MP Sub Engineer Civil 2026: Exam Pattern, Syllabus, Cut Off & Free Mock Tests
MPESB Group-3 Sub Engineer (उपयंत्री) — Civil Engineering, Madhya Pradesh
MP Sub Engineer — उपयंत्री — is the Madhya Pradesh Employees Selection Board's Group-3 recruitment, and it is the single largest civil-engineering diploma opening in the state. The 2026 (द्वितीय) advertisement carries 1,700 posts across 132 post codes, of which 1,389 sit on the Civil Engineering paper.
Everyone sits ONE online paper of 200 questions in 3 hours: Part A is 100 questions of general subjects, Part B is 100 questions of your own trade. Which trade paper you get is fixed by the post code you apply against — Civil Engineering is Paper C.
The biggest civil recruiters this cycle are the Water Resources Department (379 posts), Rural Engineering Services (290) and the PWD (225). Pay is level-8, ₹32,800–1,03,600, and a three-year civil diploma qualifies almost everywhere.
MP Sub Engineer Civil 2026 — Overview
| Conducting body | MP Employees Selection Board (MPESB, formerly MP Vyapam) |
| Post | उपयंत्री (Sub Engineer) — Civil, and allied technical posts |
| Vacancies | 1,700 total · 1,389 on the Civil Engineering paper |
| Mode | One online paper (CBT) — Part A 100 + Part B 100 |
| Total marks | 200 questions · 200 marks · 3 hours |
| Negative marking | 0.25 per wrong answer |
| Eligibility | Three-year diploma in Civil Engineering (degree also accepted for some posts) |
| Age limit | 18–40 years; 18–45 for MP SC/ST/OBC, women, government employees, home guards and PwD (as on 01.01.2026) |
MP Sub Engineer Civil Exam Pattern
Single online paper — 200 questions, 3 hours
| Section | Questions | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| Part A (खंड अ) — General Knowledge, General Hindi, General English, General Mathematics, General Reasoning, General Science, General Computer Knowledge | 100 | 100 |
| Part B (खंड ब) — Civil Engineering (Paper C) | 100 | 100 |
Duration: 3 hours
Negative marking: 0.25 marks deducted for every wrong answer; 1 mark for every correct one.
ℹ️ The paper runs in two shifts — 09:00–12:00 and 14:30–17:30 — from 07 October 2026. Part B is decided by your post code: Civil is Paper C, and candidates on post code 088 (Assistant Architectural Draftsman) may sit either the Civil or the Architecture paper.
MP Sub Engineer Civil Syllabus — Key Subjects
See the detailed chapter-wise syllabus (built from real previous-year papers) on the MP Sub Engineer Civil test series page →
MP Sub Engineer Civil Detailed Syllabus 2026
The exam pattern below is the official one; the topic lists are compiled where the conducting body has not published its own — 200 questions · 200 marks in 3 hours. Pattern source: esb.mp.gov.in.
Part A — General Knowledge & Aptitude (100 questions · 100 marks)
- सामान्य ज्ञान — General Knowledge
- Indian history and the national movement · Indian and world geography · Indian polity and the Constitution · Indian economy · art, culture and heritage · important days, books and authors, awards, sports · countries, capitals and currencies · science and technology · government schemes · current affairs. Madhya Pradesh general knowledge carries real weight in this paper — MP history and dynasties, its geography, rivers and national parks, tribes, festivals and folk arts, state polity and economy, and MP-specific schemes and current affairs.
