Ask any aspirant what they want to know about the constable job and the first question is almost always about salary. Online, the answers vary wildly: old pay scales, figures that include allowances, figures that do not, and numbers copied from other states. This guide sticks to what the official notification actually says, explains clearly what a pay scale means, and separates what is documented from what is only general understanding. It also covers the rest of what a candidate should know before choosing the job: training, probation, pension, promotions, duty life, posting and the real advantages and difficulties.
The official figures come from the State Level Police Recruitment Board (SLPRB) notification Rc.No.91/SLPRB/Rect.2/2026 dated 16 September 2026, which covers SCT Police Constables (Civil and AR), Firemen and Warders, and from the companion Sub-Inspector notification Rc.No.81/SLPRB/Rect.1/2026 of the same date. Facts are as on October 2026. Allowance rates, stipend amounts and promotion timelines are not in these notifications, so they are described in general terms and not as numbers. Always confirm against slprb.ap.gov.in and the relevant government orders. For eligibility and the exam, see the AP Police Constable guide. For the officer-level post, see the AP Police SI guide, and for a comparison of both, Constable vs SI. The wider picture is in the Andhra Pradesh government exams 2026 guide.
1. The short answer
The Scale of Pay for the SCT Police Constable (Civil), SCT Police Constable (AR), Firemen and Warder posts is Rs 25,220 to Rs 80,910 per month under the Revised Pay Scale 2022. It appears in paragraph 27 of the notification. The two numbers are the starting point of the scale and its upper limit. A recruit starts near the lower end after training and moves up through annual increments over a career, so Rs 80,910 is not what anyone receives on the first day.
| Item | Per the notification |
|---|---|
| Notification | Rc.No.91/SLPRB/Rect.2/2026, 16 September 2026 |
| Posts on this scale | SCT PC (Civil) 542, SCT PC (AR) 285, Firemen 158, Warder (Men) 150, Warder (Women) 21 |
| Scale of pay | Rs 25,220 to Rs 80,910 |
| Pay scale basis | Revised Pay Scale 2022 |
| During training | Stipend as fixed by the Government from time to time |
| Pension | Contributory Pension Scheme for those appointed on or after 1 September 2004 |
The vacancy numbers are provisional and may change without notice, as the notification itself says.
2. Pay scale, basic pay and take-home are three different things
Much of the confusion online comes from mixing these terms.
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Pay scale | The range of basic pay for a post, from a lowest stage to a highest stage |
| Basic pay | Your actual monthly basic at a given stage of the scale |
| Allowances | Additions to basic pay, such as dearness allowance and house rent allowance, set by government orders |
| Deductions | Amounts taken out, such as the pension contribution, professional tax and other recoveries |
| Take-home pay | Basic plus allowances minus deductions |
A source that says "constable salary is Rs X" without saying whether X is basic, gross or net, or which year's scale it refers to, is unreliable. Dearness allowance changes when the Government announces a revision. House rent allowance depends on the place of posting. Deductions depend on the pension scheme and local rules. The notification does not publish take-home figures, so this guide does not either. The only authoritative figure for your own pay is the pay slip you receive after joining.
Here is how to reason without guessing. Suppose someone's basic is at the first stage, Rs 25,220. To estimate gross pay you would apply the current dearness allowance percentage and the house rent allowance rate for the posting area, both from the latest finance department orders, and then subtract deductions. Those rates change, so any single "final" number printed in a blog is likely to be out of date within months. Do the calculation yourself from current orders if you need a budget.
3. Training and stipend
The posts are called Stipendiary Cadet Trainee (SCT) posts for a reason. Paragraph 26 of the notification says that during the period of institutional training, regular as well as extended, candidates are eligible for a stipend fixed by the Government from time to time. Paragraph 27 says that after successful completion of training they are appointed in the regular time scale of pay. In practice, that means you are not on the full pay scale while in training.
Three details are worth knowing, and also three things that are not in the notification.
- Stated: stipend during institutional training, regular time scale after successful completion.
- Stated: provisionally selected candidates are asked to submit attestation forms, produce documents and attend a medical examination on a specified date, and then to join training on a specified date. Failure to respond or to join on time cancels provisional selection without prior notice.
