NABARD is India’s apex development bank. It was created in 1982 through a parliamentary Act to support just and sustainable rural and agricultural development.

Since then, NABARD has changed lives in Indian villages through agri-finance, infrastructure development, banking technology, promotion of microfinance, and rural entrepreneurship through SHGs & JLGs, and more. As an Assistant Manager at NABARD, your primary task is to help improve the lives of the agrarian communities of India.

By ensuring that the financial aid and scheme from NABARD reach the right people, a NABARD Grade A Officer can dramatically improve their quality of life. Helping farming communities for stable cooperatives, leveraging the benefits the government has designed for them, or just imparting the right technical knowledge, working at NABARD is a step towards nation-building.

Work-Life Balance

Assistant Managers typically have administrative work with a 9 to 5 schedule. However, it is hardly lifeless and dull work; it is dynamic and very fulfilling as one gets to add value to the largest employment sector of this nation. In this organization’s managerial hierarchy, the Assistant Manager holds the lowest rank. However, this does not diminish the status or importance of the work done by them. On a day-to-day basis, as a NABARD Grade A Officer, you get to execute various state and central government programmes related to Agriculture and Rural Development. Furthermore, you get to work with liaisons from banking institutes to make the lives of our farmers easier.

The organisation doesn’t discriminate between specialists and generalists. However, specialists may be assigned departments that may be related to their specific educational qualifications and some ‘additional-special’ responsibilities. NABARD officers are expected to be voracious readers who can keep up with every minute change in the agricultural sector of the country and innovations around the world. Although a large chunk of the work is of a clerical nature, including responding to emails and drafting official documents, limited opportunities to acquire field experience are a highlight of the job.

Postings and Transfers

Officers serve their 2 years probation period in a city away from their home state. NABARD Grade A job locations are urban, with assistant managers posted across offices in tier-1 and tier-2 cities, generally confined to state capitals. Thus, this job is an excellent opportunity for anyone who would like to work for the rural population of the country, while still enjoying the perks of city life.

In most cases, an officer must spend 5-6 years at one posting. After four years, they are eligible for transfer and must choose between zones (South, East, West, North, North East, Andaman, and Jammu and Kashmir and then select a state within that zone. The transfer is determined according to the availability of vacancies. One simply cannot devote his/her entire career to one centre (unless you work in the law department).

The officer’s tenure may vary depending on his or her rank, experience, and the organization’s special requirements. Transfer decisions are heavily influenced by performance. Officers may also be transferred to acquire exposure to different functions, industries, or areas, allowing them to gain diverse experiences and improve their skills and knowledge. On achieving Grade D, i.e., Deputy General Manager, there is no fixed tenure, and you can be transferred to any other office or city.

NABARD Grade A eligibility criteria is divided into two major categories:

  • Age
  • Educational Qualification
NABARD Grade A: Age Limit

It is essential to be aware of the age limit before applying for the NABARD Grade A exam. The age limit is subcategorized into two limits; upper and lower. The details of the same are given below:-

Minimum Age Limit Maximum Age Limit
21 Years 30 Years
NABARD Grade A: Age Limit Relaxation

There is some specific relaxation w.r.t the upper age limit for certain categories. However, there is no age relaxation for the lower limit.

NABARD Grade A Eligibility – Age Limit Relaxation
SNo. Category Age Relaxation
1 OBC 3 years
2 SC/ST 5 years
3 Ex-servicemen (including Emergency Commissioned Officers/Short Service Commissioned Officers) provided that the applicants have rendered at least five years of continuous Military Service and have been released on completion of assignment (including those whose assignment is due to be completed within one year) otherwise than by way of dismissal or discharge on account of misconduct or inefficiency or on account of physical disability or have been released on account of physical disability attributable to Military Service or on invalidation 5 years
4 Emergency Commissioned Officers/Short Service Commissioned Officers who have completed their initial period of assignment of five years of Military Service but whose assignment has been extended beyond five years and in whose case, on selection, the Ministry of Defence issues certificates that they would be released within 03 months from the date of receipt of an offer of appointment 5 years
5 Children/family members of victims died in the1984 riots 5 years
6 Persons with Disabilities (PWBD) 10 years for General
13 years for OBC
15 years for SC/ST

 

Important Note: No cumulative age relaxation will be available to any applicant, save as provided above.

