The Railway Board Secretariat Service Rules, 2026: Gazette Notification No. G.S.R. 360(E)

The Railway Board Secretariat Service Rules, 2026: Gazette Notification No. G.S.R. 360(E) dated 11.05.2026 by Railway Board

MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS
(Railway Board)
NOTIFICATION

New Delhi, the 11th May, 2026

G.S.R. 360(E).— In exercise of the powers conferred by the proviso to article 309 of the Constitution, the President hereby makes the following rules, namely:-

1. Short title and commencement.- (1) These rules may be called the Railway Board Secretariat Service Rules, 2026.

(2) They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.

2. Definitions.- In these rules, unless the context otherwise requires,-

(a) “appointing authority” in relation to any Grade means the authority empowered under the provisions of Indian Railway Establishment Code, Volume-I, to make appointments to that Grade;

(b) “appointed day” means the date on which these rules come into force;

(c) “approved service” in relation to any Grade means –

(i) in respect of an officer recruited directly to that Grade, the period or periods of regular service rendered in that Grade, including the period or periods of absence during which he would have held a post on regular basis in that Grade but for his being on leave or otherwise not being available to hold such post, from the first day of July of the year, following the year in which the examination for direct recruitment was held;
(ii) in respect of an officer recruited to that Grade through departmental examination, the period or periods of regular service rendered in that grade, including the period or periods of absence during which he would have held a post on regular basis in that grade, but for his being on leave or otherwise not being available to hold such post, from the first day of July of the year for vacancies of which such examination was held;

(iii) in respect of an officer recruited to that Grade on the basis of length of service in the lower Grade, the period or periods of regular service rendered in that Grade, including the period or periods of absence during which he would have held a post on regular basis in that Grade, but for his being on leave or otherwise not being available to hold such post, from the first day of July of the year for which the recruitment was made:
Provided that where there is a delay of more than ninety days in joining on appointment, in any of the cases mentioned in the sub-clauses (i), (ii) and (iii), such delay should not be due to any fault on the part of the officer;

(d) “authorised strength” in relation to any Grade of the Service means the strength of duty posts in that Grade, as specified in rule 5, against which regular appointments may be made;

(e) “cadre” means the group of posts in the Grades of Higher Administrative Grade (Adviser), Senior Administrative Grade (Joint Secretary or Executive Director), Senior Selection Grade (Director), Selection Grade (Deputy Secretary or Joint Director), Grade-I (Under Secretary or Deputy Director), Section Officer and Assistant Section Officer in the Ministry of Railways (Railway Board);

(f) “cadre controlling authority” in relation to officers appointed to any Grade of Railway Board Secretariat Service means the Ministry of Railways (Railway Board);

(g) “cadre officer” in relation to any Grade means a member of the Railway Board Secretariat Service;

(h) “Commission” means the Union Public Service commission;

(i) “crucial date” in relation to Limited Departmental Competitive Examination means the 1st day of July of the year in which the examination is held;

(j) “direct recruit” means a person recruited on the basis of a competitive examination, other than a departmental competitive examination recruited through the Staff Selection Commission;

(k) “duty post” in relation to any Grade of the Service means a Cadre post held by officers of the Service on substantive basis in any post of that Grade;

(l) “eligible officer” means any officer who has undergone and successfully completed such mandatory training programme as may be prescribed under cadre training plan, if any, by the Ministry of Railways and is eligible to be considered for appointment to Higher Administrative Grade, Senior Administrative Grade, Senior Selection Grade, Selection Grade, Grade – I, Section Officer and Assistant Section Officers’ Grade, as the case may be, of the Railway Board Secretariat Service, under rules 8, 9 and 10 as on the 1st July of the calendar year for which the Select List is prepared;

(m) “Field of Selection” means the list of eligible officers from which a selection shall be made for inclusion in the Select List;

(n) “Grade” means any of the Grade specified in rule 3;

(o) “Government” means the Government of India in the Ministry of Railways;