- Stated: a serving government employee can join training only after being relieved from, or resigning, the earlier job.
- Not stated: the stipend amount.
- Not stated: the length of training.
- Not stated: the probation period.
If you meet a figure for stipend or training length, look for the official order before trusting it. For a family planning its budget, the sensible approach is to assume that the first months after selection bring a lower income than the scale suggests, and to save a small buffer.
4. What probation means
Probation is a period after appointment during which the department evaluates conduct and performance. The notification does not give its length or conditions, which are set by service rules and government orders. In general, completing training, attending to discipline, maintaining a clean antecedent record and submitting accurate documents are required. The notification states that selection is provisional and subject to verification of original certificates, antecedents and medical examination, and that a person found to have given false information, or found ineligible, can be discharged at any time, even after appointment, without notice.
Disqualifying conditions listed include forged documents, canvassing for support, a prohibited second marriage while a spouse is living, dismissal from government or public-body service, conviction or a pending trial for an offence other than technical offences such as motor vehicle or juvenile justice violations, and offences involving moral turpitude. The practical lesson is simple: keep every document genuine and every declaration honest from the day you apply.
5. Pension
Paragraph 28 of the notification says employees appointed on or after 1 September 2004 are covered by the Contributory Pension Scheme. That is different from the older arrangement in which pension was a fixed fraction of the last drawn pay. Under a contributory scheme, money from the employee and the government is paid into an account during service, and the benefit at retirement depends on the scheme's rules and its results. The State Government can revise pension arrangements, and the notification does not give any pension amount, gratuity or other retirement benefit. For the latest position on retirement benefits, check the finance department's current orders or ask the department's HR section after joining. Do not rely on blog figures.
6. Allowances: what exists, not what they amount to
The notification mentions only the stipend. The usual categories of allowances for state government employees are listed below as general knowledge, with the caution that rates are set by orders that change.
| Allowance | Purpose | Where the rate comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Dearness allowance | Adjusts pay for price rise | Government orders, revised from time to time |
| House rent allowance | Housing cost, varies with place of posting | Government orders by city or town category |
| Travel allowance | Official journeys | Government rules |
| Departmental allowances | Uniform upkeep and similar | Departmental or government orders |
Police quarters are available in some places, but not for everyone, and depend on availability. Medical benefits and leave are governed by government rules. Leave in a police job can be harder to take than on paper because of duty needs.
7. Promotions: the ladder and what is known
The notifications themselves reveal the ranks. The Police Executive quota for SI recruitment mentions police constables, head constables and assistant sub-inspectors, and the quota for children of police personnel mentions the rank of Inspector. So the usual ladder for the lower ranks is:
| Rank | General description |
|---|---|
| Police Constable (PC) | Entry rank; field duty |
| Head Constable (HC) | Senior constable rank; supervises, handles station records |
| Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) | Supervisory rank within the station |
| Sub-Inspector (SI) | Officer in charge of investigation and station functions |
| Inspector | Heads a circle or a larger station |
How many years each step takes depends on vacancies, seniority, service rules and sometimes departmental tests. Nobody can honestly promise "SI in X years". The promotion rules themselves are not in the recruitment notifications. For a faster route to officer rank, there is also the direct SI recruitment. The SI notification reserves 5 per cent of SI (Civil) posts for the Police Executive quota, for serving constables, head constables and ASIs who are approved probationers with three years of service on the notification date (time as stipendiary cadet trainee is not counted) and who have no major punishment, no three or more minor punishments, no pending punishment, suspension or enquiry, and no desertion or compulsory retirement. These candidates still take every test and reach the communal qualifying marks. The quota reserves seats, but it does not give an exemption from examinations. The SI scale, Rs 44,570 to Rs 1,27,480, is the higher scale at stake for that jump. Read the full comparison in Constable vs SI.
