Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is considered as one of the prestigious government based bank of India. Every year it conducts an examination in order to recruit professionals who are well-versed with the banking sector. And once again, it is conducting the RBI Grade B examination which is a national level competitive test recruits officers of General Grade B level, DR, DEPR and DSIM in the common seniority Group. The Basic Pay will be around ₹35,150 per month including house rent, family, conveyance, telephone, dearness allowances, etc. In this blog, you will be familiar with the RBI Grade B examination, its process and exam pattern.
This Blog Includes:
RBI Grade B Exam: Highlights
Conducting Authority | Reserve Bank of India (RBI) |
Examination Name | RBI Grade B Exam – DR, DEPR and DSIM |
Exam Type | National Level |
Selection Process | Three stages: Preliminary, Mains and Interview |
Mode of Exam | Both Online and Offline |
Mode of Application | Online |
Application Fee | SC/ST/PWD: ₹100Gen/OBC: ₹850Staff Candidates: None |
Vacancies | Total= 199 Officers in Grade ‘B’(DR) – General (156); Grade ‘B’(DR) – DEPR (20) and Grade ‘B’(DR) – DSIM (23) |
RBI Grade B Important Dates 2021
An aspiring candidate who is interested in taking part in the RBI Grade B exam should know the below-mentioned dates for 2021 announced by the RBI.
Release of RBI Grade B Notification | 28th January 2021 |
Online Application Starts | 28th January 2021-15th February 2021 |
Online Payment of Application Fees / Intimation Charges till | 28th January 2021 |
Phase-I Call Letter | 26th February 2021 |
Phase-I Exam Date | 6th March 2021 |
Phase-I Result | March 2021 |
Phase-II Exam Date | 31st March & 1st April 2021 |
RBI Grade B Exam Eligibility Criteria
The interested candidates have to follow some basic criteria to apply for the RBI Grade B exam like:
Nationality
- Candidate should be a citizen of India or
- A resident of Bhutan or Nepal or
- Any Tibetan refugee who is permanently settled in India before January 1st, 1962 or
- A person who has an Indian origin has migrated either from Srilanka, Kenya, Pakistan, Burma, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia or Vietnam having a core intention of being a permanent resident of India.
Note: It is important to know the fact that those candidates falling under 2, 3, or 4 categories should possess an eligibility certificate with an issuance authority as Government of India.
Age Limit
A candidate appearing for RBI Grade B should be under the age group of 21 and 30 years as on September 1st 2021. And, those candidates carrying PhD and MPhil qualifications should possess an upper age limit of 32 and 34 years. As per the Government of India norms, the reserved category candidates will be eligible for relaxation in upper age limit.
Educational Qualifications
The academic requirement prescribed for the RBI Grade B exam 2021 are as follows:
Officers in Grade ‘B’ (DR) – DEPR
- Master’s Degree in Economics Econometrics or Quantitative Economics or Mathematical Economics or Integrated Economics Course or Finance, with a minimum of 55% marks or an equivalent grade.
- SC and ST/PWD candidates are allowed with a relaxation of 5%.
Officers in Grade ‘B’ (DR) – (General)
- 60% marks in aggregate for all semester/years (50% for SC and ST/PWD) or an equivalent grade in bachelor’s degree as well as in 12th (or Diploma or equivalent) and 10th Standard examinations from recognized University and Boards
Officers in Grade ‘B’ (DR) – DSIM
- Master’s Degree in Statistics or Mathematical Economics or Mathematical Statistics or Statistics & Informatics or Econometrics from IIT-Kharagpur or
- Applied Statistics & Informatics from IIT-Bombay with at least 55% marks in aggregate of all semester/years or an equivalent grade, or
- Master’s Degree in Mathematics with at least 55% marks in aggregate of all semester years and 1st year PG Diploma in Statistics or related subjects from the reputed institute; or
- Masters in Statistics from Indian Statistical Institute with a minimum of 55% marks in aggregate of all semesters/years, or
- PG Diploma in Business Analytics (PGDBA) jointly offered by ISI Kolkata, IIT Kharagpur and IIM Calcutta with at least 55% marks in aggregate of all semesters/years or equivalent grade.
Note: For SC, ST and PWD RBI Grade B candidates, the minimum marks required in Master’s Degree should be 50% in aggregate of all semesters/years or an equivalent grade.