NABARD Grade A: Educational Qualifications

In addition to adhering to the age limit, meeting the NABARD Grade A educational qualification is of equal significance. In the following table, we have explained the educational qualification for general and specialized disciplines.

NABARD Grade A Eligibility: General Posts
SNo. Post Educational Qualifications
1 General Bachelor’s Degree in any subject from any recognized University/Institution with a minimum of 60% marks (SC/ST/PWBD applicants – 55%) in aggregate 

OR 

Post Graduate degree, MBA/PGDM with a minimum of 55% marks (SC/ST/PWBD applicants – 50%) in aggregate

 

OR 

CA/ CS/ICWA OR Ph.D from Institutions recognized by GOI/UGC.

 

Important Note: Some universities or institutions use Aggregate Grade Points (e.g., CGPA/OGPA/CPI) instead of awarding specific class or percentage marks. In this case, if the university/institute has established criteria for converting Aggregate Grade Points into class and/or percentage marks, those criteria will be accepted and followed.

However, if the university/institute does not provide specific criteria for the conversion of Aggregate Grade Points into class and/or percentage marks, the following procedure will be implemented:

Equivalent CGPA/ OGPA/ CPI or similar terminologies allotted on a 10-point scale Class/ 

Division

 Aggregate % of Marks
6.75 First 60%
6.25 Second 55%
5.75 Second 50%
5.25 Second 45%

The NABARD Grade A examination consists of three phases:

  1. Phase I (Prelims)
  2. Phase II (Mains)
  3. Interview

Candidates must qualify for all three phases with a required cut-off. The exam pattern for each stage of the NABARD Grade A exam is given below:

NABARD Grade A Phase l Exam Pattern

The first phase of the NABARD Grade A exam is the Phase l (prelims). It contains 200 multiple-type questions and two hours are allotted to the candidates to attempt the exam. It is of a qualifying nature and marks obtained in this exam will not be counted in the final selection.

Here are the details of the NABARD Grade A prelims exam pattern:

NABARD Grade A Prelims Exam Pattern
S No. Name of the Test No. of Qs. Max Marks Version Time
1 Test of Reasoning 20 20 Bilingual – Hindi and English except for the test of English language Composite time of 120 Minutes for all the tests together
2 English Language 30 30
3 Computer Knowledge 20 20
4 Quantitative Aptitude 20 20
5 Decision Making 10 10
6 General Awareness 20 20
7 Economic and Social Issues (with focus on Rural India) 40 40
8 Agriculture & Rural Development with Emphasis on Rural India 40 40
Total 200 200

These 8 subjects are categorised into merit and non-merit (qualifying) sections:

  • Reasoning, English Language, Computer Knowledge, Quantitative Aptitude, and Decision-Making are the qualifying sections.
  • General Awareness, Economics and Social Issues (with a focus on Rural India), and Agriculture & Rural Development with Emphasis on Rural India are your merit sections.
  • Shortlisting of the candidates for the mains exam is based on marks scored in the merit section only; however, you still need to clear the cut-off of all the individual subjects from qualifying and merit sections.

Important Note: There is no sectional timing in Phase l.

NABARD Grade A Phase ll Exam Pattern

The second phase of the NABARD Grade A exam is the mains exam, which has both descriptive and objective online tests.

