The Indian Army has invited applications from eligible unmarried male engineering graduates for the 145th Technical Graduate Course (TGC-145), commencing in July 2027 at the Indian Military Academy (IMA), Dehradun, for grant of Permanent Commission.
Online applications will open on 30 September 2026 at 1500 hours and close on 29 October 2026 at 1500 hours on the official portal. Aadhaar number and the Matriculation certificate are mandatory for registration. Only one online application is permitted; multiple applications will lead to cancellation of candidature. No change in submitted details is allowed after closure of the application window.
Eligibility
Nationality. A candidate must be a citizen of India, or a subject of Nepal, or a person of Indian origin who has migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, and the East African countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire and Ethiopia, and Vietnam, with the intention of permanently settling in India. Candidates in categories other than Indian citizens must hold a certificate of eligibility issued by the Government of India, except Gorkha subjects of Nepal, for whom the certificate is not required.
Age. 20 to 27 years as on 01 July 2027. Candidates must have been born not earlier than 01 July 2000 and not later than 30 June 2007. Only the date of birth recorded in the Matriculation or Secondary School Examination Certificate, or an equivalent certificate, on the date of submission of the application will be accepted. No other document relating to age will be accepted, and no subsequent request for change will be considered.
Marital status. Only unmarried male candidates are eligible. Candidates must not marry until they complete training at IMA. Marriage after the date of application, even if the candidate is successful at the Service Selection Board (SSB) and medical examination, will result in cancellation of candidature. Marriage during training will lead to discharge and recovery of all expenditure incurred by the Government.
Educational qualification. BE/B.Tech, or M.Sc in Computer Science, in the notified engineering streams only. Degrees must be from a university or institution recognised by an Act of the Central or State Legislature in India, or from an institution established by an Act of Parliament, or declared as a deemed or autonomous university under the UGC Act 1956, IIT Act 1961, AICTE Act 1987, NITSER Act 2007, or IIIT Act 2024. Candidates holding an engineering degree from a foreign country are not eligible.
Any variation between the nomenclature of the engineering stream on the degree parchment or marksheet and the stream entered in the online application will result in cancellation of candidature. CGPA or grades must be converted into marks as per the formula adopted by the concerned university. The percentage given by the college or university after applying its own conversion formula will be treated as final.
Final-year candidates. Candidates studying in the final year of an engineering degree, who have not yet passed the final-year examination, may apply subject to the following conditions:
- They must submit proof of passing the engineering degree examination, along with marksheets of all semesters or years, by 01 July 2027 to TGC Entry, West Block-III, R.K. Puram, New Delhi-110066, and produce the engineering degree certificate within 12 weeks of the commencement of training at IMA.
- Their cumulative percentage up to the sixth semester or third year of the engineering degree (eighth semester or fourth year for B.Arch, and second semester or first year for M.Sc in the notified equivalent stream) must not be below the approved cut-off of the respective stream.
- After declaration of the final result, the cumulative percentage up to the final semester or year must also not fall below the approved cut-off, failing which candidature will be cancelled.
- Candidates whose final-year or final-semester result will be declared after 01 July 2027 are not eligible.
- Such candidates will be inducted on an additional bond basis for recovery of the cost of training, stipend, and pay and allowances, if they fail to produce the requisite degree certificate.
Candidates withdrawn, dismissed, removed, or invalided out from any defence training academy on disciplinary, administrative, or medical grounds, rendering them ineligible for further military service, are not eligible. Candidates debarred by the UPSC from any examination, or withdrawn from NDA, IMA, OTA, Naval Academy, Air Force Academy, or any service training academy on disciplinary grounds, are also not eligible. A candidate must never have been arrested or convicted by a criminal court, or involved in any case. Suppression of material information, including previous training, withdrawal, resignation, dismissal, or medical invalidment, will render candidature liable to cancellation at any stage.
