from KEA’s Executive Director as quoted by The Bengaluru Live and from several portals: 218 technical posts, applications until 26 November 2026, fee until 27 November, a Kannada language test on 8 January and the written exam in January. Still pending: the confirmed written-exam date, hall tickets and the result. We could not open the official notification PDFs.
What the 187 and the 218 mean
KEA issued two notifications for the same recruitment. The vacancies comprise 187 posts in the Residual Parent Cadre and 31 in the Kalyana Karnataka cadre, KEA Executive Director H Prasanna said. One portal lists the numbers as ED/KEA/41/Ne.Vi/2026 (RPC), dated 30 October 2026, and ED/KEA/40/Ne.Vi/2026 (KK), dated 31 October 2026. The KK notification is linked with the RPC one for posts with the same syllabus.
If you read only the “187” headline, you will miss the 31 KK posts. If you read only “218”, you may apply under the wrong cadre.
Vacancies
| Post | RPC | KK | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assistant Town Planner (also called Assistant City Planner) | 105 | 14 | 119 |
| Junior Engineer (Civil) | 80 | 17 | 97 |
| Draughtsman | 2 | – | 2 |
| Total | 187 | 31 | 218 |
Post-wise numbers are from Placement Store, whose own disclaimer says it has not verified them against the notification. They add up correctly, and the Assistant Town Planner and Junior Engineer split matches other portals.
The Junior Engineer (Civil) posts by department, as reported:
- RPC: Greater Bengaluru Authority 46, Karnataka Housing Board 15, Karnataka Rural Infrastructure Development Ltd 12, Directorate of Ground Water 5, Karnataka State Minerals Corporation 2.
- KK: Karnataka Housing Board 5, Greater Bengaluru Authority 4, Mines and Geology 4, KRIDL 3, Agricultural Marketing Department 1.
The department for the two Draughtsman posts is given inconsistently across sources, so check the RPC notification. Assistant Town Planner posts are in urban development authorities and the Commissionerate of Town and Country Planning, per the news report.
Assistant Town Planner is the biggest block: 119 of 218 posts, about 55 percent. Junior Engineer (Civil) is about 44 percent.
Important dates
| Event | Date |
|---|---|
| Notification | 30–31 October 2026 |
| Applications open | 31 October 2026 |
| Last date to apply | 26 November 2026 |
| Last date to pay fee | 27 November 2026 (see note) |
| Kannada language test | 8 January 2027 |
| Written exam | January 2027, date not confirmed |
| Hall ticket | Not announced |
Two conflicts:
Fee deadline. The news report quoting KEA gives 26 November as the application deadline and 27 November as the last date to pay the fee. Placement Store gives 26 November for both. Treat 27 November as the payment date unless the portal says otherwise, and pay on the day you apply.
The 8 January date. Two portals call 8 January 2027 the tentative exam date. The news report says the written exam will be held in January and the Kannada language test is on January 8. Those are different things. Until KEA confirms the written-exam date, don’t book travel or leave around 8 January on the assumption that it is the main paper.
The FDA/SDA recruitment run by KEA is also reported to have exams on 8, 9, 10, 16 and 17 January. The overlap on 8 January may be a shared language-test day, but nothing we saw says so. If you applied to both recruitments, check your hall tickets for clashes.
Education qualification
Most sources agree on a 3-year Diploma in Civil Engineering from a recognised institution or State Board of Technical Education, or a prescribed equivalent. A portal describing the KK notice adds that Assistant Town Planner also accepts Diploma in Civil Engineering (General) or (Draftsmanship), and that the Greater Bengaluru Authority Junior Engineer post also accepts a Diploma in Architecture or Architectural Assistantship (C-20 syllabus).
One portal says Assistant Town Planner needs a bachelor’s degree. Every other source we saw says diploma. Check the Assistant Town Planner entry in the notification before you decide whether you qualify.
Candidates claiming Kalyana Karnataka reservation must reportedly hold an Article 371(J) eligibility certificate from the competent authority. That requirement appears on one portal only.