NABARD Grade A Mains Exam Pattern (Generalist Posts)
Paper Grade A Type of Paper No. of Question Marks Duration Remarks
Paper I General English Online Descriptive 3 100 90 Minutes Descriptive Answers are to be typed using a keyboard
Paper II Economic and Social Issues

OR

Stream Specific Paper

 Objective 30 50 30 Minutes
Descriptive Type 6 questions will be asked, of which candidates will be required to attempt 4 questions [2 of 15 marks each (with difficulty level) and 2 of 10 marks each] 50 90 Minutes Descriptive Answers are to be typed using a keyboard either in English or Hindi (Remington and Inscript keyboards)

The syllabus of the NABARD Grade A exam is divided into two parts; Phase I and Phase II. Here are the details:-

NABARD Grade A Phase l Exam Syllabus

The phase l NABARD Grade A exam consists of the following subjects:

  • Reasoning
  • Quantitative Aptitude
  • English Language
  • Computer Knowledge
  • Decision Making 
  • General Awareness
  • Economic and Social Issues
  • Agriculture and Rural Development
Reasoning

Based on past year exam analysis of NABARD Grade A, following topics are most frequently asked from reasoning section:

Reasoning Topics
Alphanumeric series Coding and Decoding Syllogism
Direction Sense Inequality Ranking and Order
Questions based on Statements Questions based on Data Sufficiency Puzzles and Sitting  Arrangement
Blood Relation Input-Output

Quantitative Aptitude

Based on past year exam analysis of NABARD Grade A, following topics are most frequently asked from Quantitative Aptitude section:

Quantitative Aptitude Topics
Ratio and Proportion Percentage Profit and Loss
Simple and Compound Interest Questions on Average and Age Questions on Series and Quadratic equation
Mathematical Inequalities Time and Work Pipes and Cistern
Time and Distance Mixture and Alligation Number series
Data interpretation Simplification/Approximation Quantity comparisons
English

Based on past year exam analysis of NABARD Grade A, following topics are most frequently asked from English section:

English Topics
Questions on Reading Comprehension Sentence Rearrangement Cloze Test
Parajumbles Double fillers Error Detection and Sentence

Improvement
Vocabulary (Synonyms, Antonyms,

One-word Substitution, Phrasal verbs)
General Awareness (GA)

Based on past year exam analysis of NABARD Grade A, following topics are most frequently asked from general awareness section:

General Awareness (GA) Topics
Current affairs of the preceding 6 months from the date of examination. National News: MoUs, summits and major events related to India. International: Summits, Conferences held abroad. 
Defence: Military exercises, drills and major updates related to the defence sector of India. Days in News: Major events or days, along with its date, and theme. Persons in News: Obituaries, appointments, retirements.
Environment  Books and Authors  Awards and Honours
Science, Technology and Space Banking, Economy and Schemes Sports: Major tournaments and its winners. 
Static GA: Chief Ministers and Cabinet Ministers, National Parks and Sanctuaries, Organisations’ Headquarters, Banks’ Headquarters and Taglines, Power Plants in India, Indian Dance Forms, Countries’ Capitals and their Currencies.
Decision Making

Based on past year exam analysis of NABARD Grade A, following topics are most frequently asked from decision making section:

Decision Making Topics
Basics of Decision Making Types of Decision Making Decision Making Models
Decision Making Approaches Factors affecting Decision Making Types of Problems Decision Making
Computer Knowledge

Based on past year exam analysis of NABARD Grade A, following topics are most frequently asked from computer knowledge section:

Computer Knowledge Topics
Computer Awareness Hardware and Memory Software and Operating Systems
MS Office Database Management System Internet and Computer Security
History and Computer & Generations Shortcuts
Economic and Social Issues

Based on past year exam analysis of NABARD Grade A, following topics are most frequently asked from Economic and Social issues section:

Economic and Social Issues Topics
Nature of Indian Economy Inflation Population Trends
Agriculture Industry Social Structure in India
Education Social Justice Social Movements
Globalization of Economy Human Development Indian Political Systems
Current Economic & Social Issues Rural banking and financial institutions in India Poverty Alleviation and Employment Generation in India
Agriculture & Rural Development

Based on past year exam analysis of NABARD Grade A, following topics are most frequently asked from agriculture & rural development section:

