Single written exam of 200 marks (no prelims for Scale II). General category cut-off: 130–145 out of 200. Professional Knowledge (Agriculture) cut-off: 52–60 out of 80. Experience filter means fewer but better-prepared candidates.
⚠️ Disclaimer: Cut-offs shown are indicative estimates. Official figures from IBPS at ibps.in — always verify there.
| Section | Marks | Safe Target | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Professional Knowledge (Agriculture) | 80 | 56+ | Most important — the differentiator. Same as IBPS AFO agriculture syllabus. |
| Reasoning | 40 | 28+ | Standard banking reasoning. Seating, inequality, syllogism. |
| Financial Awareness | 40 | 28+ | Banking, RBI policy, government schemes, current affairs. |
| English / Hindi Language | 40 | 24+ | Reading comprehension, fill in blanks, error spotting. |
| Total Safe Score | 200 | 146+ / 200 | General category safe buffer for interview call |
Written exam (200 marks) + Interview (50 marks). Final merit = Written (80%) + Interview (20%).
| Category | Written (out of 200) | Prof. Knowledge (out of 80) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| General (UR) | 130–145 | 52–60 | High competition due to experience filter |
| OBC | 122–136 | 48–56 | Non-creamy layer |
| SC | 108–122 | 42–50 | 15% reservation |
| ST | 98–112 | 38–46 | 7.5% reservation |
| EWS | 126–140 | 50–58 | 10% reservation |
| PwD | 90–108 | 35–44 | Horizontal reservation |
General category. Cut-offs rising ~1–2 marks per year as experienced candidate pool grows.
| Year | Written (Gen) | Prof. Knowledge | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 125–138 | 48–55 | Lower vacancies; moderate applicants |
| 2020 | 122–135 | 46–53 | COVID year; lower cut-offs due to fewer takers |
| 2021 | 126–140 | 50–57 | Post-COVID rebound; increased applications |
| 2022 | 128–142 | 51–58 | Competition intensifying; experience pool growing |
| 2023 | 130–144 | 52–60 | Highest; experienced candidates now well-prepared |
| 2024 | 129–143 | 51–59 | Stable; more vacancies released |
| 2025 ⭐ | 130–145 | 52–60 | Estimated; results pending |
This is where agriculture graduates win. All other sections (Reasoning, FA, English) are common to all banking exams — you have no structural edge there. Score 56+ in Professional Knowledge to secure the position even with average performance in other sections.
RRB SO Agriculture Professional Knowledge is identical to IBPS AFO Mains agriculture syllabus: Agronomy, Soil Science, Horticulture, Plant Pathology, Entomology, Genetics, Agricultural Economics, Extension. Same notes, same preparation.
Unlike IBPS AFO, RRB SO FA paper includes rural banking, RRB-specific topics (RBI guidelines for RRBs, priority sector lending in rural areas, NABARD refinance to RRBs, KCC under RRBs, PM-KISAN). Add these to your current affairs prep.
Scale II has no prelims. One written exam decides everything. If you clear written, interview is 20% weight. Prepare agriculture fundamentals for interview — selection committees ask subject questions from your specialisation.
This is one of the most common questions around this page. During active cycles, many published values are expected ranges, so candidates should use them for planning and verify final numbers only from official IBPS releases.
A recurring search intent is confusion about marks, scaling, and whether people are talking about qualifying scores or likely selection ranges. Candidates should read every cut-off in the context of the exact stage and score format being discussed.
It is usually the biggest differentiator. Public cut-off discussions repeatedly show that agriculture professional knowledge can create the score cushion that separates shortlisted candidates from the rest.
The useful approach is to target a buffer above the likely cut-off, not just the minimum line. That gives protection against paper difficulty changes and stronger competition in a small experienced-candidate pool.
No. They are useful for trend reading and strategy, but they are not exact predictors. Vacancies, exam level, and the quality of experienced applicants can shift the final outcome quickly.
Build your margin through professional knowledge first, then protect easy marks in reasoning, awareness, and language. Accuracy and balanced preparation usually matter more than risky over-attempting.