UPSSSC Forest Inspector Eligibility 2026: Age and Degree

UPSSSC Forest Inspector eligibility covers who can apply for the Van Daroga post that the Uttar Pradesh Subordinate Services Selection Commission fills for the state's Forest and Wildlife Department. You need four things in place: a valid UPSSSC PET score card, a degree in the right subjects, an age within the limit on the reference date, and the physical standards for the field post.

This page sets out the rules from the latest completed cycle, Advertisement 06-Exam/2022, which drew on the Uttar Pradesh Subordinate Forest (Deputy Range Forest Officer and Van Daroga) Service Rules, 2021. As of 21 October 2026, no new Van Daroga advertisement has been issued, so check the next notification for its exact reference dates and certificate deadlines.

Table of Contents

UPSSSC Forest Inspector Eligibility

Educational Qualification

The qualification must come from a university established by law in India, or be a qualification the government recognises as equivalent. You must hold it by the last date of application.

• Two subjects means two: A B.Sc with only one listed subject does not qualify on the science route.

• Arts and commerce degrees: A B.A or B.Com qualifies on the science route only if it includes two of the listed subjects, such as Mathematics and Statistics.

• Final-year students: The advertisement required the qualification by the closing date, so a result declared after that date does not count.

Preferential qualifications

When other things are equal, preference goes to candidates who have served at least two years in the Territorial Army or who hold an NCC "B" certificate. These do not replace the essential qualification.

PET Score Card

The Van Daroga exam is open only to candidates who appeared in the UPSSSC Preliminary Eligibility Test named in the advertisement and received a score card with a valid numerical score. In the 2022 cycle this was PET-2021. Candidates with a zero or negative absolute or normalised PET score were not shortlisted.

Your PET registration number is also your login for the Van Daroga application, and your personal details, photo and signature carry over from the PET form. Fix any error in your PET data through the routes the commission offers before the Van Daroga window opens.

Age Limit and Relaxation

You must have reached 21 years and not be above 40 years on 1 July of the calendar year in which the vacancies are advertised. For the 2022 cycle, the reference date was 1 July 2022. Your date of birth is taken only from your high school or equivalent certificate.

If you claim more than one reserved category, you get only one relaxation, whichever is more beneficial. The exact relaxation years for each category are set by the UP Government's rules in force when the advertisement is issued, so check them in the notification.

Physical Standards

You must also pass a medical board examination and be free of any physical defect likely to affect your duties. A woman candidate found 12 weeks or more pregnant is declared temporarily unfit and re-examined six weeks after delivery.

Nationality, Domicile and Other Conditions

• Citizenship: Applications were invited from citizens of India.

• Reservation needs UP domicile: Reservation for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes applies only to candidates domiciled in Uttar Pradesh.

• Women's category certificates: A woman candidate's caste certificate must be issued from her father's side.

• EWS certificate: Family income must be below Rs. 8 lakh, and the certificate must be valid for the financial year the advertisement specifies (2022-23 for the 2022 cycle).

• Government employees: Candidates already in central or state service should obtain a no-objection certificate from their employer.

How Eligibility Is Checked at Each Stage

The commission admits candidates provisionally on the basis of what they declare. If it later finds that a candidate did not hold the qualification by the closing date, or gave wrong information, the candidature is cancelled at whatever stage that is discovered.

Eligibility Checklist Before You Apply

1. PET: Confirm the advertisement accepts your PET year and that your score is a valid positive number.

2. Degree: Check that your mark sheets show at least two of the listed subjects, or that your degree is in engineering or veterinary science.

3. Age: Work out your age on 1 July of the advertisement year using your high school certificate.

4. Certificates: Make sure caste, EWS and other certificates are in the prescribed format and valid on the required date.

5. Fitness: Measure your height and chest honestly and start walking practice early if you are unsure about the timed walk.

Reservation and Horizontal Categories

Vertical reservation for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes and the Economically Weaker Sections follows the UP Government's rules in force. In the 2022 cycle, horizontal reservation covered women, ex-servicemen, dependants of freedom fighters and outstanding sportspersons, with 2 percent of vacancies for outstanding sportspersons under the state's notification of 7 January 2022. No posts were identified for persons with disabilities in that cycle.

To claim any of these, you need the certificate in the format printed in the advertisement, issued by the competent authority on or before the date the advertisement specifies. Ex-servicemen must have been released from service by the last date of application.

Who Is Not Eligible

• No valid PET score: Candidates without the PET score card named in the advertisement, or with a zero or negative score.

• Wrong degree: Graduates whose degree does not include two of the listed subjects and is not in engineering or veterinary science.

• Outside the age band: Candidates under 21 or above the upper limit after any relaxation on the reference date.

• More than one living spouse: A man with more than one living wife, or a woman who married a man who already had a living wife, is not eligible unless the Governor grants an exemption.

• False information: Wrong or concealed details can lead to cancellation and debarment from the commission's exams.

Fee and Documents

In the 2022 cycle, every category paid Rs. 25 as the online processing fee, and shortlisted candidates paid a separate mains exam fee before downloading the admit card. The fee table and application steps are on the UPSSSC Forest Inspector exam overview.

At document verification, the commission checks originals of your educational certificates, category and age-relaxation certificates and a photo identity card, along with self-attested copies and two passport-size colour photographs. Keep these ready well before any new advertisement, especially an EWS certificate, which must be valid for the right financial year.

Rules can be revised between cycles, so read the full advertisement on upsssc.gov.in before you apply.