RBI Grade B Exam Pattern
RBI Grade B exam is one of the toughest exams in India, especially in the Banking and Finance sector. With the detailed knowledge about the exam pattern, you can start making your preparation strategy accordingly. As discussed previously, the exam has 3 sections, let us take a look at each one in detail:
Preliminary Exam
In the Prelims, students have 2 hours to complete 200 questions, carrying a total of 200 marks. The exam format for the RBI Grade B Prelims is discussed below:
Subject | Number of Questions | Maximum Marks |
General Awareness | 80 | 80 |
Reasoning | 60 | 60 |
English Language | 30 | 30 |
Quantitative Aptitude | 30 | 30 |
Total | 200 | 200 |
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Mains Exam
The mains of RBI Grade B exam has varied syllabus with 3 papers. The exam format for the mains exam is discussed below:
Name of the Paper | Paper Type | Maximum Marks | Duration |
PAPER I – Economics and Social Issues | Objective | 100 | 90 minutes |
PAPER II – English (Writing Skills) | Descriptive (type with keyboard) | 100 | 90 minutes |
PAPER III – Finance and Management | Objective | 100 | 90 minutes |
Total | 300 | 4 hours and 30 minutes |
Note: There is a negative marking of 0.25 for every wrong answer in RBI Grade B Prelims and Main exam.
Interview
According to the total score obtained in the RBI Grade B Mains exam of all categories, candidates are shortlisted for the interview round which carries a total of 50 marks. It is conducted either in English or Hindi. And, the final selection will be through the merit list prepared by the board.
RBI Grade B Exam Syllabus for 2021
The comprehensive syllabus for RBI Grade B Prelims Exam comprises of the following:
Section | Topics Covered |
General Awareness | Basic General Knowledge; Current Affairs; Indian Financial System; Indian Banking System; Banking Terms; Banking History; Monetary Plans; Economic News; National and International Institutions; Abbreviations; Government Schemes; Banking Agreements; Sports News; Awards; Books and Authors. |
Quantitative Aptitude | Ratio & Proportion; Mensuration; Percentage; Average; Speed, Time and Distance; Time and Work; Permutation and Combination; Mixture and Alligation; Data Interpretation; Probability; Stocks and Shares; Simplification; Quadratic Equations; Inequalities; Number Series; Upstream and Downstream; Profit and Loss; Simple and Compound Interest. |
Reasoning Ability | Puzzles; Seating Arrangement; Inequalities; Direction Test; Blood Relation; Syllogism; Input-Output; Data Sufficiency; Machine Input; Coding-Decoding; Ranking; Alphanumeric Series. |
English Language | Reading Comprehension; Cloze Test; Fill in the Blanks; Sentence Rearrangement; Jumbled Words/Sentences; Error Spotting; Sentence Framing; Match the Columns; Vocabulary; Grammar. |
A detailed breakdown of all the major topics covered in the RBI Grade B Mains exam has been discussed below:
Paper | Topics Covered |
Economics and Social Issues | Growth and Development; Economic Reforms in India; Social Structure in India; Corporate Governance; Development in the Financial Sector; Export-Import Policy; Illiteracy; Balance of Payments; Rise in Inequality; Rigid Labour Law; Human Resource Development; Inflation; Regionalism and Language Conflicts; Poor Education Standards; Globalisations; Social Structure in India; Employment Generation in India; Sustainable Development; Monetary and Fiscal Policy; Social Sectors in India; Benefits of International Trade; Direct and Indirect Taxes; Insurance and Capital Marketing; Government debt. |
English (Writing Skills) | The paper will be framed in a way which will examine the writing skills of a candidate and in-depth understanding pertaining to the topic. |
Finance and Management | Union Budget; Regulation of Banks; Risk Management in Banking Sector; Technology in Finance; Corporate Governance; Human Resource Development; Motivation and Incentives; Regulators of Banks and Financial Institutions; Development in the Financial Sector; Financial Sector Regulations; Monetary Policy; Union Budget; Inflation; The Managing Process; Career Planning; Role of Incentives; Role of Information Technology; Communication ChannelsLeadership; Nature and Scope of Management. |
Application Process
Following the below mentioned simple steps, you will be able to complete the application process of the RBI grade B exam-
- Log on to the official website and click on new registration to begin
- You will be directed to a new window where you will have to fill in all the required details
- Once you have created your ID through registration, you will have to login again using the registration number and password
- Fill in the basic information required
- Upload the scanned copy of your image as well as signature in the prescribed format
- Verify all the information and click on the button to submit
- Complete the process by submitting the application fee as per the option of your convenience
Application Fee
For the RBI Grade B examination, here is the estimated application fee per category-
Category | Charges | Amount |
SC/ ST/ PwD | Intimation Charges only | INR 100/- |
GEN/ OBC/ EWS | Application fee including Intimation Charges | INR 850/- |
Staff | NIL | NIL |
Admit Card
Every year, the admit card of the RBI Grade B exam is released 10-15 days prior to the date of the examination. Candidates can download their respective copies from the official website.
