelims & Mains Exam Pattern
The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) fills Assistant Manager in Grade 'A' posts through a three-stage process: Phase 1 (Prelims), Phase 2 (Mains) and an Interview. Knowing the NABARD Grade A syllabus together with the exam pattern tells you what to study, how many marks each section carries and which sections only qualify you. This article covers the selection process, stage-wise pattern, subject-wise syllabus, preparation tips and FAQs.
NABARD Grade A Syllabus and Exam Pattern 2026 Overview
| Particulars | Details |
|---|---|
| Conducting Body | National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) |
| Post Name | Assistant Manager in Grade 'A' (Rural Development Banking Service) |
| Selection Stages | Phase 1 (Prelims), Phase 2 (Mains), Interview |
| Phase 1 Pattern | Online objective test, 200 questions, 200 marks, 120 minutes |
| Phase 2 Pattern | Two papers: Paper I (General English, descriptive) and Paper II (objective and descriptive) |
| Phase 1 Language | English and Hindi |
| Negative Marking | Phase 1: one-fourth of the marks for each wrong answer. Phase 2: Not confirmed, check the official notification |
| Interview | 50 marks (previous cycle pattern) |
| Official Website | www.nabard.org |
NABARD Grade A Selection Process 2026
Candidates have to clear all three stages, one after the other.
- Phase 1 (Prelims): An online objective test of 200 marks. Five sections (Reasoning, English, Computer Knowledge, Quantitative Aptitude and Decision Making) are qualifying in nature. Three sections (General Awareness, Economic and Social Issues, and Agriculture and Rural Development) are merit sections. Shortlisting for Phase 2 is done on the marks in the merit sections only.
- Phase 2 (Mains): Two papers. Paper I is a descriptive General English test. Paper II is Economic and Social Issues plus Agriculture and Rural Development for generalist candidates, or a stream-specific paper for specialist candidates.
- Interview: Candidates who clear Phase 2 are called for an interview carrying 50 marks, which can be taken in Hindi or English.
In the previous cycle's pattern, the final merit list was prepared on the marks scored in Phase 2 and the Interview. Confirm this once the 2026 notification is out.
NABARD Grade A Exam Pattern 2026
NABARD Grade A Phase 1 Exam Pattern
| Test | Questions | Marks | Nature |
|---|---|---|---|
| Test of Reasoning | 20 | 20 | Qualifying |
| English Language | 30 | 30 | Qualifying |
| Computer Knowledge | 20 | 20 | Qualifying |
| Quantitative Aptitude | 20 | 20 | Qualifying |
| Decision Making | 10 | 10 | Qualifying |
| General Awareness | 20 | 20 | Merit |
| Economic and Social Issues (with focus on Rural India) | 40 | 40 | Merit |
| Agriculture and Rural Development (with emphasis on Rural India) | 40 | 40 | Merit |
| Total | 200 | 200 | 120 minutes |
NABARD Grade A Phase 2 Exam Pattern
Generalist posts
| Paper | Subject | Type | Questions | Marks | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper I | General English | Online descriptive | 3 | 100 | 90 minutes |
| Paper II | Economic and Social Issues, and Agriculture and Rural Development | Objective | 30 | 50 | 30 minutes |
| Paper II | Economic and Social Issues, and Agriculture and Rural Development | Descriptive (attempt 4 of 6: two of 15 marks and two of 10 marks) | 6 | 50 | 90 minutes |
Specialist posts
| Paper | Subject | Type | Questions | Marks | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper I | General English | Online descriptive | 3 | 100 | 90 minutes |
| Paper II | Stream-specific paper | Objective | 30 | 50 | 30 minutes |
| Paper II | Stream-specific paper | Descriptive (attempt 4 of 6: two of 15 marks and two of 10 marks) | 6 | 50 | 90 minutes |
NABARD Grade A Interview
The interview carries 50 marks and has no fixed syllabus. Questions usually come from NABARD's role and schemes, economy, finance and banking with a rural focus, current affairs linked to agriculture and rural development, your DAF or biodata, work experience if any, and situational or opinion-based questions.
NABARD Grade A Syllabus 2026
The syllabus below covers Phase 1, Phase 2 and the stream-specific paper. The Economic and Social Issues and the Agriculture and Rural Development syllabus is common to Phase 1 and Phase 2; only the question type and difficulty change.