Vacancies
A total of 30 vacancies have been notified. These are tentative and may be changed or re-appropriated according to organisational requirements. Only the streams and acceptable equivalent streams listed in the notification are valid.
| Core stream | Vacancies |
|---|---|
| Civil (including Architecture and Building Construction & Technology equivalents) | 08 |
| Computer Science (including Computer Science & Engineering, Computer Technology, M.Sc Computer Science, and Information Technology equivalents) | 06 |
| Electrical (including Electrical and Electronics equivalents) | 02 |
| Electronics (including Electronics & Communication, Instrumentation, Telecommunication, and related equivalents) | 06 |
| Mechanical (including Production, Automobile, Industrial, Aeronautical, Aerospace, and Avionics equivalents) | 06 |
| Miscellaneous Engineering Streams (Plastic Technology, Remote Sensing, Ballistics, Bio Medical, Food Technology, Agriculture, Metallurgical, Laser Technology, Bio Technology, Rubber Technology, Chemical, Transportation, Mining, Nuclear Technology, Textile, and related equivalents) | 02 |
| Total | 30 |
Recommended candidates of TGC-145 whose merit does not fall within the allotted vacancies of their engineering stream may be offered Short Service Commission (Tech) Course commencing in October 2027, subject to meeting all other eligibility conditions and availability of unutilised vacancies in the SSC (Tech) course for the respective stream.
Minimum physical standards before joining
Candidates must acquire the following standards before joining the training academy:
- 2.4 km run: 10 minutes 30 seconds
- Push-ups: 40
- Pull-ups: 06
- Sit-ups: 30
- Squats: two sets of 30 repetitions
- Lunges: two sets of 10 repetitions
- Swimming: knowledge of the fundamentals of swimming
Selection procedure
Integrated Headquarters of Ministry of Defence (Army) reserves the right to shortlist applications on the basis of the vacancy-to-call-up ratio for each engineering discipline, without assigning any reason. The cut-off is applied stream-wise on the cumulative percentage of marks up to the final semester or year. Final-year candidates are provisionally allowed to appear at the SSB subject to the cumulative-percentage conditions stated above.
After shortlisting, candidates must log in and select SSB dates and centres on a first-come, first-served basis. The centre and date once selected will not be changed. The option to select dates and centres may be withdrawn in exceptional circumstances, and the Directorate General of Recruiting reserves the right to change a selected centre and date.
Only shortlisted candidates will be called to one of the Selection Centres at Prayagraj (Uttar Pradesh), Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh), Bengaluru (Karnataka), or Jalandhar (Punjab). The call-up letter will be issued only through the registered e-mail ID and SMS. The SSB is a two-stage process of a maximum of five days. Candidates who fail Stage-1 are returned the same day. Candidates recommended after Stage-2 undergo medical examination. Details are available on www.joinindianarmy.nic.in.
Candidates recommended by the SSB and declared medically fit will be issued joining letters in the order of merit, stream-wise, up to the number of vacancies, subject to fulfilment of all eligibility criteria. Mere qualification at the SSB does not confirm selection.
The merit list is prepared engineering stream-wise on SSB marks. Where SSB marks are equal, the older candidate is placed higher. Where both SSB marks and age are equal, the candidate with the higher percentage in the qualifying degree is placed higher. Higher educational qualifications and previous performance have no role.
The validity of the SSB medical examination is 270 days from the Special Medical Board to the date of joining the Pre-Commission Training Academy. A candidate already declared medically fit in an Army SSB medical (SMB/AMB/RMB) need not undergo a fresh medical for TGC-145 if the period from the SMB date to 01 July 2027 is less than 270 days. Candidates already under training in any Army pre-commission training academy need not undergo a fresh medical even if the gap exceeds 270 days. Medical Board proceedings are confidential.
Commission, training, and seniority
Selected candidates will be granted Short Service Commission on probation in the rank of Lieutenant from the date of commencement of the course or the date of reporting at IMA, Dehradun, whichever is later. On successful completion of training, cadets will be granted Permanent Commission in the rank of Lieutenant.
Engineering graduates of the TGC entry will be granted one year of ante-date seniority from the date of commission in the rank of Lieutenant, for the purpose of seniority, promotion, and increment of pay.
Training at IMA is of about 12 months. The entire cost is borne by the Government. If an officer cadet is withdrawn for reasons other than medical grounds or reasons beyond his control, he is liable to refund the cost of training at ₹20,481.96 per week (tentative; actual cost will be calculated at the time of withdrawal or resignation), as per Ministry of Defence letter No. 16(1)/2017-D(GS.II) dated 15 March 2022, with an annual increment of 8 per cent, or as notified from time to time.
Final allocation of Arms or Services will be made before passing out from IMA, at the sole discretion of Integrated Headquarters of Ministry of Defence (Army). No representation against allotment will be entertained.
A candidate who fails to report within seven days of the reporting date mentioned in the joining letter, without prior permission of the Adjutant of the academy, will have his candidature cancelled, and the next candidate in merit will be issued a joining letter.