8. Civil and AR: the two constable streams
Both are on the same pay scale, but the work differs.
| Feature | SCT PC (Civil), code 21 | SCT PC (AR), code 22 |
|---|---|---|
| Vacancies (provisional) | 542 | 285 |
| Typical work | Station-based policing, patrol, bandobast, court and summons duty, assisting investigation | Reserve forces, guards, escorts and deployments |
| Women reservation | 33 1/3 per cent of each category | 20 per cent of each category |
| PET | 1600 m plus 100 m or long jump, qualifying only | All three events compulsory, 100 marks counted |
| Final merit | Final written test, 200 marks | 100 marks of the final written test plus 100 PET marks |
The duties are general descriptions, since the notification does not define them, and an individual posting can change them. The choice of stream also changes how you prepare, because AR candidates need to score in physical events, not merely qualify.
9. Other posts on the same scale
The same notification offers Firemen (158 vacancies, men only) and Warders (150 men and 21 women), on the same scale of Rs 25,220 to Rs 80,910, with an age limit up to 32 years on 1 July 2026 instead of 24. The qualifying standards for height, chest, weight and the PET are the same ones listed for the constable posts. Anyone who wants more than one of these posts uses a single application form and ranks post and unit preferences. That is a useful fact for candidates who are older than 24 but within 32, or who want a backup.
10. Duty life: what to expect
The notifications do not describe daily duty, so this section is general. Policing is not a nine-to-five job. Shift patterns, night duty, festival and election duty, VIP movements and public gatherings all shape the schedule. A civil constable may be assigned to patrol or beat duty, traffic regulation, guard duty at a station, serving notices and summons, escorting persons in custody, court duty and helping senior officers with case work. Stations differ in workload. Some are quiet, and some are busy with frequent incidents.
The physical side continues after selection: standing for long hours, walking, and being ready to respond. Fitness is not only a recruitment hurdle. It is part of the job. Stress, irregular meals and sleep, and time away from family are the common difficulties, and a candidate who understands that before applying will cope better than one who learns it after joining.
11. Posting and transfers
Constable posts are listed district-wise, and the notification applies the local candidate rule: after the first 5 per cent of posts filled on open merit, the remaining 95 per cent are for locals, who prove their local status through class I to VII study certificates or a Tahsildar residence certificate. The district-wise table also lists backlog vacancies reserved for local candidates of a district. So an aspirant's first posting is generally within the unit for which the person was selected. Transfers, deputations and special duties during a career are normal, and a family that depends on staying in one place should think about that before choosing.
For the Armed Reserve stream, units are often reserve battalions in a region, and deployment can take a person away from the home district for assignments. Both streams include training at an institution first, where discipline, drill, physical fitness, law and weapons handling are generally taught.
12. Pros and difficulties, plainly
| Advantages | Difficulties |
|---|---|
| Government service with a defined pay scale and annual increments | Long and irregular duty hours |
| Eligibility with Intermediate as the base qualification | Duties on festivals, elections and family occasions |
| Entry for both men and women (Civil and AR) | Transfers and distance from family |
| A documented promotion ladder and a quota route to SI | Promotion speed depends on vacancies and rules |
| Public service role with a visible place in the community | Emotional stress and difficult situations |
| Job security of a government post | Continuous need to stay physically fit |
Ask yourself honestly: can I work irregular hours, stay calm under pressure, keep fit for years and deal with people respectfully in tense situations? If the answer is yes, this is a strong career option. If the main attraction is only a government job tag, take time to compare with other options.
13. Budgeting for a new recruit
Everyone's situation differs, so these are general suggestions rather than rules.
- Expect the training period to bring a stipend, not the full scale. Keep some savings for those months.
- Estimate housing costs in the posting area in advance; rents in large towns are much higher than in small ones.
- After the first pay slip, work out your real monthly figure from basic, allowances and deductions, and write a simple budget from the net amount.
- Do not borrow against future increments or allowance hikes, since both depend on government decisions.
- Build an emergency fund and keep basic insurance in place.
14. How to spot unreliable salary claims
- Does the figure say which year's pay scale it uses? Old scales still circulate.
- Does it say whether it is basic, gross or net?
- Does it cite the SLPRB notification or a government order?
- Does it use phrases such as "guaranteed" or "you will definitely get"? Treat that as a warning.
