What is published
Under the Agniveervayu advertisement for the 01/2027 cycle, PFT-II follows the 1.6 km run after ten minutes of recuperation, and applies to male candidates. It comprises:
- Ten push-ups in one minute.
- Ten sit-ups in one minute.
- Twenty squats in one minute.
- With stated breaks between the exercises.
VSVSV is a private learning platform. It is not affiliated with, authorised by, or endorsed by the Ministry of Defence, the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, the Indian Air Force, or any recruiting body. We do not conduct, influence, or take part in recruitment or selection. This article is study material. It is not a recruitment notification. It confers no entitlement of any kind.
The Indian Navy, under the advertisements for the 01/2027 and 02/2027 batches, sets squats (uthak baithak), push-ups and bent-knee sit-ups alongside the run — 20, 15 and 15 for male candidates; 15, 10 and 10 for female candidates. It is pass-fail with no marks, and the SSR (Medical Assistant) notification publishes the male row only, so do not infer a female standard for that entry from another advertisement.
The Indian Army, under the ARO rally notifications for the 2027 intake, sets a beam event that is scored on its own scale, separate from the run group: 10 repetitions earn 40 marks, 9 earn 33, 8 earn 27, 7 earn 21, 6 earn 16. A 9-foot ditch jump and a zig-zag balance walk must be cleared and carry no marks.
Two things about the beam worth knowing. One notification calls it "pull-ups" and the other calls it "chin-ups" — two official documents, one event, two names. And Technical and Clerk / Store Keeper Technical candidates only need to qualify, so the marks scale does not apply to those two categories.
Check the events and standards for your own service, entry and cycle in your own notification.
Two features that change everything about preparing
Read the structure above again, because two things in it are easy to miss and both matter more than the counts. Both are from the Agniveervayu advertisement for the 01/2027 cycle.
Each event is against a one-minute clock — that is not the same test as "can you do ten push-ups". It is a test of doing them within a minute, which is a different demand — it rules out long rests between repetitions and it makes form under mild time pressure part of the event.
The events come after the run, with ten minutes between — so a candidate arrives at the push-ups with a heart rate that has not fully settled and legs that have just done a timed 1.6 km. Practising the strength events fresh prepares for a test nobody sits.
The single most useful adjustment most candidates can make is to practise the sequence in the order the notification gives it, rather than practising the parts.
What each event is actually testing
Push-ups test the chest, shoulders and triceps, and — much more than candidates expect — the trunk. A push-up done with a sagging middle is a different movement using different muscles, and it is the commonest reason a repetition is not counted.
Sit-ups test the abdominal muscles and the hip flexors. Technique varies more between people here than in the other two events, and pulling on the neck is both ineffective and a way to hurt yourself.
Squats test the legs, and they test the ankles and hips more than people realise — a candidate who cannot get depth is often limited by ankle range rather than by strength.
Form, and why it is worth more than volume
This is the part where a little attention pays disproportionately, and it is safety as much as performance.
Form is what makes a repetition count — an assessor is watching for a defined movement. A fast, shallow, incomplete repetition often does not count. A candidate who trains to do many bad ones has trained the wrong thing.
Form is what protects the joints — these are simple movements, and they are unforgiving of a rounded back, a collapsed trunk or a knee that travels inward. Under fatigue, form degrades first, which is exactly when the load is highest.
A slow correct repetition beats three fast wrong ones, in the test and in training.
If you have access to anyone who can watch you — a physical education teacher, a coach, a training partner with a phone camera — use it. You cannot see your own back position, and the difference between a safe push-up and one that will hurt your lower back over weeks is invisible from the inside.
What we will not give you
We are not going to prescribe sets, repetitions, frequencies or a progression schedule.
That is a deliberate limit. A strength prescription written for a stranger cannot account for their starting point, their injury history, their age, or what else they are doing that week. This audience includes candidates who are seventeen and preparing without supervision. Handing out volumes through a web page is not something anyone can do responsibly.
What transfers, and what we will say, is the principle. Build gradually. Prioritise form over count. Allow recovery between hard sessions, and progress one thing at a time. Where you want a programme, get it from someone who can watch you move.
The errors worth avoiding
Training only the three events — they are the test, not the training. The supporting strength that makes them safe is built more broadly.
Chasing counts while form degrades — this trains the wrong movement and it is where the injuries come from.
Doing maximum effort every day — muscle and connective tissue need recovery, and the adaptation happens between sessions rather than during them.
Neglecting mobility — A candidate who cannot reach squat depth is often limited by ankle or hip range, and no amount of leg strength fixes that.
Practising fresh — see above. The test comes after the run.
When to stop
Muscle soreness a day or two after unfamiliar work is ordinary. Joint pain, sharp pain and one-sided pain are not. Nor is numbness, tingling, or pain that worsens session on session. Our article on when to stop and see a doctor covers this properly, and it is worth reading before you begin rather than after.
What to do
- Find your own events and standards, from your own notification.
- Practise the sequence in order, run first, rather than the parts in isolation.
- Practise against a clock, because the clock is part of the event.
- Get someone to watch your form, or film it.
- Build gradually, and read the article on when to stop before you start.
Related reading
- The Physical Tests by Service — What Is Published, and What Is Not
- When to Stop Training and See a Doctor
- Sleep, Hydration and Recovery — the Half of Preparation That Happens Away From Training
This article is general guidance written from publicly available recruitment notifications and scheme documents issued by the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, the Indian Air Force and the Ministry of Defence. Eligibility, exam patterns, physical standards, pay and scheme terms are revised with each recruitment cycle, and every figure stated here is pinned to the cycle it was read from. Always confirm current specifics against the live notification on the official portal of the service you are applying to. VSVSV is a private learning platform. It is not affiliated with, authorised by, or endorsed by the Ministry of Defence, the Indian Armed Forces, or any recruiting body. It takes no part in recruitment or selection.