Age limit
The minimum age is 18. The maximum depends on category, with age counted as on 26 November 2026, per Placement Store:
| Category | Maximum age |
|---|---|
| General Merit | 40 |
| 2A, 2B, 3A and 3B | 43 |
| SC, ST and Category-I | 45 |
Assuming the notification counts completed years, the date-of-birth limits work out like this. The youngest eligible candidate was born on or before 26 November 2008. The oldest General Merit candidate was born on or after 27 November 1985, the 43 category on or after 27 November 1982, and the 45 category on or after 27 November 1980. That is our arithmetic, not the notice’s wording. If your birthday falls near an edge, read the exact rule. Further relaxation applies under Karnataka Government norms.
Application fee
Per one portal: Rs. 750 for General Merit, OBC (2A, 2B, 3A, 3B) and EWS candidates, and Rs. 250 for SC, ST and Category-I. Persons with disabilities pay as per KEA rules. Payment is online by debit card, credit card, net banking or UPI, and the fee is reportedly non-refundable. The SC/ST amount here is Rs. 250, while KEA’s separate FDA/SDA recruitment reportedly charges Rs. 500. Don’t use one recruitment’s fee for the other, and confirm the amount on the portal before paying.
Selection process
Selection has three parts, as reported:
- A competitive written exam, objective type, on a diploma-level civil engineering syllabus.
- A compulsory Kannada language test, described as a qualifying test for candidates who have not studied Kannada as a first or second language in SSLC or equivalent.
- Document verification, with the merit list prepared on written-exam marks and the reservation roster.
The exam pattern, marks, negative marking and syllabus are not given in the summaries. Read them from the notification. If you studied Kannada as a language at SSLC level, check how your marksheet shows it, because that decides whether the language test applies to you.
Salary
No reliable pay scale for these posts has come from the sources we could verify. An August pre-notification article quoted Rs. 37,500 to 76,100 for diploma-level Junior Engineers, but it predates the notifications. Use the figure in the notification.
How to apply
- Open the KEA website at cetonline.karnataka.gov.in/kea and find the Group-C technical recruitment for RPC and KK cadres.
- Download both notifications and confirm your post, cadre and reservation.
- Register with your name, date of birth, mobile number and an active email address.
- Enter personal, category and SSLC marks, and your diploma marks.
- Select your department preferences in order of priority.
- Upload photograph, signature, SSLC certificate, diploma marksheet and any category, rural or Kannada-medium certificates.
- Pay the fee online and submit by 26 November.
- Print the confirmation page.
Sources name different web addresses for the application. Most use cetonline.karnataka.gov.in. One lists a separate kearecruitment.karnataka.gov.in login, and one names kea.kar.nic.in. Reach the form through the KEA website, not a forwarded link.
Choosing department preferences
The form reportedly asks for your department preferences in order. The posts are very uneven: the Greater Bengaluru Authority has 46 RPC Junior Engineer posts, the Minerals Corporation 2, and Ground Water 5. How preferences feed into allotment is not described in the summaries. Rank by where you want to work and by the number of seats. Don’t rank a two-post department first unless you truly prefer it.
Common mistakes
- Wrong cadre. Two notifications exist. Apply under the one that fits your domicile and certificates.
- Missing the fee date. The application and fee deadlines differ by a day in the best-sourced report.
- Assuming 8 January is the written exam. It is the Kannada test date in the KEA-quoted report.
- Ignoring the Kannada test. Check how your SSLC marksheet lists Kannada.
- Qualification mismatch. Check the Assistant Town Planner and Junior Engineer entries separately.
What happens next
After 26 November: fee payment closes on the 27th, then hall tickets, the Kannada test and written exam in January 2027, then the key, result and document verification. Dates beyond January have not been announced.
KEA Junior Engineer Recruitment 2026 Important Links
| Link Description | Link / Status |
|---|---|
| Apply Online | Click Here |
| Official RPC Notification | View Recruitment Notices |
| Official Website | Click Here |
FAQs
Is it 187 posts or 218? 187 is the RPC notification. Add the 31 KK posts for 218 in total.
Is 8 January the written exam? Not clearly. The KEA-quoted news report says the Kannada language test is on 8 January and the written exam is in January. Two portals call 8 January the exam date.
Can a degree holder apply? The sources describe a diploma-level recruitment. One portal mentions a degree for Assistant Town Planner, which others contradict. Check the notification.
When is the last date? Apply by 26 November 2026. The fee deadline is reported as 27 November.
What is the fee? Rs. 750 for General Merit, OBC and EWS; Rs. 250 for SC, ST and Category-I, per one portal. Confirm on the portal.