GATE 2026 Syllabus for Agricultural Engineering (AG) - Download AG Syllabus PDF

GATE Syllabus for Agricultural Engineering (AG) 2026

The GATE 2026 syllabus for Agricultural Engineering is a good study resource as it helps students familiarise themselves with what topics to expect in the exam. The GATE Syllabus for Agricultural Engineering Science mentions the topic from the concerned subject as well as from the Mathematics and General Aptitude part. Read the complete article for the GATE 2026 agricultural engineering syllabus PDF.

With the help of the GATE 2026 Agricultural Engineering syllabus PDF, candidates can check the list of topics to prepare for the exam. Below is the list of topics covered in the GATE 2026 Agricultural Engineering syllabus.

GATE Agricultural Engineering Syllabus 2026

Section 1- Farm Machinery

• Machine Design: Design and selection of machine elements – gears, pulleys, chains, and sprockets, and belts; overload safety devices used in farm machinery; measurement of force, torque, speed, displacement, and acceleration on machine elements.
• Farm Machinery: Soil tillage; forces acting on a tillage tool; hitch systems and hitching of tillage implements; functional requirements, principles of working, construction, and operation of manual, animal, and power-operated equipment for tillage, sowing, planting, fertilizer application, inter-cultivation, spraying, mowing, chaff cutting, harvesting, threshing, and transport; testing of agricultural machinery and equipment; calculation of performance parameters - field capacity, efficiency, application rate and losses; cost analysis of implements and tractors.

Section 2- Farm Power

• Sources of Power: Sources of power on the farm - human, animal, mechanical, electrical, wind, solar, and biomass; bio-fuels.
• Farm Power: Thermodynamic principles of I.C. engines; I.C. engine cycles; engine components; fuels and combustion; lubricants and their properties; I.C. engine systems – fuel, cooling, lubrication, ignition, electrical, intake and exhaust; selection, operation, maintenance and repair of I.C. engines; power efficiencies and measurement; calculation of power, torque, fuel consumption, heat load and power losses.
• Tractors and Powertillers: Type, selection, maintenance and repair of tractors and powertillers; tractor clutches and brakes; power transmission systems – gear trains, differential, final drives and power take-off; mechanics of tractor chassis; traction theory; three point hitches- free link and restrained link operations; mechanical steering and hydraulic control systems used in tractors; tractor tests and performance.
  Human engineering and safety in the design of tractors and agricultural implements.

Section 3- Soil and Water Conservation Engineering

• Fluid Mechanics: Ideal and real fluids, properties of fluids; hydrostatic pressure and its measurement; hydrostatic forces on plane and curved surfaces; continuity equation; Bernoulli’s theorem; laminar and turbulent flow in pipes, Darcy-Weisbach and Hazen-Williams equations, Moody’s diagram; flow through orifices and notches; flow in open channels.
• Soil Mechanics: Engineering properties of soils; fundamental definitions and relationships; index properties of soils; permeability and seepage analysis; shear strength, Mohr’s circle of stress, active and passive earth pressures; stability of slopes.
• Hydrology: Hydrological cycle and components; meteorological parameters, their measurement and analysis of precipitation data; runoff estimation; hydrograph analysis, unit hydrograph theory and application; stream flow measurement; flood routing, hydrological reservoir and channel routing.
• Surveying and Leveling: Measurement of distance and area; instruments for surveying and leveling; chain surveying, methods of traversing; measurement of angles and bearings, plane table surveying; types of leveling; theodolite traversing; contouring; computation of areas and volume.
• Soil and Water Erosion: Mechanics of soil erosion, soil erosion types, wind and water erosion, factors affecting erosion; soil loss estimation; biological and engineering measures to control erosion; terraces and bunds; vegetative waterways; gully control structures, drop, drop inlet and chute spillways; earthen dams.
• Watershed Management: Watershed characterization; land use capability classification; rainwater harvesting structures, check dams and farm ponds.

Section 4- Irrigation and Drainage Engineering

• Soil-Water-Plant Relationship: Water requirement of crops; consumptive use and evapotranspiration; measurement of infiltration, soil moisture, and irrigation water infiltration.
• Irrigation Water Conveyance and Application Methods: Design of irrigation channels and underground pipelines; irrigation scheduling; surface, sprinkler and micro irrigation methods, design and evaluation of irrigation methods; irrigation efficiencies.
• Agricultural Drainage: Drainage coefficient; planning, design and layout of surface and subsurface drainage systems; leaching requirement and salinity control; irrigation and drainage water quality and reuse; non-conventional drainage system.
• Groundwater Hydrology: Groundwater occurrence; Darcy’s Law, steady and unsteady flow in confined and unconfined aquifers, groundwater exploration techniques; overview of groundwater recharge estimation and artificial recharge techniques.
• Wells and Pumps: Types of wells, steady flow through wells; design and construction of water wells; classification of pumps; pump characteristics; pump selection and installation.

Section 5 - Agricultural Processing Engineering

• Drying: Psychrometry – properties of air-vapor mixture; concentration and drying of liquid foods – evaporators, tray, drum and spray dryers; hydrothermal treatment; drying and milling of cereals, pulses, and oil seeds.
• Size Reduction and Conveying: Mechanics and energy requirement in size reduction of granular solids; particle size analysis for comminuted solids; size separation by screening; fluidization of granular solids-pneumatic, bucket, screw and belt conveying; cleaning and grading; effectiveness of grain cleaners; centrifugal separation of solids, liquids, and gases.
• Processing and By-product Utilization: Processing of seeds, spices, fruits, and vegetables; By-product utilization from processing industries.
• Storage Systems: Controlled and modified atmosphere storage; perishable food storage, godowns, bins, and grain silos.
• Processing of Agriculture Produce: Processing of seeds, spices, fruits, and vegetables; value addition of agricultural produce.
  

Section 6- Dairy and Food Engineering

• Heat and Mass Transfer: Steady state heat transfer in conduction, convection and radiation; transient heat transfer in simple geometry; working principles of heat exchangers; diffusive and convective mass transfer; simultaneous heat and mass transfer in agricultural processing operations; material and energy balances in food processing systems; water activity, sorption and desorption isotherms.
• Preservation of Food: Kinetics of microbial death – pasteurization and sterilization of milk and other liquid foods; preservation of food by cooling and freezing; refrigeration and cold storage basics and applications.