- सामान्य हिन्दी — General Hindi
- वर्णमाला · संधि · समास · उपसर्ग एवं प्रत्यय · संज्ञा, सर्वनाम, विशेषण, क्रिया · पर्यायवाची एवं विलोम शब्द · अनेकार्थी शब्द · मुहावरे एवं लोकोक्तियाँ · वाक्य शुद्धि एवं अशुद्धि संशोधन · रिक्त स्थान पूर्ति · गद्यांश (अपठित बोध)
- सामान्य अंग्रेजी — General English
- Grammar — tenses, articles and prepositions, subject–verb agreement, active and passive voice, narration · vocabulary — synonyms, antonyms, one-word substitution, idioms and phrases, spelling · error detection and sentence improvement · fill in the blanks · cloze test · para jumbles · reading comprehension
- सामान्य गणित — General Mathematics
- Number system · simplification and approximation · HCF and LCM · percentage · ratio and proportion · average · profit, loss and discount · simple and compound interest · time and work · time, speed and distance · mixtures and alligation · mensuration · basic algebra and trigonometry · data interpretation
- सामान्य तार्किक योग्यता — General Reasoning
- Analogy · classification and odd one out · coding–decoding · number, letter and mixed series · blood relations · direction and distance sense · ranking and order · seating arrangement and puzzles · syllogism · Venn diagrams · calendars and clocks · mathematical operations · non-verbal reasoning
- सामान्य विज्ञान — General Science
- Physics — units and measurement, force and motion, work, energy and power, light, sound, heat, electricity and magnetism · Chemistry — atomic structure, periodic table, acids, bases and salts, chemical reactions, metals and non-metals, carbon compounds · Biology — cell and tissue, human body systems, nutrition and diseases, plant and animal kingdoms · environmental science and everyday applications of science
- सामान्य कम्प्यूटर ज्ञान — General Computer Knowledge
- Computer fundamentals and generations · hardware and software · input and output devices, memory · operating systems and Windows · MS Office — Word, Excel, PowerPoint · internet, email and web services · networking basics · database basics · computer abbreviations · cyber safety
Part B — Civil Engineering (100 questions · 100 marks) — indicative
- Applied Mechanics
- Composition and resolution of forces · equilibrium and conditions of equilibrium · moments and couples · centre of gravity and moment of inertia · friction and its applications · simple lifting machines, mechanical advantage, velocity ratio and efficiency · laws of motion · work, power and energy
- Mechanics of Structures (Strength of Materials)
- Simple stress and strain, elastic constants · thermal and compound stresses · principal stresses and Mohr's circle · shear force and bending moment diagrams · bending and shear stress in beams · deflection of beams · torsion of shafts · columns and struts, Euler and Rankine · analysis of simple trusses · thin cylinders
- Material Technology & Building Construction
- Building stones, bricks and tiles · lime, cement and its testing · aggregates, mortar and concrete · timber and artificial timber · paints, varnishes and distempers · glass, plastics and modern materials · building components — foundations, walls, masonry, floors, roofs, stairs, doors, windows, arches and lintels · damp proofing · plastering and pointing · scaffolding, shoring and formwork
- Building Drawing
- Drawing standards and instruments · lettering, dimensioning and scales · conventional signs and symbols per IS 962 · orthographic, isometric and sectional views · plan, elevation and section of buildings · site plan and line diagram · planning of residential and public buildings · building bye-laws basics · introduction to computer-aided drafting
- Surveying
- Principles and classification of surveying · chain and cross-staff survey · compass survey, bearings and local attraction · plane table surveying · levelling — dumpy level, reduction of levels, contouring · theodolite survey and traversing · tacheometry · curves and setting out · areas and volumes · errors and their adjustment · introduction to total station, GPS and remote sensing
- Hydraulics (Fluid Mechanics)
- Properties of fluids · hydrostatic pressure and its measurement · pressure on plane and curved surfaces · buoyancy and floatation · fundamentals of fluid flow and Bernoulli's equation · flow through pipes, losses and pipe networks · flow in open channels, uniform flow and hydraulic jump · flow measuring devices — orifice, mouthpiece, notch, weir, venturimeter · hydraulic machines — pumps and turbines
- Soil Mechanics
- Origin and formation of soils, three-phase system · index properties and classification of soils · permeability and seepage, flow nets · effective stress and capillarity · compaction and field control · consolidation and settlement · shear strength of soils and its measurement · bearing capacity of soils · earth pressure theories · shallow and deep (pile) foundations · soil stabilization · site investigation and exploration, SPT