Pay, allowances, and related benefits
Pay is as per the 7th Central Pay Commission matrix. Military Service Pay of ₹15,500 per month (fixed) is admissible from Lieutenant to Brigadier. During training at IMA, gentleman cadets receive a fixed stipend of ₹56,100 per month (starting pay in Level 10). On commissioning, pay is fixed in the first cell of Level 10; the training period is not treated as commissioned service, though arrears of admissible allowances for the training period are paid.
| Rank | Level | Pay (₹) |
|---|---|---|
| Lieutenant | 10 | 56,100–1,77,500 |
| Captain | 10B | 61,300–1,93,900 |
| Major | 11 | 69,400–2,07,200 |
| Lieutenant Colonel | 12A | 1,21,200–2,12,400 |
| Colonel | 13 | 1,30,600–2,15,900 |
| Brigadier | 13A | 1,39,600–2,17,600 |
| Major General | 14 | 1,44,200–2,18,200 |
| Lieutenant General (HAG Scale) | 15 | 1,82,200–2,24,100 |
| Lieutenant General (HAG+ Scale) | 16 | 2,05,400–2,24,400 |
| VCOAS / Army Commander / Lieutenant General (NFSG) | 17 | 2,25,000 (fixed) |
| COAS | 18 | 2,50,000 (fixed) |
Promotion is on completion of reckonable commissioned service: Captain at 2 years, Major at 6 years, Lieutenant Colonel at 13 years, and Colonel (Time Scale) at 26 years. Higher ranks are by selection, subject to service conditions.
Other allowances, subject to eligibility and revision, include Dearness Allowance at civilian rates, Technical Allowance (Tier-I ₹3,000 and Tier-II ₹4,500 per month), Dress Allowance of ₹20,000 per year, ration in kind in peace and field areas, Transport Allowance (₹7,200 plus DA in higher TPTA cities and ₹3,600 plus DA at other places for Pay Level 10 and above), Children Education Allowance, and Hostel Subsidy. Field-area allowances depend on rank and area of posting. Rates of specified defence allowances rise by 25 per cent automatically each time Dearness Allowance rises by 50 per cent. Pay and allowances are subject to revision.
Officer cadets in receipt of stipend are insured for ₹1.25 crore under the Army Group Insurance Fund, on payment of a monthly subscription of ₹12,500 in advance. Disability benefits and ex-gratia grants are admissible under the notified conditions; disability arising from alcoholism, drug addiction, or pre-enrolment disease, and cases of disciplinary withdrawal, expulsion, or voluntary exit, are excluded.
How to apply and documents
Applications are accepted only online at www.joinindianarmy.nic.in through Officer Entry Apply/Login. After registration, candidates must select Apply against Technical Graduate Course, complete all segments, and submit. Two printouts of the application bearing the roll number must be taken 30 minutes after final closure on the last day. One signed copy with a self-attested photograph is to be carried to the SSB; the second is to be retained. No hard copy is to be sent to the Directorate General of Recruiting.
Originals, with self-attested copies, to be carried to the Selection Centre include the Matriculation certificate and marksheet, Class 12 certificate and marksheet (or diploma equivalent), engineering degree or provisional degree, marksheets of all semesters or years, the university certificate on the CGPA-to-marks conversion formula, and, for final-year candidates, the cumulative-percentage certificate, the certificate that the result will be declared by 01 July 2027, and the required declaration. Documents related to civil verification are also required. DigiLocker certificates will not be accepted in lieu of originals, except where the institution certifies that only e-certificates were issued and no hard copy was provided; in such cases a colour printout authenticated by the school, college, or university must be produced. Provisional degree must not be more than six months old at the time of joining the academy. Name, parents’ names, and date of birth in the profile and application must match the Matriculation certificate. Any variation in name requires an affidavit. Candidates serving in the Armed Forces must inform their Commanding Officer in writing and carry a countersigned application.
Candidates appearing for the SSB for the first time for this type of commission are entitled to AC-III Tier to-and-fro railway fare, or bus fare including reservation-cum-sleeper charges, within Indian limits. Candidates applying again for the same type of commission are not entitled to travelling allowance on a subsequent occasion.
Queries will be answered only through the Feedback/Query option on www.joinindianarmy.nic.in, and only those received up to three days before closure of the online application. The notification is published in Hindi and English; in the event of any discrepancy, the English version will prevail.
Candidates are advised to read the notification, website tickers, joining instructions, and FAQs carefully before applying, and to ensure that the engineering-stream nomenclature, cumulative percentage, and personal particulars match the supporting documents exactly.
