This page sets out the scheme of the Sub-Inspector in Delhi Police and Central Armed Police Forces Examination, 2026 (commonly called SSC CPO), as given in the Staff Selection Commission's notice dated 10 September 2026. That is the newest notified cycle as of 13 November 2026. The scheme in this notice is different from the 2025 cycle in several places, so older pattern tables you may have seen do not apply to it. Every figure below is from the notice or from another SSC document listed in the sources. Arithmetic that we have done ourselves is marked as arithmetic.
Stages at a glance
Para 12.1 of the notice lists the stages in this order and says all of them are mandatory.
| Stage | Mode | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Paper-I | Computer-based, objective | Shortlisting for PST/PET |
| PST / PET | Physical Standard Test and Physical Endurance Test, conducted by the CAPFs | Qualifying; no marks |
| Paper-II | Computer-based, objective | Shortlisting for medical; decides final selection and allocation (para 16.8) |
| Detailed Medical Examination (DME), with Review Medical Examination (RME) | Medical boards | Qualifying |
| Document verification | By the CAPFs, preferably along with DME/RME | Eligibility check |
Dates (per SSC): applications 10 to 30 September 2026 (23:00), fee payment until 1 October 2026 (23:00), correction window 8 to 10 October 2026. The notice says the schedule of the computer-based examination is "to be notified later". SSC's notice of 1 October 2026 then proposes the computer-based examination from 20 to 28 November 2026. We did not find dates for PST/PET or Paper-II of the 2026 cycle.
Do not confuse this with the previous cycle, which is still running. For the 2025 examination, SSC's write-up of 29 October 2026 says Paper-II is tentatively scheduled for 28 November 2026. Candidates of the 2025 cycle sit Paper-II in the 2025 format (see "What changed from 2025" below).
Posts, pay, vacancies and eligibility
| Post | Pay level (per notice) |
|---|---|
| Sub-Inspector (GD) in CAPFs: BSF, CISF, CRPF, ITBP, SSB | Level-6 (Rs 35,400-1,12,400), Group B non-gazetted |
| Sub-Inspector (Executive) in Delhi Police, male and female | Level-6 (Rs 35,400-1,12,400), Group C |
| Sub-Inspector (Fire) in CISF, male | Level-6 (Rs 35,400-1,12,400), Group B non-gazetted |
Tentative vacancies in the 2026 notice:
| Post | Vacancies |
|---|---|
| SI (Executive), Delhi Police, male | 205 |
| SI (Executive), Delhi Police, female | 112 |
| SI (GD) in CAPFs | 1,320 (male 1,173; female 147) |
| SI (Fire), CISF, male | 234 |
Within the CAPF figure the force-wise totals are CRPF 254, BSF 457, ITBP 187, CISF 250 and SSB 172. The four lines add up to 1,871 (our arithmetic; the notice gives the tables, not a single total). The 2025 notice listed 142 + 70 for Delhi Police and 2,861 for CAPFs.
- Age: 20 to 25 years as on 1 August 2026 for all posts except SI (Fire), that is, born between 2 August 2001 and 1 August 2006. For SI (Fire) in CISF the limit is 18 to 30 years (born between 2 August 1996 and 1 August 2008). Upper-age relaxation includes 5 years for SC/ST and 3 years for OBC. Departmental candidates of Delhi Police with three years' service have separate limits (30, 33 and 35 years).
- Education: a Bachelor's degree from a recognised university, held on or before the closing date for applications. For SI (Fire): a Bachelor's degree in science with Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics, or matriculation plus a three-year diploma in one of the listed engineering branches.
- Driving licence: male candidates need a valid licence for LMV (motorcycle and car) on the date fixed for the physical tests to be considered for SI in Delhi Police. Without it they are eligible for the CAPF posts only.
- Fee: Rs 100. Women, SC, ST and ex-servicemen eligible for reservation are exempt.
Paper-I scheme
| Part | Subject | Questions | Marks |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | General Intelligence and Reasoning | 25 | 25 |
| II | General Knowledge and General Awareness | 25 | 25 |
| III | Quantitative Aptitude | 25 | 25 |
| IV | English Comprehension | 25 | 25 |
| Total | 100 | 100 |
- Duration: 1 hour, with a sectional timer of 15 minutes for each part.
- Objective multiple-choice questions. Negative marking: 0.25 per wrong answer.
- Questions are set in Hindi and English in Parts I, II and III. The English part is in English only.
Paper-II scheme
| Part | Subject | Questions | Marks | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | General Intelligence and Reasoning | 20 | 40 | 1 hour for Parts I to III, with a 20-minute sectional timer for each part |
| II | General Knowledge and General Awareness | 20 | 40 | |
| III | Quantitative Aptitude | 20 | 40 | |
| IV | English Comprehension | 100 | 200 | 1 hour |
- Negative marking: 0.50 per wrong answer.
- The notice adds that the difficulty level of Paper-II will be higher than that of Paper-I. The indicative syllabus is common to both papers (see syllabus).
- Questions are in Hindi and English for Parts I to III.
- Arithmetic, not an SSC statement: the four parts add up to 160 questions and 320 marks in 2 hours, and each question works out to 2 marks. English is 200 of the 320 marks, which is 62.5%.