- Structural Design & Drafting — RCC
- Properties of concrete, grades and mix design · working stress and limit state methods · singly and doubly reinforced beams · T-beams and flanged sections · shear, bond and development length · one-way and two-way slabs · columns and footings · staircases · retaining walls · water tanks · bar bending schedule and detailing of reinforcement
- Structural Design & Drafting — Steel Structures
- Structural steel, rolled sections and IS 800 basics · riveted, bolted and welded connections · tension members · compression members and columns · design of beams · column bases and foundations · roof trusses and purlins · plate girders · detailing and drafting of steel joints
- Irrigation Engineering
- Necessity and methods of irrigation · hydrological cycle, rainfall and rain gauges · runoff and flood discharge estimation · water requirement of crops, duty and delta · reservoirs and storage · dams — earthen and gravity · spillways and energy dissipators · diversion headworks · canals, canal design and lining · canal regulation works, outlets and metering flumes · cross drainage works · river training · hydro-electric power basics · wells and tube wells
- Transportation Engineering
- Classification of roads and highway alignment · highway geometric design — camber, gradient, superelevation, sight distance, curves · highway materials and their tests · flexible and rigid pavement construction · road drainage and maintenance · traffic engineering, signs, signals and road markings · railway permanent way — rails, sleepers, ballast, fastenings · points and crossings · bridges and culverts · introduction to airports and harbours
- Estimating, Costing & Quantity Surveying
- Types of estimates — approximate and detailed · units of measurement and mode of measurement · methods of taking out quantities — long wall short wall, centre line · detailed and abstract estimate of buildings, roads and canals · earthwork calculation · bar bending schedule · analysis of rates and schedule of rates · specifications, general and detailed · tenders and contracts · valuation of buildings and rent fixation · basic construction management, scheduling and site supervision
- Public Health & Sanitary Engineering
- Sources of water and water demand · quality of water and drinking water standards · water treatment — screening, sedimentation, coagulation, filtration, disinfection · distribution systems and pipe appurtenances · house plumbing and water supply fittings · sanitation, sewerage systems and sewer design · sewage characteristics, BOD, COD and DO · sewage treatment and disposal · sanitary fittings and traps · solid waste management · rural sanitation and low-cost sanitation
Note: One paper for every post. Each question carries 1 mark and 0.25 is deducted for a wrong answer. Part B is decided by your post code — Civil Engineering is Paper C, which covers 48 of the 132 post codes and 1,389 of the 1,700 vacancies in the 2026 (द्वितीय) advertisement. IMPORTANT: MPESB publishes no topic list for Part B. Its rulebook gives only the 100 + 100 marks split and the post-code-to-paper mapping. The Part B topics below follow the Madhya Pradesh polytechnic diploma syllabus this paper has always been set against; treat them as a well-founded guide, not as an MPESB document.
Eligibility
- ✓A three-year diploma in Civil Engineering from a recognised institution qualifies for almost every Sub Engineer (Civil) post, including Water Resources, Rural Engineering Services and the PWD.
- ✓A degree in Civil Engineering is also accepted at the PWD (post code 020) and MP Laghu Udyog Nigam (129); the Tribal Affairs posts (123) require a degree with at least 50%.
- ✓Age 18–40 years, relaxed to 18–45 for MP-domiciled SC/ST/OBC candidates, women, serving government/corporation employees, home guards and persons with disabilities — reckoned as on 01 January 2026.
- ✓A live registration with a Madhya Pradesh employment exchange is mandatory for all posts.
- ✓Fee ₹500 per paper for unreserved candidates and ₹250 for MP-domiciled SC/ST/OBC/EWS/PwD, plus the MP Online portal charge (₹60 through a kiosk, ₹20 as a registered citizen user). Backlog posts carry no fee.
Salary & Career
Sub Engineer (Civil) posts are on pay level-8 of the Madhya Pradesh matrix, ₹32,800–1,03,600. Draftsman (मानचित्रकार) posts are on level-6, ₹25,300–80,500.
MP Sub Engineer Civil Cut Off
MPESB normalises scores across shifts and publishes a percentile-based result, so a raw-mark cut-off from one year does not transfer to the next. Post code 088 is scored by merging the percentiles of the Civil and Architecture papers.