1. Reasoning Ability
- Puzzles and Seating Arrangement
- Syllogism
- Data Sufficiency
- Statement-based Questions (Verbal Reasoning)
- Inequality
- Input-Output (Machine Input and Output)
- Blood Relations
- Coding-Decoding
- Alphanumeric Series
- Order and Ranking
- Direction and Distance
- Miscellaneous Questions
2. Quantitative Aptitude
(A) Arithmetic
- Percentage
- Ratio and Proportion
- Profit, Loss and Discount
- Simple and Compound Interest
- Average and Age
- Mixture and Alligation
- Time and Work
- Time, Speed and Distance
(B) Other Topics
- Data Interpretation
- Number Series
- Quadratic Equations
- Simplification and Approximation
- Quantity Comparison and Data Sufficiency
- Mathematical Inequalities
- Mensuration
3. English Language (Phase 1)
(A) Question Types
- Reading Comprehension
- Cloze Test
- Gap Fillers and Double Fillers (Fill in the Blanks)
- Error Spotting
- Sentence Rearrangement and Para Jumbles
- Idioms and Phrases
- Word Swapping
- Misspelled Words and Inappropriate Word Usage
- Sentence Improvement
- One Word Substitution
(B) Grammar Topics Tested Across These Questions
- Subject-Verb Agreement
- Parts of Speech
- Tenses
- Articles
- Conditional Sentences
- Modals
- Active and Passive Voice
4. Computer Knowledge
- Input-Output Devices
- Networking
- DBMS
- MS Office
- Internet
- History of Computers and Generations
- Shortcuts
- Computer Security
- Hardware and Memory
5. Decision Making
- Basics and Types of Decision Making
- Types of Problems in Decision Making
- Factors Affecting Decision Making
- Interpreting Information and Recognising Assumptions
- Situation-based Questions and Case Studies
6. General Awareness
Questions come from Current Affairs, Banking, Economy and Insurance. Current Affairs can include recent appointments, awards and honours, sports, new schemes, national and international news, and the latest developments in science and technology.
7. Economic and Social Issues (ESI)
| Topic Area | Topics |
|---|---|
| Nature of Indian Economy | Structural and institutional features, economic underdevelopment, opening up of the Indian economy, globalisation, economic reforms in India, privatisation |
| Inflation | Trends in inflation and their impact on the national economy and individual income |
| Poverty Alleviation and Employment Generation | Rural and urban poverty, measurement of poverty, government poverty alleviation programmes |
| Population Trends | Population growth and economic development, population policy in India |
| Agriculture | Characteristics and status, technical and institutional changes, agricultural performance, food security issues, institutional and non-institutional agencies in rural credit |
| Industry | Industrial and labour policy, industrial performance, regional imbalance in industrial development, public sector enterprises |
| Rural Banking and Financial Institutions | Reforms in the banking and financial sector |
| Globalisation of the Economy | Role of international funding institutions, IMF and World Bank, WTO, regional economic cooperation |
| Social Structure in India | Multiculturalism, demographic trends, urbanisation and migration, gender issues, joint family system, social infrastructure, education, health and environment |
| Education | Status and system of education, socio-economic problems of illiteracy, educational relevance and wastage, educational policy for India |
| Social Justice | Problems of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, socio-economic programmes for SCs, STs and other backward classes |
| Positive Discrimination in Favour of the Underprivileged | Social movements, Indian political system, human development |
8. Agriculture and Rural Development (ARD)
| Topic Area | Topics |
|---|---|
| Agriculture | Definition, meaning and branches; agronomy; classification of field crops; factors affecting crop production; agro-climatic zones; cropping systems; dryland problems; seed production, processing and seed village; meteorology (weather parameters, crop-weather advisory); precision farming; System of Crop Intensification; organic farming |
| Soil and Water Conservation | Major soil types, soil fertility, fertilizers, soil erosion, soil conservation, watershed management |
| Water Resource and Irrigation | Types and sources of irrigation, crop-water requirement, command area development, water conservation techniques, micro-irrigation, irrigation pumps, major, medium and minor irrigation |
| Farm and Agri Engineering | Farm machinery and power sources (human, animal, mechanical, electrical, wind, solar, biomass, biofuels), water harvesting structures, farm ponds, agro-processing, controlled and modified storage, godowns, bins and grain silos |
| Plantation and Horticulture | Definition and branches, agronomic practices and production technology, post-harvest management, value and supply chain management |
| Animal Husbandry | Role of farm animals in the Indian economy, animal husbandry methods in India, common livestock terms, utility classification of cattle breeds, feeds and fodders, poultry industry in India, poultry production terms, mixed farming, complementary nature of livestock, poultry and farming |
| Fisheries | Fisheries resources, management and exploitation (freshwater, brackish water, marine), inland and marine aquaculture, biotechnology, post-harvest technology, importance of fisheries in India, common terms |
