RRB NTPC Commercial Apprentice vs Station Master in 2022: Which is Better?

By PARUL RISHI|Updated : July 25th, 2022

RRB NTPC Commercial Apprentice vs Station Master in 2022: Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) conducts the recruitment of candidates at various Departments in Indian Railways. RRB conducts examinations like RRB NTPC for Group C posts and RRB Group-D for various Group D posts.

In this article, we are going to provide you all, with a comparison chart of the two most important Level-6 Profiles in the RRB NTPC examination i.e., Commercial Apprentice and Station Master in 2022 on different parameters.

Also check: SSC CGL vs CHSL 2022: Understand the Difference of Level in SSC Exams

Read Full Article

RRB is going to conduct RRB NTPC CBT 2 exam on 9th and 10th May and candidates are always eager to know the difference between two profiles if they are on the same level to understand what will be the best-suited profile for them and here we are going to provide you with a detailed comparison between the Commercial Apprentice and Station Master in Indian Railways.

Commercial Apprentice vs Station Master Eligibility Criteria 2022

The Eligibility Criteria for the post of Commercial Apprentice and Station Master in 2022 are described below in the table.

Eligibility	Commercial Apprentice	Station Master
Educational Qualification	Graduation Degree from any Discipline from any Recognized University or its Equivalent	Graduation Degree from any Discipline from any Recognized University or its Equivalent
Age Limit	18-33 years	18-33 years

Commercial Apprentice vs Station Master Medical Examination 2022

Commercial Apprentice and Station Master both are the most important posts recruited through RRB NTPC Exam and medical examination is an important part of both the profiles. The medical examination details for both the posts are given below:

Post Name	Medical Standard	General Fitness	Visual Acuity
Commercial Apprentice	B-2	Physically fit in all respects	Distance Vision: 6/9, 6/12 with or without glasses (power of lenses not to exceed 4D). Near Vision: Sn 0.6, 0.6 with or without glasses when reading or close work is required and must pass the test for Field of Vision(Binocular Vision) etc.
Station Master	A-2	Physically fit in all respects	Distant Vision: 6/9, 6/9 without glasses (No fogging test). Near Vision: Sn 0.6, 0.6 without glasses and Must pass test for Colour Vision, Binocular Vision, Night Vision and Myopic vision

Commercial Apprentice vs Station Master Selection Process 2022

The Selection Process for the post of Commercial Apprentice and Station Master is basically the same as both the posts are on the same level but there is a slight difference between the Selection Process of both the posts as:

Exam Pattern	Commercial Apprentice	Station Master
Tier 1 - Computer Based Test 1 (Online)
Tier 2 - Computer Based Test 2 (Online)
Tier 3 - Computer Based Aptitude Test	_
Tier 4 - Document Verification & Medical Examination

Commercial Apprentice vs Station Master Vacancy 2022

RRB has revised the total number of vacancies to 35,281 from 35,208 for all the posts while the specific vacancies for both the posts are given below:

Commercial Apprentice - 259
Station Master - 6865

Commercial Apprentice vs Station Master Salary 2022

Pay Scales	Commercial Apprentice	Station Master
Pay Level	6	6
Grade Pay	4200 (after training)	4200 (after training)
Initial Pay	35,400	35,400
In-Hand Salary (x-city)	45,000 approx. after deductions	45,000 approx. after deductions

The other allowances that are provided to both the profiles is also similar in nature as both the profiles get given below allowances other than salary.

Dearness Allowance (DA)
Travel Allowance (TA)
House Rent Allowance (HRA)
Pension Benefits
Medical Reimbursements

While the salary Slip for Commercial Apprentice and Station Master is given below:

Station Master

Please Note: Presently, DA is 33%. Salary is much more than the one mentioned in the Salary slip given above due to changes in DA and other allowances.

Commercial Apprentice

Please Note: Presently, DA is 33%. Salary is much more than the one mentioned in the Salary slip given above due to changes in DA and other allowances.

Commercial Apprentice vs Station Master Job Profile 2022

The Job Profile of Commercial Apprentice and Station Master is very different from one another and the different roles and responsibilities of both the profiles are given below:

Commercial Apprentice:

They are in charge of Commercial Duties and Inspection work in Indian Railways.
Sometimes, they are in charge of Collecting Revenue.
Commercial Apprentice works as Goods Supervisor, Parcel Supervisors, Rates & Claims Inspector, Commercial Inspectors etc.
They are also responsible for Goods transferred by Indian Railways.
TRAINING PERIOD: The training period for the RRB NTPC Commercial Apprentice is of 80 days in which supervisorial and inspectional training is given to the candidates and then after 80 days they are appointed to the following given Posts in Indian Railways.

Commercial clerks
Parcel clerks
Goods clerks
Catering Inspectors
Commercial Inspectors

Station Master:

ASM (Assistant Station Master) has now changed to SM(Station Master) is considered a good echelon under Indian Railways. Generally, each station has four Station Masters & who work in shifts. The primary job is to take care of train movements across his/her station, punctually and without any extra detention. The job of Station Master seems quite easy, routine and non-hectic to many people, but it takes ceaseless efforts and brain exercise in making any train journey comfortable, safe and fast. It’s the Station Master who ensures the smooth running of trains and takes responsibility for the safety of passengers and staff too.

In case of any medical emergencies, Station Master's responsibility is to look over it and provide proper medical care with the coordination of medical officers as soon as possible. Apart from these, an SM also has to coordinate with the station manager and issue a caution order to every train that halts at the station. Sometimes, in small stations, Station Masters are also being assigned with commercial jobs like ticket/parcel bookings, reservations etc. A Station Master also plays the role of manager at his/her station and takes care of rescue operations in case of any exigencies.