Vacancy Trends
| Water Resources Dept (post 124) | 379 Sub Engineer (Civil) |
| Rural Engineering Services (post 120) | 290 Sub Engineer (Civil) |
| Public Works Dept (post 020) | 225 Sub Engineer (Civil) |
| MP Urban Development Co. (post 037) | 49 Sub Engineer (contract) |
| Indore Development Authority (post 018) | 41 Sub Engineer |
| Tribal Affairs Dept (post 123) | 27 Sub Engineer (Civil) — degree with 50% |
| Public Health Engineering (post 130) | 24 Sub Engineer (Civil) |
| Divyangjan-reserved (posts 125/126/127) | 84 Sub Engineer (Civil) — VH 28, EH 25, MD 31 |
| Whole advertisement | 1,700 posts over 132 post codes; 1,389 on the Civil paper |
How to Prepare for MP Sub Engineer Civil
- 1Part A is half the paper — 100 of 200 marks. Candidates who treat it as an afterthought lose the exam there, not in the technical half.
- 2Madhya Pradesh GK carries real weight inside Part A: MP history and dynasties, geography and rivers, national parks, tribes and folk arts, state polity, economy and schemes. National GK alone will not carry that section.
- 3Part B is a DIPLOMA paper, not a degree paper. Study surveying, building materials, estimating, hydraulics and RCC detailing to diploma depth rather than chasing degree-level structural analysis.
- 40.25 is deducted for every wrong answer, so four blind guesses wipe out a correct one. Leave what you genuinely do not know.
- 5MPESB has not published a Part B topic list. Work from the Madhya Pradesh polytechnic diploma syllabus — that is what this paper has always been set against, and it is what our mock tests cover.
- 6Scores are normalised across shifts, so an easy or hard shift does not decide your result — consistency across the whole paper does.
Start Practising MP Sub Engineer Civil — Free
Exam-pattern mocks, previous-year papers, detailed solutions and chapter-wise analytics — built only for civil engineers, by a civil engineer who cleared these exams.
MP Sub Engineer Civil — Frequently Asked Questions
What is the MP Sub Engineer exam pattern?▾
One online paper of 200 objective questions in 3 hours. Part A is 100 questions of General Knowledge, General Hindi, General English, General Mathematics, General Reasoning, General Science and General Computer Knowledge. Part B is 100 questions of your trade — Civil Engineering for civil post codes. Each question is 1 mark and 0.25 is deducted for a wrong answer.
How many MP Sub Engineer vacancies are for civil engineering?▾
1,389 of the 1,700 posts in the 2026 (द्वितीय) advertisement sit on the Civil Engineering paper — about 82%. The largest single recruiter is the Water Resources Department with 379 Sub Engineer (Civil) posts, followed by Rural Engineering Services with 290 and the PWD with 225.
Has MPESB released a detailed Sub Engineer syllabus?▾
No. The rulebook devotes two pages to पाठ्यक्रम and they give only the 100 + 100 marks split and a table of which post code sits which trade paper. There is no topic list for Civil Engineering or any other trade, so preparation follows the Madhya Pradesh polytechnic diploma syllabus this paper has always been set against.
Is there negative marking in MP Sub Engineer?▾
Yes. Each correct answer earns 1 mark and 0.25 is deducted for each wrong answer, under clause 3.8(i) of the MPESB rulebook.
Can a degree holder apply for MP Sub Engineer?▾
For some posts, yes. A three-year civil diploma is the standard requirement, but the PWD (post code 020) and MP Laghu Udyog Nigam (129) accept a degree as well, and the Tribal Affairs posts (123) actually require a degree with at least 50% marks. Check the qualification line for the specific post code you apply against.
Where can I practise MP Sub Engineer civil mock tests?▾
CIVILGYAN TEST SERIES has full mocks built to the real shape of this paper — 100 Part A plus 100 Part B, 200 marks, 3 hours, with 0.25 negative — as well as chapter tests on every Part B subject, each with a detailed solution. Free tests are available.
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Disclaimer: Exam patterns, cutoffs, vacancies and eligibility rules change between recruitment cycles. The figures above are compiled for guidance from past cycles — always verify details from the official notification of the conducting body before applying.