- Is it borrowed from another state, such as Telangana, and presented as the Andhra Pradesh figure?
- Does it quote a stipend amount that the notification itself does not give?
When in doubt, treat the Rs 25,220 to Rs 80,910 scale from the notification as the anchor and remember that allowances and deductions come on top.
15. Eligibility snapshot
Because salary is only useful if you can apply, here is a short summary from the same notification. For the complete rules, see the AP Police Constable guide.
| Item | SCT PC (Civil and AR) |
|---|---|
| Education | Intermediate or equivalent as on 1 July 2026; SC and ST may apply with SSC plus Intermediate appearance |
| Age | 18 to below 24 on 1 July 2026 (born 2 July 2002 to 1 July 2008); up to 5 years' relaxation for EWS, BC (NCL), SC and ST |
| Preliminary test | 200 questions, 200 marks, 3 hours; qualifying 40% OC, 35% BC, 30% SC and ST |
| PMT, men | 167.6 cm height, 86.3 cm chest, 5 cm expansion |
| PMT, women | 152.5 cm height, 40 kg weight |
| PET, Civil | 1600 m plus 100 m or long jump; qualifying |
| Final test | 200 questions, 3 hours |
| Fee | Rs 300 (OC and BC), Rs 150 (SC and ST) |
Application and exam dates had not been announced when this page was checked. The Board says they will be notified by a separate press release.
16. A realistic first year
After the final list, selected candidates are asked to submit attestation forms and documents and to attend a medical examination by specified dates. Missing a date can cancel the provisional selection. Training then begins, where candidates learn drill, law, fitness, weapons handling and dealing with the public. During this period a stipend is paid. After successful completion, the person is appointed in the regular scale and posted to a district or unit. The first pay slip is the best source for your actual numbers. The key habits for a smooth first year are punctuality, discipline, attention to training and keeping your documents and conduct clean.
| Phase | What happens |
|---|---|
| Final selection | Merit list, document and antecedent verification |
| Medical | Fitness against the prescribed standards |
| Training | Stipend only; must join on the specified date |
| Posting | Unit or district allotment |
| Regular scale | Rs 25,220 to Rs 80,910 time scale after successful training |
17. Preparing for the job you are salary-checking
Salary is a reason to look at the job, and preparation is what gets you there. A simple outline:
- Read the notification, especially Annexure II for the syllabus.
- Build arithmetic and reasoning speed daily, and cover general science, history, geography, polity, economy and current events at Intermediate level, with English grammar and vocabulary.
- Run regularly. The 1600 metre run is compulsory for every stream and the time limit for men is 8 minutes, which is 2 minutes per 400 metre lap.
- Take mixed timed tests and review errors.
- Keep documents ready, including certificates issued on or after 1 April 2026 where required.
Key facts for exams
- Scale of pay for SCT PC (Civil and AR), Firemen and Warders: Rs 25,220 to Rs 80,910, Revised Pay Scale 2022.
- Scale of pay for SCT SI (Civil), RSI (AR) and SI (SPF): Rs 44,570 to Rs 1,27,480.
- SCT stands for Stipendiary Cadet Trainee; stipend during institutional training, regular time scale after successful completion.
- Contributory Pension Scheme for employees appointed on or after 1 September 2004.
- Notification: Rc.No.91/SLPRB/Rect.2/2026, 16 September 2026; the rules cited are G.O.Ms.No.315, Home (Pol.C), 13 October 1999.
- Vacancies: Civil 542, AR 285, Firemen 158, Warder (Men) 150, Warder (Women) 21; provisional.
- Rank ladder: Constable, Head Constable, ASI, SI, Inspector.
- Police Executive quota: 5 per cent in SI (Civil).