(p) “Limited Departmental Competitive Examination” in respect of any Grade of the Service means a competitive examination held by the Union Public Service Commission or the Staff Selection Commission, as the case may be, to select candidates for that grade;

(q) “Ministry” means Ministry of Railways (Railway Board) in the Government of India;

(r) “Other Backward Classes” means the castes and communities notified as Other Backward Classes by the Government of India from time to time;

(s) “permanent officer” means a person who has been confirmed in the Service;

(t) “person with disability” means the person with disability as defined in clause(s) of section 2 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016 (49 of 2016);

(u) “probationer” means an officer either directly recruited or promoted to the Assistant Section Officers’ Grade or appointed to Grade-I on probation against a regular vacancy;

(v) “range of seniority” in relation to any grade means the range specified by the Central Government in the Ministry of Railways in the seniority list for that Grade for additions to Select List;

(w) “regular officer” in relation to any grade, means a person who has been appointed against a regular vacancy either through direct recruitment or through a Limited Departmental Competitive Examination or through promotion from Select List and who has completed the period of probation under rule 12 to the satisfaction of the appointing authority;

(x) “regular vacancies” in relation to a grade, includes vacancies arising out of death, retirement, promotion, resignation, deputation or transfer or long leave of incumbents exceeding one year;

(y) “Schedule” means the Schedule appended to these rules;

(z) “Scheduled Castes” and “Scheduled Tribes” shall have the same meanings as are assigned to them by clauses (24) and (25), respectively of article 366 of the Constitution;

(za) “Select List” in relation to the Senior Administrative Grade, Senior Selection Grade, Selection Grade, Grade-I, Section Officers’ Grade and the Assistant Section Officers’ Grade means the Select List prepared in accordance with the regulations made under sub-rule (6) of rule 8, sub-rule (3) of rule 9 or sub-rule (5) of rule 10, as the case may be;

(zb) “Selection” means inclusion in the Select List for any Grade of Railway Board Secretariat Service; (zc) “Service” means the Railway Board Secretariat Service;

(zd) “seniority list” in relation to any Grade means the seniority list of officers of that Grade as on the appointed day and revised annually in accordance with the respective Regulations;

(ze) “zone of consideration” means the list of eligible officers from which inclusions shall be made in the Select List;

3. Composition of Service.- (1) There shall be seven grades in the Service, which are classified into two groups as given in Table below:-

TABLE

(2) The posts in the Higher Administrative Grade, Senior Administrative Grade, Senior Selection Grade, Selection Grade, Grade-I and the Section Officers’ Grade shall be Gazetted posts and those in the Assistant Section Officers’ Grade shall be Non-Gazetted posts.

4. Combined Gradation List of Officers of Railway Board Secretariat Service.– There shall be a single combined gradation list called seniority list for each grade of the Service as specified in rule 3.

5. Authorised cadre strength of Service.- The authorised strength of various grades of the Service and the level in pay matrix shall be as specified in the Schedule.

6. Duty posts to be held by cadre officers.- Every duty post in the Service shall be held by a cadre officer of appropriate Grade.

7. Confirmation.- Confirmation of all Railway Board Secretariat Service officers shall be made only once at the entry level into the Service.

8. Recruitment to Higher Administrative Grade, Senior Administrative Grade, Senior Selection Grade, Selection Grade and Grade –I.- (1) The regular vacancy in Higher Administrative Grade of Railway Board Secretariat Service shall be filled up by promotion of regular officer of Senior Administrative Grade in accordance with the norms decided by Central Government in the Ministry of Railways in consultation with Department of Personnel and Training, from time to time.

(2) The regular vacancies in the Senior Administrative Grade shall be filled by promotion of regular officers who have rendered eight years’ approved service in the Selection Grade of Railway Board Secretariat Service and have been assessed suitable for the post of Senior Selection Grade for a minimum period of three years and are included in the Select List for the Senior Administrative Grade prepared under sub-rule (6).