Agriculture & Rural Development Topics
Agriculture Agronomy Classification of Field Crops
Cropping Systems Seed Productions Meteorology
Precision Farming Soil and Water Conservation Water Resource
Farm and Agri Engineering Plantation & Horticulture Animal Husbandry
Fisheries Agriculture Extensions Forestry
Ecology and Climate Change Rural Development Rural population in India
Panchayati Raj Institutions  Present Scenario of Indian Agriculture and Allied Activities
NABARD Grade A Phase ll Exam Syllabus

The NABARD Grade A phase ll (mains) exam includes 2 papers of General English, Economic and Social Issues/Agriculture and Rural Development. It consists of both online objective and online descriptive tests. The subject-wise syllabus of the NABARD Grade A Phase II paper is listed below:-

Paper 1: English Writing

  • Essay Writing
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Precis
  • Letter Writing

Paper 2: Economic and Social Issues (ESI) and Agriculture and Rural Development (ARD)

The syllabus of Paper II is the same as the syllabus of ESI & ARD in Phase 1.

Following are the year-wise cut-offs for Phase 1 and 2 of the Grade A examination.

NABARD Grade A 2022 Prelims

Overall Cut-Off (out of 100)
Discipline UR EWS OBC SC ST
Grade A (General) 41.75 29.25 37.75 33.25 30.75
Sectional Cut-Off
Category Quant Reasoning English Computer Knowledge Decision Making GA ESI ARD
UR/EWS 3.00 3.75 12.50 5.50 1.50 3.25 2.25 6.75
SC/ST/OBC/EWS 1.00 1.50 9.25 4.00 1.00 1.75 1.00 3.25

NABARD Grade A 2022 Mains

Overall Cut-Off
Discipline UR EWS OBC SC ST
Grade A (General) 130.50 121.50 124.50 120.00 119.25
Sectional Cut-Off
Category UR / EWS SC/ST/OBC/PWD
Paper 1 – Descriptive English 49.00 46.25
Paper 2 – ESI & ARD Objective – 19.00 Objective – 15.75
Descriptive –  23.75 Descriptive – 20.25

NABARD Grade A 2021 Prelims

Overall Cut-Off (out of 100)
Discipline UR EWS OBC SC ST
Grade A (General) 53.50 32.75 45.75 44.00 41.50
Sectional Cut-Off
Category Quant Reasoning English Computer Knowledge Decision Making GA ESI ARD
UR/EWS 5.00 3.75 11.25 3.25 1.25 3.00 4.50 6.50
SC/ST/OBC/EWS 2.50 1.25 7.50 2.00 1.00 1.75 1.00 3.00

NABARD Grade A 2021 Mains

Overall Cut-Off
Discipline UR EWS OBC SC ST
Grade A (General) 118.42 115.50 114.08 109.67 109.83
Sectional Cut-Off
Category UR / EWS SC/ST/OBC/PWD
Paper 1 – Descriptive English 50.25 48.50
Paper 2 – ESI & ARD Objective – 18.75 Objective – 16.00
Descriptive – 21.25 Descriptive – 19.00

NABARD Grade A 2020 Prelims

Overall Cut-Off 
Discipline UR EWS OBC SC ST
Grade A (General) 118.50 95.75 104.00 98.50 92.00
Sectional Cut-Off
Category Quant Reasoning English Computer Knowledge GA ESI ARD
UR/EWS 1.25 2.25 8.50 3.25 1.75 2.00 1.00
SC/ST/OBC/EWS 1.00 1.00 3.50 1.50 1.00 1.00 1.00

NABARD Grade A 2020 Mains

Overall Cut-Off
Discipline UR EWS OBC SC ST
Grade A (General) 126.00 117.00 117.00 116.75 115.25
Sectional Cut-Off
Category UR / EWS SC/ST/OBC/PWD
Paper 1 – Descriptive English 49.00 43.00
Paper 2 – ESI & ARD 46.00 41.75

 

NABARD Grade A 2019 Prelims

Overall Cut-Off 
Discipline UR EWS OBC SC ST
Grade A (General) 129.00 111.00 117.00 109.50 100.50
Sectional Cut-Off
Category Quant Reasoning English Computer Knowledge GA ESI ARD
UR/EWS 4.25 3.00 10.75 4.00 2.50 3.00 3.25
SC/ST/OBC/EWS 1.25 1.00 5.75 2.50 1.00 1.00 1.00