RBI Grade B Exam Vacancies for 2021
For the year 2021, the RBI has announced the below mentioned number of vacancies for the Grade B post-
Posts | Vacancy |
Officers in Grade ‘B’(DR)- General | 270 |
Officers in Grade ‘B’(DR)- DEPR | 29 |
Officers in Grade ‘B’(DR)- DSIM | 23 |
Total | 322 |
RBI Grade B Salary
The candidates who get selected as the Grade B officers earn lucrative salaries every month. They become eligible for various perks such as Dearness Allowance, Local allowance, House Rent Allowance, Family Allowance, etc. Here is the average salary of this post-
Basic Pay | Rs. 35,150/- p.m. |
Gross Emoluments | Rs. 75,831/-(approx.) |
Examination Centres 2021
It is very important to know where your test will be conducted. So, here’s a complete list of examination centres for RBI Grade B Prelims as well as Mains exam.
Prelims Examination Centres
State or Union Territory | Examination Centre |
Andaman & Nicobar | Port Blair |
Andhra Pradesh & Telangana | Guntur, Narasaraopet, Hyderabad, Rangareddy-Kodada, Karimnagar, Warangal, Rajahmundry, Kakinada, Tirupati, Chittoor, Vijaywada, Kanchikacherla, Gudlavalleru, Eluru, Vishakhapatnam and Vizianagaram |
Arunachal Pradesh | Itanagar and Naharlagun City |
Assam | Dibrugarh, Guwahati, Jorhat and Silchar |
Bihar | Bhagalpur, Muzaffarpur and Patna |
Chandigarh | Chandigarh |
Chattisgarh | Raipur and Bhilai |
Daman & Diu | Jamnagar |
Goa | Varna |
Gujarat | Ahmedabad, Gandhi Nagar, Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Surat and Vadodara |
Haryana | Hissar, Karnal and Rohtak |
Himachal Pradesh | Dharamsala and Shimla |
Jammu & Kashmir | Jammu |
Jharkhand | Bokaro, Dhanbad, Jamshedpur and Ranchi |
Karnataka | Belgaum, Bagalkot, Bengaluru, Chikaballapur, Kolar, Tumkur, Gulbarga, Bidar, Hubli, Dharwad, Haliyal, Gadag, Mangalore, Mysore, Mandya and Udi |
Kerala | Kannur, Kasargod, Kochi, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Pathanamthitta, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Thrissur, Palakkad, Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam and Nagercoil |
Lakshadweep | Kavaratti |
Madhya Pradesh | Bhopal, Gwalior, Indore and Jabalpur |
Maharashtra | Aurangabad, Kolhapur, Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Nagpur, Nasik, Pune and Solapur |
Manipur | Imphal |
Meghalaya | Shillong |
Mizoram | Aizawl |
Nagaland | Kohima |
New Delhi | Delhi – NCR |
Orissa | Balasore, Berhampur (Ganjam), Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and Sambalpur |
Puducherry | Cuddalore and Villupuram |
Punjab | Amritsar, Bhatinda, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Mohali and Patiala |
Rajasthan | Ajmer, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kota and Udaipur |
Sikkim | Gangtok and Bardang City |
Tamilnadu | Chennai, Vellore, Coimbatore, Erode, Tirupur, Madurai, Virudhunagar, Dindigul Salem, Namakkal, Tiruchirapalli, Perambalur, Pudukottai, Thanjavur, Tirunelveli, Kanyakumari and Tuticorin |
Tripura | Agartala |
Uttar Pradesh | Agra, Allahabad, Bareilly, Gorakhpur, Kanpur, Lucknow, Meerut and Varanasi |
Uttarakhand | Dehradun, Haldwani, Nainital and Roorkee City |
West Bengal | Berhampore (WB), Durgapur, Kolkata, Greater Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly, Kalyani and Siliguri |
Mains Examination Centres
Ahmedabad | Jammu |
Bengaluru | Kanpur |
Bhopal | Kochi |
Bhubaneswar | Lucknow |
Kolkata | Mumbai |
Chandigarh | Nagpur |
Chennai | New Delhi |
Guwahati | Patna |
Hyderabad | Pune |
Jaipur | Thiruvananthapuram |
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It is a haunting fact that there is a dearth of jobs at contemporary times, and fetching lucrative jobs especially in the Government sector is not everyone’s cup of tea. It is a cumbersome task which takes time to cherish. However, exams like RBI Grade B turns like a bolt out of the blue. Making a distinctive space in Reserve Bank of India needs your intelligent bent of mindset, hardworking skills and abundant knowledge in banking and financing. Also, if you are planning to pursue banking courses and are unsure about which course is the right one for you experts at Leverage Edu can help you choose an ideal course that aligns with your strengths and interests.