(3) The regular vacancies in the Senior Selection Grade shall be filled by promotion of regular officers of Selection Grade who have rendered not less than five years’ approved service in that Grade and are included in the Select List for the Senior Selection Grade prepared under sub-rule (6):

Provided that where sufficient number of eligible officers with five years’ approved service are not available, regular officers of Selection Grade with not less than three years’ of regular service in that Grade and not less than ten years’ of approved service from their appointment to the Grade-I shall also be eligible for promotion.

(4) Regular vacancies in the Selection Grade shall be filled by promotion of regular officers of Grade-I who have rendered not less than five years’ approved service in that Grade and are included in the Select List for the Selection Grade prepared under sub-rule (6).

(5) Regular vacancies in Grade-I shall be filled by promotion of regular officers of the Section Officers’ Grade who have rendered not less than eight years’ approved service in that Grade and are included in the Select List for Grade- I of the Service prepared under sub-rule (6).

(6) For the purposes of sub-rules (2), (3), (4) and (5), a Select List for the Senior Administrative Grade, Senior Selection Grade, Selection Grade and Grade-I shall be prepared and published annually and the procedure for preparing and revising the Select Lists shall be as provided in the Regulations:

Provided that the Select List for Grade-I shall be prepared in consultation with the Commission.

9. Recruitment to Section Officers’ Grade.- (1) The regular vacancies in the Section Officers’ Grade shall be filled by appointment of persons included in the Select List for Section Officers’ Grade comprising fifty per cent. from regular officers of Assistant Section Officers’ Grade who have rendered not less than eight years’ approved service in that Grade and fifty percent. from persons selected through Limited Departmental Competitive Examination.

(2) The rules for the Limited Departmental Competitive Examination referred to in sub-rule (1) shall be as specified in Regulations:

Provided that if sufficient number of candidates are not available for filling up the vacancies in any recruitment year, either by Limited Departmental Competitive Examination or by promotion on the basis of seniority, the unfilled vacancies shall be carried forward and added to the number of vacancies of the same mode of recruitment to be filled in the next recruitment year:

Provided further that no such unfilled vacancies shall be carried forward for more than two recruitment years, beyond the year to which the recruitment relates, where after the vacancies, if any, still remaining unfilled belonging to one mode of recruitment shall be transferred as additional vacancies for the other mode of recruitment.

(3) The procedure for preparing and revising Select List for Section Officers’ Grade shall be as specified in Regulations.

10. Recruitment to Assistant Section Officers’ Grade.- (1) Seventy-five per cent. of the regular vacancies in the Assistant Section Officers’ Grade shall be filled by direct recruitment of graduates possessing computer proficiency as may be notified by the Ministry of Railways on the basis of results of a competitive examination held by the Staff Selection Commission once a year, for this purpose and the remaining twenty-five per cent. vacancies shall be filled by appointment of persons included in the Select List for Assistant Section Officers’ Grade comprising fifteen per cent. of the total from the regular officers of Senior Secretariat Assistants’ Grade of the Railway Board Secretariat Clerical Service who have rendered not less than ten years’ approved service in that Grade and ten per cent. from persons selected through Limited Departmental Competitive Examination for Senior Secretariat Assistants’ of Railway Board Secretariat Clerical Service to be conducted by Staff Selection Commission, once in a year for this purpose:

Provided that eligibility service shall continue to be five years’ of approved service for officials holding the post of Senior Secretariat Assistant on regular basis as on the date of notification of the revised rules:

Provided further that where sufficient number of eligible Senior Secretariat Assistants with ten years’ approved service are not available, officials having rendered twenty-one years’ approved service from Multi-Tasking Staff Grade till Senior Secretariat Assistants’ Grade (including a minimum of five years’ approved service as Senior Secretariat Assistant) shall also be eligible for inclusion in the Select List for Assistant Section Officers’ Grade:

Provided also that the resultant vacancies of Assistant Section officer arisen from the cadre restructuring of Railway Board Secretariat Service for the recruitment year 2004 and recruitment year 2011 shall be deemed to have been filled up from Senior Secretariat Assistant through seniority.

