new delhi the ministry of railways on monday informed that the seventh ie last phase of railway recruitment exams for various non technical popular categories ntpc graduate and undergraduate posts ntpc cen 012019 will be commencing from july 23 with strict covid19 related protocols and precautions six phases of the first stage computer based test cbt for around 123 crore candidates against centralized employment notification no 012019 ntpc categories having 35281 vacancies have been conducted from december 28 2020 till april 8 2021 further seventh ie last phase of computer based test for remaining 278 lakh candidates which got impacted on account of second wave of covid19 affecting whole country has now been scheduled on 23 24th 26 and 31st july 2021 with this 1st stage cbt will get completed for all the candidates as per the official release by the ministry the cbt is being held in 76 cities in about 260 centers across the country under strict covid19 protocol using sd50 module permitting utilization of 50 percent capacity available at centers to ensure adequate social distancing most of the candidates are allotted centers in their home state where it is not possible to allot within the state the candidates have been accommodated in the neighbouring state having rail connectivity for the candidates scheduled in this phase the link for viewing the exam centre and date and downloading of free travelling authority for scst candidates will be made available on all rrb websites ten days before the exam downloading of ecall letters will start four days prior to the exam date mentioned in exam city and date intimation link necessary intimation is also being sent to all those candidates scheduled in the 7th phase to their email and mobile numbers given in their online application candidates are advised to refer only to the official websites of rrbs for the latest updates on the recruitment process do not be misled by unauthenticated sources a help desk has already been provided on all rrb official websites candidates are advised to use this help desk for seeking clarifications informed the ministry candidates are advised to strictly follow covidrelated guidelines issued along with the call letter use of face mask is mandatory candidates will be allowed entry only if wearing a face mask and the face mask shall be worn at all times except at the time of capturing photograph candidates are also advised to carefully read and comply with the instructions uploaded along with the ecall letter particularly on banned items electronic gadgets such as mobile phones pager watches bluetooth enabled devices calculators metallic wears bangles belts bracelets etc are not allowed inside the test centre rrbs have made extensive preparations for conducting examinations of this large scale in covid19 pandemic times following sops as laid down by government ensuring social distancing compulsory use of masks sanitizers curtailing shifts for conducting exams rrbs are cocoordinating with respective state authorities to ensure smooth conduct of cbt