NABARD Grade A Syllabus and Exam Pattern

Three stages and which marks count

1. Phase 1 (preliminary): a screening test. Five sections only need to be cleared; the merit for moving ahead is drawn from general awareness, ESI and ARD.
2. Phase 2 (main): General English plus a subject paper. These 200 marks feed the final list.
3. Interview: 50 marks, held in English or Hindi.

Prelims marks are used only for shortlisting. The final ranking adds your mains score to the interview, so a strong descriptive performance in the mains matters more than a high prelims total. Some recent notices also mentioned a psychometric test for particular posts; check whether it applies to your post in the latest advertisement.

NABARD prelims exam pattern

For every incorrect response, 0.25 of that question's mark is cut. Qualifying sections have their own minimums, so English and quant still need steady practice even if they never reach the merit total.

NABARD mains exam pattern for generalists

Paper I usually asks for an essay, a precis or comprehension, and a business or report style letter. In Paper II, descriptive answers can be typed in English or Hindi, which helps candidates who think faster in Hindi. For specialist streams, Paper II is a subject paper of the same build, with objective and descriptive halves.

Economic and Social Issues: what to study

• Indian economy: nature and structural features, underdevelopment, opening up of the economy, globalisation, economic reforms, privatisation.
• Inflation and growth: trends in prices, the Union Budget, fiscal and monetary policy as they touch rural India.
• Poverty and jobs: poverty alleviation and employment generation schemes, rural employment programmes.
• Population and society: demographic trends, urbanisation and migration, gender issues, multiculturalism, social justice and positive discrimination for weaker sections.
• Social sectors: health and education, social movements, the role of banking and finance in inclusion.
• Rural finance: industry and agriculture linkages, rural banking, microfinance and self help groups, cooperatives.

Merge your current affairs with this list. A budget announcement on irrigation or a new report on rural incomes is ESI material, not just general awareness.

ARD topics in the NABARD grade A syllabus

The agriculture paper reads like a compact undergraduate course. The main blocks are:

• Agronomy and soils: field crops and cropping systems, soil types, soil and water conservation, integrated nutrient and pest management.
• Water and engineering: water resources and irrigation methods, farm machinery, post harvest technology.
• Horticulture and plantations: fruit, vegetable and plantation crops, their importance to rural income.
• Animal husbandry and fisheries: livestock management, dairying, poultry, inland and marine fisheries.
• Forestry and ecology: agroforestry, climate change and its effect on farming.
• Extension and marketing: extension methods, agricultural marketing, warehousing, crop insurance, the present state of Indian agriculture.
• Rural development: its meaning and importance, rural population and occupations, Panchayati Raj institutions, major rural development programmes.

Qualifying sections in brief

• Reasoning: puzzles, seating arrangement, syllogism, inequality, blood relations, coding.
• Quantitative aptitude: simplification, number series, data interpretation, quadratic equations, arithmetic word problems.
• English: reading comprehension, error spotting, fillers, para jumbles.
• Computer knowledge: hardware and software basics, networks, internet, MS Office style tools, security.
• Decision making: short workplace or ethics scenarios where you choose the most sensible action.

Bank clerk or PO practice is enough for these, though the level is a little lower than a PO mains. Keep 20 to 30 minutes a day for them and give the rest of your time to the merit sections.

A five month study plan for NABARD

1. Month 1: ARD and ESI concepts from the start, along with daily practice in one qualifying section.
2. Month 2: government schemes, the budget speech and Economic Survey chapters on agriculture and social sectors, turned into short notes.
3. Month 3: start typing practice for the mains. Write one 300 word answer on an ESI or ARD theme every day and one English essay twice a week.
4. Month 4: full prelims mocks every third day, with error notes on where the minus quarter mark cost you.
5. Month 5: descriptive answer revision, news from the previous half year, and a mock interview built around your degree and home district.

Because mains answers are typed, poor typing speed is a hidden weakness. Aim for 25 to 30 clean words a minute before the prelims result arrives.

Books and official material

For ARD, the class 11 and 12 NCERT books on agriculture related topics in geography and biology give a base, followed by any standard undergraduate agronomy text. For ESI, the NCERT economics books for classes 11 and 12, the yearly Economic Survey plus budget documents are more useful than general guide books. NABARD's own annual reports and research publications are excellent for rural finance questions.

Planning to sit the regulator exams too? Then the RBI grade B syllabus shares the ESI paper style, and the SEBI grade A syllabus overlaps on economics. Check who can apply on our NABARD grade A eligibility page and see the wider family in our bank exams section.