(2) The appointments of the persons whose names have been included in the Select List shall be made in the order of seniority in that Select List.

(3) For the purpose of this rule, a Select List for the Assistant Section Officers’ Grade shall be prepared and published annually.

(4) The rules for the Competitive Examinations and Limited Departmental Competitive Examination as referred to in sub- rule (1) shall be as specified in Regulations.

(5) The procedure for preparing and revising the Select List for Assistant Section Officers’ Grade shall be as specified in Regulations.

11. Composition of Departmental Promotion Committee.- The composition of Departmental Promotion Committee for various Grades of the Service shall be as specified in Regulations.

12. Probation.- (1) Every officer, either directly recruited or promoted to the Assistant Section Officers’ Grade or appointed to Grade-I shall initially be appointed on probation, the period of probation being two years from the date of appointment.

(2) The period of probation specified in sub-rule (1) may, if the appointing authority deems fit, be extended in any case, but the total period of extension of probation shall not, save where it is necessary by reason of any departmental or legal proceedings pending against the officer, exceed one year.

(3) During probation, a member of the Service may be required to undergo such training and to pass such tests as the Central Government in the Ministry of Railways may, from time to time, prescribe.

13. Completion of Probation.- (1) Upon completion of the probation period or the extended probation period, if any, the appointing authority shall assess the performance of the officer, as per prescribed procedure, and shall declare either:-

(a) that the probation has been successfully completed;

(b) that the probation has not been successfully completed; or

(c) that the probation period is to be extended under sub-rule (2) of rule 12.

(2) When a directly recruited officer undergoing probation has successfully completed the probation to the satisfaction of the appointing authority, he shall be eligible for confirmation in the Service and when such officer has not successfully completed his probation, he shall be discharged or reverted in accordance with rule 14.

(3) An officer shall continue to be on probation till he is confirmed under this rule or is discharged or reverted under rule 14.

14. Discharge or reversion of probationers.- (1) A probationer who has no lien on any post under the Central Government or any State Government shall be liable to be discharged from the Service at any time without notice if, –

(i) on the basis of his performance or conduct during probation, he is considered unfit for further retention in the Service; or

(ii) on the receipt of any information relating to his nationality, age, health or antecedents, the appointing authority is satisfied that he is ineligible or otherwise unfit for being a member of the Service.

(2) A probationer who holds a lien on a post under the Central Government or any State Government may be reverted to such post at any time in any of the circumstances specified in sub-rule (1).

(3) A probationer who is not considered suitable for confirmation at the end of the period of probation prescribed in sub-rule (1) of rule 12 or at the end of the extended period of probation, if any, under sub-rule (2) of that rule, shall be discharged or reverted in accordance with sub-rule (1) or sub-rule (2), as the case may be.

(4) A member of the Service other than a direct recruit on probation in Assistant Section Officers’ Grade or Grade-I who is not considered suitable for continuance in that Grade during or at the end of the period of probation specified in sub-rule (1) of rule 12 or the extended period, if any, under sub-rule (2) of that rule, shall be reverted to the next lower Grade of the Service or to the concerned Grade of the Railway Board Secretariat Clerical Service, as the case may be, from which he was appointed on probation to the Grade of the Service:

Provided that an officer so reverted to the lower Grade shall be reconsidered for appointment to the higher Grade on probation, only after completion of one year from the date of such reversion.

15. Seniority.- (1) The relative seniority of members of the Service appointed to any Grade before the appointed day shall be regulated by their relative seniority as determined before the said date:
Provided that, if the seniority of any such officer had not been specifically determined before the said date, it shall be as determined by the Central Government in the Ministry of Railways.

(2) The seniority of persons appointed to any Grade after the appointed day shall be determined as follows, namely:-

I. Higher Administrative Grade, Senior Administrative Grade, Senior Selection Grade, Selection Grade, Grade-I and Section Officer:-

The inter-se seniority of officers appointed to the Grade after the appointed day shall be regulated by the order in which their names are included in the Select List for the Grade.