What changed from 2025
We compared para 12 and para 16 of the two notices.
| Item | 2025 notice (26.09.2025) | 2026 notice (10.09.2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Paper-I | 200 questions, 200 marks, 2 hours, 30-minute sectional timers | 100 questions, 100 marks, 1 hour, 15-minute sectional timers |
| Paper-II | English Language and Comprehension only: 200 questions, 200 marks, 2 hours | Four parts: 160 questions, 320 marks, 2 hours (arithmetic total) |
| Negative marking | 0.25 in both papers | 0.25 in Paper-I, 0.50 in Paper-II |
| Final selection (para 16.8) | Performance in Paper-I and Paper-II | Performance in Paper-II |
| Tie-break | Paper-II total, date of birth, name | Paper-II total, English marks in Paper-II, date of birth, name |
| Posts | Delhi Police and CAPFs | Delhi Police, CAPFs and SI (Fire) in CISF |
PST and PET
PST/PET come after Paper-I. They carry no marks; a candidate either qualifies or is eliminated.
Height and chest (cm), general standards
| Candidates | Height | Chest (unexpanded / expanded) |
|---|---|---|
| Male, general standard (Delhi Police and CAPFs) | 170 | 80 / 85 |
| Male, hill areas and the regions named in the notice | 165 | 80 / 85 |
| Male, Scheduled Tribes | 162.5 | 77 / 82 |
| Female, general standard | 157 | not applicable |
| Female, hill areas and the regions named in the notice | 155 | not applicable |
| Female, Scheduled Tribes | 154 | not applicable |
For the CAPF posts the notice also gives 157 cm for male Gorkha candidates and for male Scheduled Tribe candidates of the North-Eastern States. For SI (Fire) the general male standard is 170 cm with chest 81 / 86. Weight is "corresponding to height". Height and chest relaxations need the certificate in Annexure-VIII. Read para 12.10 of the notice for the full list of regions.
Physical Endurance Test
| Event | Male | Female |
|---|---|---|
| 100 metre race | 16 seconds | 18 seconds |
| Long race | 1.6 km in 6.5 minutes | 800 metres in 4 minutes |
| Long jump | 3.65 metres, 3 chances | 2.7 metres, 3 chances |
| High jump | 1.2 metres, 3 chances | 0.9 metres, 3 chances |
| Shot put (16 lbs) | 4.5 metres, 3 chances | not listed |
- Ex-servicemen are not required to undergo PET, but their PST is conducted.
- In the 2025 cycle, SSC's write-up of 29 October 2026 shows that of 48,387 candidates who qualified Paper-I, 26,949 were absent for PST/PET, 10,622 did not qualify and 10,676 qualified. The physical stage removes a large number of candidates.
Medical examination
Candidates who qualify in Paper-II are medically examined. The notice sets these standards for all posts:
- Minimum near vision N6 (better eye) and N9 (worse eye); minimum distant vision 6/6 (better eye) and 6/9 (worse eye), without correction of any kind, including glasses or surgery.
- No knock knee, flat foot, varicose vein or squint; high colour vision.
Qualifying marks and NCC bonus
| Category | Minimum qualifying marks in Paper-I and Paper-II |
|---|---|
| UR | 30% |
| OBC and EWS | 25% |
| All other categories | 20% |
These are fixed without adding NCC bonus marks. On the marks in the scheme, that is 30, 25 and 20 out of 100 in Paper-I, and 96, 80 and 64 out of 320 in Paper-II (arithmetic). SSC can also fix different cut-offs in each part of Paper-I (para 16.3). The actual shortlisting cut-offs are much higher than these floors; see cut-offs.
NCC certificate holders get bonus marks in each paper, added to the normalised score: 5% of the maximum marks for a 'C' certificate, 3% for 'B' and 2% for 'A'. On a 100-mark Paper-I that is 5, 3 and 2 marks; on 320 marks it would be 16, 9.6 and 6.4 (arithmetic).
How the final result is built
- Paper-I marks (with NCC bonus) shortlist candidates for PST/PET.
- Only those who qualify PST/PET sit Paper-II. Paper-II marks (with NCC bonus) shortlist candidates for the medical examination.
- After the Paper-II result, SSC takes post preferences through an online option form. The codes are A (Delhi Police), B (BSF), C (CISF), D (CRPF), E (ITBP), F (SSB) and G (SI Fire, CISF). Preferences are final. A candidate who does not submit them is not considered for any post.
- Final selection and allocation are on Paper-II performance and preferences (para 16.8).
- Tie-breaks, in order (para 17.1): total marks in Paper-II, marks in English in Paper-II, date of birth (older first), alphabetical order of names. The same paragraph still describes a tie as equal aggregate marks in "Paper-I + Paper-II", which does not sit neatly with para 16.8. We report both as written; if SSC issues a clarification, follow that.
What this means for your attempt strategy
- Paper-I gives 36 seconds a question in every part (15 minutes for 25 questions). In Paper-II, Parts I to III give 60 seconds a question and English gives 36 seconds (100 questions in 60 minutes). This is arithmetic from the scheme.
- With +1 and -0.25 in Paper-I, and +2 and -0.50 in Paper-II, an answer is worth attempting once you judge your chance of being right at better than 1 in 5. Again, arithmetic from the marking scheme, not SSC advice.
What this page does not have
- Admit-card dates, shift timings and city details for November 2026. SSC's regional websites publish these.
- Dates for PST/PET and Paper-II of the 2026 cycle. SSC has not announced them in any notice we opened.
- The full region-wise list for height relaxation and the departmental-candidate rules in full. They are in the notice.
- Any statement on how marks are split per question in Paper-II beyond the table. The 2 marks per question figure is our arithmetic.
Practise in this format: a free 10-question mini-mock is available to try. Full CBT-pattern mocks, previous-year papers and topic practice are Pro.
Related: Syllabus · Cut-offs · Preparation strategy