IRCTC Apprentice Trainees Recruitment 2026 – Apply Online for 44 Graduate Apprentice & Other Posts

Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), East Zone, Kolkata has invited applications for 44 apprentice trainees for the financial year 2026–27 under the Apprentices Act: 34 Graduate Apprentices (any degree with 50% aggregate) at a stipend of Rs. 12,300 per month, and 10 Computer Operator and Programming Assistant (COPA) apprentices (10th plus ITI with 50%) at Rs. 9,600 per month, each for 12 months. Candidates must be between 15 and 25 years on 9 October 2026, with relaxation for reserved categories.

There is no written test and no interview: selection is a merit list on percentage of marks, followed by document verification. Applications are made online on the Government apprenticeship portals between 9 and 26 October 2026. Training is at IRCTC’s East Zone offices in Kolkata, Guwahati, Patna, Howrah, Sealdah, Asansol, New Jalpaiguri, Ranchi or Tatanagar, and candidates must be willing to work at any of them.

IRCTC East Zone Apprentice Recruitment 2026 Quick Facts

Eligibility Criteria

Qualification

• Graduate Apprentice: a graduate in any discipline from a recognised university with at least 50% marks in aggregate.
• COPA: Matriculation and an ITI certificate in COPA affiliated to NCVT or SCVT, with at least 50% marks in aggregate from a recognised board.

The qualification must be held on 9 October 2026, the cut-off date. Candidates whose final results are not declared by then do not meet it. Because selection is purely on marks, the percentage you enter and the mark sheets you upload decide the outcome.

Age

Candidates must have completed 15 years and not completed 25 years on 9 October 2026, which means a date of birth between 10 October 2001 and 9 October 2011 (both inclusive) for unreserved candidates. Upper-age relaxation: SC/ST 5 years, OBC 3 years, ex-servicemen 10 years, persons with benchmark disability 10 years, as per Government of India guidelines.

Willingness to work across the East Zone

The notice states twice that applicants must be comfortable working at any of IRCTC’s East Zone offices: the Zonal Office at Kolkata, Regional Offices at Guwahati and Patna, and Area Offices at Howrah, Sealdah, Asansol, New Jalpaiguri, Ranchi and Tatanagar. Once selected, a request to change trade is not entertained and withdrawal from training is allowed only for reasons beyond the candidate’s control.

Seats and Stipend

Apprentices are released at the end of the training period and have no claim to regular employment in IRCTC in any form. Seat numbers may change; any change is published on the IRCTC website.

IRCTC East Zone Apprentice Recruitment 2026 Important Dates

How to Apply for IRCTC East Zone Apprentice Recruitment 2026

1. Check that your name, father’s name and date of birth are recorded identically in your Matriculation certificate and your portal profile. Any deviation found at verification cancels the candidature and leads to debarment.
2. Register on apprenticeshipindia.gov.in or nats.education.gov.in. The notice names both portals; in general practice, ITI (COPA) apprenticeships are registered on the Apprenticeship India portal and graduate apprenticeships on NATS. Apply against IRCTC East Zone’s opportunity on the portal that lists it for your category.
3. Enter marks for every qualification from Matriculation onwards and upload year-wise mark sheets with pass certificates. Applications incomplete in any respect are rejected.
4. Upload self-attested scanned copies of the documents listed below, and a recent photograph meeting the specification.
5. Submit on or before 26 October 2026. Keep your portal registration details; you must produce them at verification.

Documents to upload

• 10th mark sheet and certificate
• ITI mark sheet, and the National Trade Certificate or Provisional NTC issued by NCVT/SCVT (COPA applicants)
• Proof of date of birth (10th certificate, mark sheet showing date of birth, or school leaving certificate)
• 12th mark sheet and certificate, if any
• Graduation mark sheet and certificate (Graduate Apprentice applicants)
• Caste certificate for SC/ST/OBC; the OBC (non-creamy layer) certificate must be issued within the last one year, in Government of India format, showing caste, date of issue and the issuing authority’s seal
• Disability certificate (PwBD, 40% or more)
• Discharge or serving certificate (ex-servicemen quota)
• EWS income and asset certificate, if claiming (see Reservation Notes)

Photograph specification

Recent colour photograph, 3.5 cm × 4.5 cm, taken within three months of the application, clear front view without cap or sunglasses; soft copy in JPG/JPEG at 100 DPI, file size 20 KB to 70 KB. Old or unclear photographs, or a visible mismatch with the candidate at verification, can lead to rejection. Keep two extra prints of the same photograph for the verification day.

Selection Process

• Merit list prepared on percentage of marks in the qualifying examination. There is no written test and no viva.
• Tie-break: the older candidate is preferred; if dates of birth are the same, the candidate who passed Matriculation earlier.
• Document verification: candidates bring originals and two sets of self-attested photocopies. The schedule is advised by email only, at short notice. No daily, conveyance or travelling allowance is paid.
• Offers are issued strictly in merit order. A stand-by list is used only to fill places of absentees and rejected candidates.
• Candidates are trained only in the trade for which they are selected.

Reservation Notes

• Reservation follows Government of India guidelines for SC, ST, OBC, PwBD, ex-servicemen and EWS, with the age relaxations above.
• EWS: candidates not covered by SC/ST/OBC-NCL reservation whose family gross annual income (all sources, for the financial year before the application year) is below Rs. 8 lakh. The income and asset certificate must be issued by one of the authorities the notice lists (District Magistrate or equivalent, Presidency Magistrate, Revenue Officer not below Tehsildar, or the Sub-Divisional Officer of the area) and must be held on the closing date, 26 October 2026.
• OBC: non-creamy layer certificate issued within the last one year.
• PwBD: disability of 40% or more.

Official Links

• IRCTC East Zone notification for Apprentice (COPA & Graduate) Trainees, FY 2026-27 (official PDF)
• Apprenticeship India portal (NAPS)
• National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS) portal
• IRCTC official website (changes to seat numbers are published here)