NPCIL Apprentice Recruitment 2026: 80 Posts, Apply Online OPEN

NPCIL’s Narora Atomic Power Station (NAPS) has issued Advertisement No. NAPS/HRM/APPRENTICE/02/2026 for 80 apprentice seats, and the online form opens today at 10:00 hrs and closes on 18 November 2026 at 16:00 hrs. Still pending: the merit list, the document verification schedule and the joining date. None of these has been announced.

If you searched “NPCIL Apprentice Recruitment 2026” and found several different numbers, there is a reason. NPCIL runs separate apprentice drives at separate sites. Earlier this year there were drives for the Rawatbhata (Rajasthan) site with 245 trade seats, for Kakrapar (Gujarat) with 337 seats and for MAPS Kalpakkam with 158 seats. Those have closed. This article is about the new Narora drive for 80 seats, which is the only one open right now, according to the notification as reported by job portals on 28–29 October 2026.

An apprenticeship is training, not a job. NPCIL has said in the notice that it is not bound to offer a job afterwards. If that suits you, this is a useful year at a Department of Atomic Energy company.

Notification at a glance

Important dates

The online form opens on 29 October 2026 at 10:00 hrs. It closes on 18 November 2026 at 16:00 hrs. The notice also fixes 18 November 2026 as the date on which your age, qualification and other conditions are checked. Note the closing time: the portal shuts at 4 PM, not midnight. One job portal lists 28 October as the opening date, but most portals reporting the notification say 29 October, so go by the 29 October date unless the official PDF says otherwise.

No date has been announced for the merit list or document verification.

Vacancy details

The trade-wise split reported from the notification is below.

Category-wise, the reported figures are SC 16, OBC (NCL) 21, EWS 8 and UR 35, a total of 80. The notice has no ST seats. Seats for persons with benchmark disabilities (PwBD) sit inside these totals, and the notification lists which disabilities suit each trade.

Education qualification

For trade apprentices, you need an ITI pass certificate in the same trade you apply for. Diploma apprentices need a full-time diploma in engineering or technology in the matching discipline. Graduate apprentices in Mechanical or Electrical need an engineering degree in that discipline. The HR, Finance and Accounts, and Contract and Material Management seats are open to general-stream graduates such as BBA, BA, B.Sc. and B.Com.

All qualifications must come from regular, full-time courses. Diploma and graduate candidates must have passed within five years of 18 November 2026, which the notice ties to applications on the NATS portal.

Age limit and relaxation

Age is counted on 18 November 2026.

Trade apprentices must be 18 to 24 years old, diploma apprentices 18 to 25 and graduate apprentices 18 to 26. Relaxation is up to 5 years for SC and ST, 3 years for OBC (NCL) and 10 years for PwBD in the General and EWS categories. PwBD candidates who are also OBC (NCL) get up to 13 years, and PwBD candidates who are SC or ST get up to 15 years. PwBD means a disability of 40% or more.

Who is not eligible

You cannot apply if you have completed an apprenticeship under the Apprentices Act, 1961 or are doing one now, in a government body, PSU or private firm. You also cannot apply if you left an earlier apprenticeship before finishing. The notice says that hiding this can lead to disqualification and a ban from apprenticeship at NPCIL, so don’t skip it on the form.

The reported physical standards are a minimum height of 137 cm, a minimum weight of 25.4 kg and chest expansion of at least 3.8 cm. A history of tuberculosis, active or healed, is a ground for disqualification. These are low numbers, so the real gate is the medical fitness check.

Application fee

The notification does not mention any application fee. If a website or an agent asks you for money to “confirm” your form, that has nothing to do with this notice.

Stipend (what “salary” means here)

Apprentices get a stipend, not a salary. The reported monthly figures are ₹10,560 for a trade apprentice with a one-year ITI course and ₹11,040 after a two-year ITI course. Diploma apprentices get ₹10,900 and graduate apprentices get ₹12,300. No hostel or transport is provided, so budget for living near Narora.

