Kerala PSC Forest Watcher (Special Recruitment), Forest and Wildlife 2026

Basic eligibility paths

• ✓Only men of the Scheduled Tribe (Adivasi) community who depend solely on the forest for their livelihood may apply; applications from others are rejected without individual intimation.
• ✓Differently abled candidates are not eligible for this post.
• ✓Only candidates from Wayanad district are considered, because G.O.(Ms) 53/13/F&WLD restricts this selection to a district basis.
• ✓Applications must be handwritten or typed on white paper in the prescribed format and posted to the District Officer, Kerala PSC District Office, Wayanad; applications addressed to the Secretary, Additional Secretary, Regional Officer or Deputy Secretary are rejected.
• ✓Children of unwed mothers and persons serving as temporary watchers in the Forest Department receive preference in the ranked list.

Relaxations & certificates

• Category 97/2026 expressly states that no age relaxation beyond the 18-50 band is allowed for this special recruitment.
• The post is a Special Recruitment reserved for forest-dependent Scheduled Tribe men, so the usual community reservation rotation does not apply.

Selection stages

1. 1Scrutiny of the paper application and supporting certificates
2. 2Verification of the Range Forest Officer / Tribal Extension Officer certificate of residence in a tribal settlement and, where claimed, the service certificate as a Forest Department watcher
3. 3District ranked list prepared under G.O.(MS) No.53/2013/F&WLD and G.O.(MS) No.80/2013/Forest
4. 4Three months' training at a Forest School or Training Centre after selection

Syllabus snapshot

• Category 97/2026 does not prescribe a written examination; selection is by ranked list from the applications received, so no examination syllabus is asserted.