10 practice questions
1. The notified scale of pay for SCT Police Constables is: (A) Rs 21,230 to Rs 63,010 (B) Rs 25,220 to Rs 80,910 (C) Rs 44,570 to Rs 1,27,480 (D) Rs 31,460 to Rs 84,970
2. During institutional training, an SCT receives: (A) The full pay scale (B) Nothing (C) A stipend fixed by the Government (D) Only a pension
3. What does SCT stand for? (A) State Civil Trainee (B) Stipendiary Cadet Trainee (C) Senior Constable Training (D) Special Cadre Test
4. Employees appointed on or after 1 September 2004 are covered by: (A) The old fixed pension (B) The Contributory Pension Scheme (C) No pension (D) Gratuity only
5. Which rank comes after Head Constable in the usual ladder? (A) Inspector (B) Sub-Inspector (C) Assistant Sub-Inspector (D) DSP
6. What share of SI (Civil) posts is reserved for the Police Executive quota? (A) 1 per cent (B) 3 per cent (C) 5 per cent (D) 7 per cent
7. Which element is NOT given in the notification? (A) Pay scale (B) Pension scheme (C) Stipend amount (D) Cut-off date for age
8. Firemen and Warders have a maximum age (not to be attained) of: (A) 24 (B) 27 (C) 32 (D) 35
9. The SI pay scale minimum is: (A) Rs 25,220 (B) Rs 44,570 (C) Rs 80,910 (D) Rs 1,27,480
10. A "pay scale" refers to: (A) The exact monthly take-home (B) The range of basic pay for a post (C) Only allowances (D) The stipend
Answers
| Question | Answer | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | B | Paragraph 27 of the notification |
| 2 | C | Paragraph 26: stipend fixed by the Government |
| 3 | B | Stipendiary Cadet Trainee |
| 4 | B | Paragraph 28 of the notification |
| 5 | C | Constable, Head Constable, ASI, SI, Inspector |
| 6 | C | 5 per cent in code 11 |
| 7 | C | The stipend amount is not stated |
| 8 | C | Firemen and Warders: below 32 on 1 July 2026 |
| 9 | B | SI scale begins at Rs 44,570 |
| 10 | B | A range of basic pay, not a take-home figure |
Frequently asked questions
What is the AP Police Constable salary? The notified scale of pay is Rs 25,220 to Rs 80,910. Take-home pay depends on allowances, deductions and posting.
Is the stipend the same as salary? No. During training you receive a stipend fixed by the Government. The regular scale applies after successful training.
How much is the stipend? The notification does not say. Use an official order if you need the figure.
Is there a pension? Employees appointed on or after 1 September 2004 are covered by the Contributory Pension Scheme. The notification gives no pension amount.
How long until promotion? It depends on vacancies, seniority and service rules. No honest source can promise a number of years.
Can women apply? Yes, for the Civil and AR constable posts, and Warder (Women). Firemen and Warder (Men) are for men only.
Will I be posted in my home district? Posts are listed district-wise with local candidate rules, so postings are generally within the unit of selection, but transfers and special duties are common.
Related reading
- AP Police Constable guide
- AP Police SI guide
- AP Police Constable vs SI
- Andhra Pradesh government exams 2026
- Telugu edition: AP పోలీస్ కానిస్టేబుల్ జీతం, జాబ్ ప్రొఫైల్
Practise on pareeksha.in
If the job suits you, start with the written test. Pareeksha.in offers 10 Lakh+ MCQs, 100+ Exams and 5,000+ Full-Length Mocks, and you can begin with the free mini mock or the online test series. Mock tests help with pace and accuracy. The official notification remains the authority on pay, eligibility and dates.
Sources and verification
Opened and read for this guide:
- State Level Police Recruitment Board, Andhra Pradesh, home page, recruitments page and press release page (slprb.ap.gov.in).
- SLPRB notification Rc.No.91/SLPRB/Rect.2/2026 dated 16 September 2026 (SCT PC Civil and AR, Firemen, Warders), paragraphs on stipend, scale of pay and pension.
- SLPRB notification Rc.No.81/SLPRB/Rect.1/2026 dated 16 September 2026 (SCT SI Civil, RSI AR, SI SPF), for the SI pay scale and the Police Executive quota.
Not verified: stipend amount, training duration, probation period, allowance rates, departmental promotion rules and timelines, take-home figures, and any change to pension arrangements after the notification. These are left out or described only in general terms. Duty descriptions are general understanding, not text from the notification.
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