Selection process

There is no written exam or interview described in the notice. Selection works like this, in order:

1. Local preference. Eligible candidates who live within 16 km of the Narora plant are considered first, subject to reservation. If there are too few local candidates in a category, others are considered on merit. You must prove your permanent address.
2. A merit list based on the percentage of marks in your trade or discipline.
3. If two candidates have the same percentage, the older candidate ranks higher. If the date of birth is also the same, the candidate with the higher 10th-class percentage ranks higher.
4. Document verification. Your candidature stays provisional until your certificates are checked.

Exam pattern and syllabus: since there is no test, there is no syllabus to study. Your ITI, diploma or degree marks are the whole contest. A cut-off cannot be known until the list is out, and I did not find a published cut-off from any earlier NPCIL apprentice merit list, so I won’t quote one.

Marks in CGPA or grades

If your institute gives CGPA, GPA or letter grades, upload the conversion certificate your institute issued. According to the notice as reported, if your institute has no formula, NPCIL uses its own table. On a 10-point scale it treats 5.9 as 55%, 6.5 as 60% and 7.0 as 65%. Your institute’s formula, if it has one, comes first.

How to apply

There are three parts, and most mistakes happen in the first two.

1. Register on the correct portal for your type and upload the documents it asks for.
2. Make sure your Aadhaar is linked to your bank account.
3. On the same portal, apply to Narora Atomic Power Station, NPCIL, using the ID above. A wrong ID means the application is not accepted.
4. Between 29 October (10:00) and 18 November (16:00), fill the NPCIL online form at npcilcareers.co.in.
5. Upload a colour photo in JPG, up to 50 KB, and a signature in JPG, up to 20 KB.
6. Use a personal email and mobile number that will stay active through selection, since neither can be changed after registration.
7. Submit and save the confirmation.

Documents you will need

For registration you need your date-of-birth proof (birth certificate or 10th certificate), 10th mark sheet, your ITI, diploma or degree certificate and all mark sheets, and a CGPA conversion certificate if it applies. Add residence proof if you claim local preference, and your caste, income-and-assets or disability certificate if relevant.

At verification, expect to show originals and self-attested copies of the above, plus 12th marks, a police verification certificate from the District Police Authority, Aadhaar, PAN, bank details, two passport photos, proof of permanent address and the signed application form. The EWS certificate must be valid for 2026-27, and OBC candidates need a non-creamy layer certificate.

Job profile

Apprentices train for up to 12 months at Narora Atomic Power Station under a contract governed by the Apprentices Act, 1961 and the Apprenticeship Rules, 1992. The contract ends when training ends. NAPS is a highly protected area, which is why police verification is required before engagement. The notice also says an apprentice who stays away may be asked to refund the stipend received, as decided by the Central Apprenticeship Advisor.

Two things most guides miss

The first is the portal trap. The Trade ID works on NAPS and the Diploma and Graduate ID works on NATS. A diploma holder who registers on NAPS because “that’s the apprentice portal” will never see the right establishment. Check this before anything else, because you can’t fix it in the last hour.

The second is the unstated advantage of living near Narora. Local candidates within 16 km are looked at first. If you live nearby, collect your address proof early. If you don’t, your merit percentage still counts, but expect that local candidates in your category are ahead of you in the queue.

Important Links

FAQs

I did one year of an ITI apprenticeship earlier. Can I apply for the diploma or graduate seat?
No. The notice bars anyone who has completed or is doing any apprenticeship under the Apprentices Act, 1961, whatever the level.

I live 20 km from Narora. Do I get local preference?
The reported rule is for residents within 16 km. At 20 km you compete on merit with everyone else in your category after local candidates are considered.

My diploma is from 2019. Can I apply?
The five-year rule counts back from 18 November 2026, so a pass in 2021 or later is needed. A 2019 pass would not qualify under that condition as reported.

Is there any exam to prepare for?
Not according to the notice as reported. Selection is by percentage of marks in your trade or discipline, then document verification. Check the official PDF in case it adds a step.