| Forestry | Basic concepts of forest and forestry, silviculture, forest mensuration, management and economics, social forestry, agroforestry, joint forest management, forest policy and legislation, India State of Forest Report, recent developments under MoEFCC |
| Agriculture Extension | Importance and role of extension, methods of evaluating extension programmes, role of Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) |
| Ecology and Climate Change | Ecology and natural resource management, causes of climate change, greenhouse gases and major emitters, adaptation versus mitigation, impact on agriculture and rural livelihoods, carbon credit, IPCC, UNFCCC, CoP meetings, funding mechanisms, NAPCC, SAPCC, INDC |
| Present Scenario of Indian Agriculture and Allied Activities | Recent trends, major challenges and measures, viability of agriculture, factors of production, agricultural finance and marketing, impact of globalisation, food security, concept and types of farm management |
| Rural Development | Concept of rural area, structure of the rural economy, role of the rural sector, causes of rural backwardness, occupational structure (farmers, agricultural labourers, artisans, handicrafts, traders, forest dwellers and tribes), trends in rural workforce, problems of rural labour, handloom issues, Panchayati Raj Institutions, MGNREGA, NRLM, rural drinking water, Swachh Bharat, rural housing, PURA and other rural development programmes |
9. Descriptive English (Phase 2, Paper I)
- Essay Writing: economic and financial issues, social and contemporary developments, governance and public policy, technology and society, environmental concerns, ethical or abstract themes, and agriculture-related developments
- Precis Writing: a long passage to be condensed to roughly 120 to 180 words, without adding personal opinions
- Letter Writing: choose one of three topics and write a structured letter of roughly 200 to 220 words
10. Stream-Specific Paper (Specialist Posts)
The Information Technology topics are listed below. Topic-wise syllabus for the other specialist streams is not covered here, so refer to the official notification.
- Introduction to Software
- Data Structure through C and PASCAL
- Elements of Systems Analysis and Design
- Numerical and Statistical Computing
- Data Communication and Networks
- Object-Oriented Computer Architecture
- Object-Oriented Systems
- Computer Fundamentals
- File Structure and Programming in COBOL
- Database Management Systems
- Software Engineering
- Accounting and Finance on Computers
- Operating Systems
- Intelligent Systems
- Relational Database Management Systems
In Phase 1, Economic and Social Issues and Agriculture and Rural Development carry 40 questions each, the highest of any section in the paper.
How to Prepare for NABARD Grade A Exam 2026
- Start with the pattern: Note which five Phase 1 sections are qualifying and which three decide your shortlisting, then split your time accordingly.
- Give ESI and ARD the most time: They carry 40 questions each in Phase 1 and form Paper II of Phase 2 for generalist candidates.
- Prepare one syllabus for two formats: Study each ESI and ARD topic for MCQs first, then practise writing short descriptive answers on the same topic for Phase 2.
- Practise descriptive English early: Write essays, precis and letters within the word limits, since Paper I is a 100-mark descriptive test.
- Follow current affairs with a rural lens: Track agriculture, rural schemes, banking and economy updates, which also help in General Awareness and the interview.
- Test yourself regularly: Attempt mock tests and previous year papers to check timing and to find weak topics for revision, including Decision Making and Reasoning sets.
NABARD Grade A Syllabus 2026 - Important Links
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the NABARD Grade A syllabus 2026?
Phase 1 covers Reasoning, English Language, Computer Knowledge, Quantitative Aptitude, Decision Making, General Awareness, Economic and Social Issues, and Agriculture and Rural Development. Phase 2 covers Descriptive English plus Economic and Social Issues and Agriculture and Rural Development for generalists, or a stream-specific paper for specialists. The interview has no fixed syllabus.
What is the exam pattern for NABARD Grade A?
Phase 1 is an online objective test of 200 questions and 200 marks in 120 minutes. Phase 2 has two papers: a 100-mark descriptive English paper and a 100-mark Paper II made up of an objective part and a descriptive part. The final stage is a 50-mark interview.
How many questions are asked in the NABARD Grade A Phase 1 exam?
There are 200 questions of one mark each: Reasoning 20, English 30, Computer Knowledge 20, Quantitative Aptitude 20, Decision Making 10, General Awareness 20, Economic and Social Issues 40, and Agriculture and Rural Development 40.
Is there negative marking in the NABARD Grade A exam?
Yes, in Phase 1 one-fourth of the marks assigned to a question is deducted for every wrong answer. Negative marking in Phase 2 is not confirmed here, so check the official notification.
Which Phase 1 sections are qualifying and which are merit sections?
Reasoning, English Language, Computer Knowledge, Quantitative Aptitude and Decision Making are qualifying. General Awareness, Economic and Social Issues, and Agriculture and Rural Development are merit sections, and shortlisting for Phase 2 is based on marks in these three.