CSIR-NEERI Project Assistant-II Crop Damage Study 2026

CSIR-NEERI Project Assistant-II Recruitment 2026: Overview

CSIR-National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (CSIR-NEERI), Nagpur, needs a Project Assistant-II for a study on how mining dust affects farm crops. The project, "Crop Damage Assessment Study due to Dust Pollution near Kulda Opencast Coal Mine, Sundargarh District, Orissa" (GAP-3091), measures the damage that coal-mine dust causes to crops in the villages around the mine.

This is a temporary project engagement filled through a walk-in interview, so there is no written test. Your base is the CSIR-NEERI campus in Nagpur, and the work is mostly field studies, sample collection, analysis and report writing. Graduates in Botany, Zoology, Chemistry, Environmental Science or Fishery who want research experience at a national laboratory are the right fit.

More posts may open: the notice lists one post but says up to five may be filled if project funds allow, with the extra people picked from a waiting list prepared at the interview.

Service Conditions and Caveats

• Tenure: The post is purely temporary and ends with the project. It gives you no claim to a regular CSIR or NEERI job.
• Maximum project service: Total time as project staff in CSIR labs cannot cross the six or seven year limit set by CSIR's 2024 guidelines for project personnel.
• Result must be declared: Final-semester and result-awaited candidates cannot attend the interview. You need at least a provisional certificate.
• Shortlisting: If many people turn up, a screening committee may decide who is interviewed; meeting the minimum qualification alone does not guarantee a call.
• No automatic upgrade: Project staff are not moved to a higher level in the same or a new project; you must apply afresh.
• Extension and exit: The engagement follows project funds and a review committee's assessment of your work. Either side can end it with one month's notice.
• Before joining: You complete a medical examination and character verification, and sign a confidentiality undertaking on project findings.
• Accommodation and travel: You arrange your own stay in Nagpur; no TA is paid for attending an offline interview.

Application Submission Notes

Walk in to CSIR-NEERI, Nehru Marg, Near Ajni Square, Nagpur 440020 on 27 October 2026. Report between 9:30 am and 11:00 am — the gate closes at 11:00 am.

Carry the filled application form attached to the advertisement, a passport-size photo, and one set of photocopies plus the originals of your certificates and mark sheets. Keep an eye on neeri.res.in for any change to the interview schedule.

• Carry out field studies in the farm areas around Kulda opencast coal mine in Sundargarh district
• Collect crop and field samples for the dust-damage assessment
• Analyse the collected samples and record the results
• Keep field notes and sample data organised for the project team
• Help write project reports on crop damage caused by mine dust