II. Assistant Section Officers’ Grade:-

(a) Direct recruits shall be ranked inter-se in the order of merit reckoned on the basis of final ranking obtained on the basis of marks obtained by the candidate in the examination conducted by the Staff Selection Commission, the recruits of an earlier examination being ranked senior to those of a later examination:

Provided that the seniority of persons recruited through the Competitive Examination held by the Commission shall be such as may be prescribed by the Central Government applicable to Group ‘B’ Central Civil Services.

(b) Persons appointed regularly to a Grade from the Select List for the Grade shall be ranked inter-se according to the order in which they are so appointed.

(c) The relative seniority of direct recruits to a Grade and persons regularly appointed to the Grade from the Select List for the Grade shall be regulated in accordance with the provisions of Regulations.

16. Regulation of Pay.- (1) The pay and increments of officers of the various Grades shall be regulated in accordance with the Indian Railways Establishment Code and other similar Railway Rules and Orders relating to pay issued by Government from time to time.

(2) The pay of a probationer in a Grade may, on his completing each year of probation to the satisfaction of the appointing authority and qualifying the prescribed periodic tests, be raised by one stage in the time scale.

17. Regulations.- The Central Government in the Ministry of Railways (Railway Board) may make regulations, not inconsistent with these rules, to provide for all matters for which provision is necessary or expedient for the purpose of giving effects to these rules.

18. Residuary matters.– In regard to matters not specifically covered by these rules or by Regulations or orders made or issued there under, or by special orders, the members of the Service shall be governed by the rules and orders applicable to the Railway Board Secretariat Service and Central Civil Services in general.

19. Power to relax.- (1) Where the Central Government in the Ministry of Railways (Railway Board) is satisfied that the operation of any of these rules causes undue hardship in any class or category of persons or posts, it may dispense with or relax, in consultation with the Commission, the requirements of the rules to such extent and subject to such conditions, as it may consider necessary.

(2) Where the Central Government in the Ministry of Railways (Railway Board) is satisfied that the operation of any of the regulations made under these rules causes undue hardship in any class or category of persons or posts, it may dispense with or relax the requirements of the regulations made under these rules to such extent and subject to such conditions, as it may consider necessary.

20. Reservations.- Nothing in these rules shall affect reservations, relaxation and other concessions required to be provided for the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes and Economically Weaker Section and other special categories of persons in accordance with the orders issued by the Central Government from time to time in this regard.

21. Interpretation.- If any question arises as to the interpretation of these rules, or the Regulations made there under, the same shall be decided by the Central Government in the Ministry of Railways, whose decision thereon shall be final.

22. Repeal and savings.- The Railway Board Secretariat Service Rules, 1969 and regulations framed there under, as amended from time to time, in force before the commencement of these rules are hereby repealed subject to any notification, rule, regulation, order or notice issued, or any appointment or declaration made, or exemption granted or any penalty or fine imposed or any other thing done or any other action taken under the previous rules or regulations and in force immediately before such commencement shall so far as it is not inconsistent with the provisions of these rules, be deemed to have been issued, made, granted, done or taken under the corresponding provisions of these rules.

SCHEDULE
(See rule 5)

Authorized strength of the various Grades of Railway Board Secretariat Service

*Subject to variation dependent on workload/ encadrement/ Cadre-restructuring etc.
# Subject to the applicable orders on Level in Pay matrix or pay scale issued by the Government from time to time.

Note- The Section Officers, who are granted this non-functional pay scale will continue to remain in Group B (Gazetted) and their eligibility for promotion to Grade-I (Under Secretary or Deputy Director) of the Service will be reckoned on the basis of total period, spent in both the scales of Section Officer, counted together.

[F. No. ERB-1/2012/11/2]
V.S. DAHIYA, Jt. Secy.