NABARD Grade A 2019 Mains

Overall Cut-Off
Discipline UR EWS OBC SC ST
Grade A (General) 127.50 118.50 120.75 115.50 111.75

Sectional Cut-Off

Category UR / EWS SC/ST/OBC/PWD
Paper 1 – Descriptive English 58.00 56.00
Paper 2 – ESI & ARD 45.50 40.75

You can refer to this preparation strategy for the NABARD Grade A phase 1 exam.

The following pointers will help you target each subject. 

  1. Economic and Social Issues (ESI)
  • Focus on ESI Current Affairs (Schemes, Reports, Current Developments, etc.)
  • Practice writing 3 answers, from both static and current, as this will help you revise as well.
  • Do not skip the ESI static syllabus.
  • The 7 chapters to target, in the beginning, would be the Measurement of Growth, Opening up of the Indian Economy and Balance of Payments, Inflation, Monetary Policy, Fiscal Policy, Employment generation and Poverty alleviation, and Rural Banking and Financial Institutions.
  1. Agriculture and Rural Development (ARD)
  • Study important static chapters comprehensively.
  • Practice writing any 3 answers based on the chapters you are covering; this will help you revise as well.
  • Stick to the syllabus.
  • The 7 chapters to target, in the beginning, would be Agronomy, Farming System, Soil and Water Conservation, Plantation and Horticultural Crop, Animal Husbandry and Poultry, Fisheries, and Forestry.
  1. General Awareness
  • Focus on the latest 3 months of current events and news.
  • Undertake the Question to Magazine approach. Here, you first take a quiz and then later refer to the source for a better understanding of the questions, format, and syllabus.
  • Based on our PYQ analysis, the weightage of current has generally been higher than static in GA.
  1. Quantitative Aptitude + Reasoning + English
  • Focus on Scoring/Important Topics and later target the rest of the topics.
  • Practice questions based on the covered important topics.
  • Invest time in English preparation. Do not assume that you will be able to clear the same without any practice.
  1. Computer Knowledge + Decision Making
  • Prioritise question practice.
  • Study the basics of the syllabus topics and attempt mock tests for the same.
  • Try to read through Cases of Decision Making as many as possible.

Lastly, incorporate consistent revision and mock tests during your study plan.

Now let’s look at a subject wise strategy for Phase 2.

Descriptive English Strategy

The topics for descriptive English are not explicitly defined in the official notification of NABARD Grade A. Based on an analysis of previous year’s questions, we can conclude that,

  1. Precis/Essay topics are a mix of environmental and economic issues related to the ESI and ARD syllabus. 
  2. For letter-writing, you write to official authorities addressing an issue.

Let’s quickly look at one example each of Essay and Letter Writing from the Question Paper of 2022 for a better understanding. 

Essay Writing: 2022 exam
  1. Write an Essay of about 400 words on any one of the following topics.
  1. Discuss the issues plaguing the Manufacturing Sector of India
  2. Education is the reason youth are not taking part in Agriculture. Analyse & Review. 
  3. What would be the better mode of transport for Agri – products in India – Road or Rail?
  4. Discuss the effects of climate change on biodiversity & wildlife. 
Letter Writing: 2022 exam
  1. Write a letter on any one of the topics given below in 150 words.
  2. Write a letter to your Resident Welfare Association (RWA) to review its disaster response procedure.
  3. Write a letter to customer care of an established furniture shop. You bought a piece of furniture which after unboxing was found to be of the wrong size. Write to customer care asking for a replacement of the furniture piece bought. 
  4. Write a letter to your manager to congratulate him for being promoted and tell him about the role he played in your career.

The strategy for Descriptive English is to hone your ability to write clear, concise, and informative essays, letters, and reports. It is about how well candidates are able to express their thoughts and ideas. Additionally, consistent practice on the keyboard will help you increase your typing speed as well.

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