GATE Agricultural Engineering Syllabus 2025: Check Topics, Weightage, Download PDF

Engineering Mathematics

Linear Algebra

Matrices and determinants, linear and orthogonal transformations, Cayley Hamilton theorem; Eigenvalues and Eigenvectors, solutions of linear equations

Calculus

Limit, continuity, and differentiability; partial derivatives; homogeneous function – Euler’s theorem on homogeneous functions, total differentiation; maxima and minima of function with several independent variables; sequences and series – infinite series, tests for convergence; Fourier, Taylor, and MacLaurin series.

Vector Calculus

Vector differentiation, scalar, and vector point functions, vector differential operators – del, gradient; divergence and curl; physical interpretations-line, surface and volume integrals; Stokes, Gauss, and Green’s theorems.

Differential Equations

Linear and non-linear first-order Ordinary Differential Equations (ODE); homogeneous differential equations, higher order linear ODEs with constant coefficients; Laplace transforms and their inverse; Partial Differential Equations - Laplace, heat, and wave equations

Probability and Statistics

Mean, median, mode, and standard deviation; random variables; Poisson, normal, and binomial distributions; correlation and regression analysis.

Numerical Methods

Solutions of linear and non-linear algebraic equations; numerical integration - trapezoidal and Simpson’s rule; numerical solutions of ODEs.

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, stress, torque, speed, displacement, and acceleration on machine elements - shafts, couplings, keys, bearings and knuckle joints

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 and threshing calculation of performance parameters - field capacity, efficiency, application rate, and losses; cost analysis of implements and tractors.

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; performance index, cost analysis of implements and tractors.

Tractors and Power tillers

Type, selection, maintenance, and repair of tractors and power tillers; 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; steering and hydraulic control systems used in tractors; tractor tests and performance; human engineering and safety considerations in the design of tractor and agricultural implements.

Soil and Water Conservation Engineering

Fluid Mechanics

Ideal and real fluids, properties of fluids; hydrostatic pressure and its measurement; continuity equation, kinematics and dynamics of flow; Bernoulli’s theorem; laminar and turbulent flow in pipes, Darcy- Weisbach and Hazen-Williams equations, Moody’s diagram; flow through orifices, weirs and notches; flow in open channels, dimensional analysis – concepts of geometric dimensionless numbers.

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, Terzaghi’s one-dimensional soil consolidation theory.

Hydrology

Hydrological cycle and measurement of its components; meteorological parameters and their measurement; analysis of precipitation data; runoff estimation; hydrograph analysis, unit hydrograph theory, and application; stream flow measurement; flood routing, hydrological reservoir and channel routing, Infiltration – indices and equations, drought, and its classification.

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; total station, introduction to GPS survey, computation of areas and volume.

Soil and Water Erosion

Mechanics of soil erosion - wind and water erosion: soil erosion types, 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 and land use capability classification; water budgeting in watershed, rainwater harvesting, check dams and farm ponds.

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

Agricultural Process Engineering

Engineering properties of agriculture produce

Physical, thermal, frictional, rheological, and electrical properties.

Evaporation and Drying

Concentration and drying of liquid foods – evaporators, tray, drum and spray dryers; hydrothermal treatments; drying and milling of cereals, pulses and oilseeds; drying kinetics; psychrometry – properties of air-water vapor mixture.

Size Reduction and Material Handling

Mechanics and energy requirement in size reduction of agriculture produce; 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 separation; centrifugal separation of solids, liquids, and gases; homogenization; filtration and membrane separation.

Processing of Agriculture Produce

Processing of seeds, spices, fruits, and vegetables; value addition of agricultural produce

Storage Systems

Controlled and modified atmosphere storage; perishable food storage, godowns, bins and grain silos, packaging material, and machines.

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.

Spatial Aptitude

Transformation of shapes: translation, rotation, scaling, mirroring, assembling, and grouping Paper folding, cutting, and patterns in 2 and 3 dimensions

Analytical Aptitude

Logic: deduction and induction, Analogy, Numerical relations and reasoning

Quantitative Aptitude

Data interpretation: data graphs (bar graphs, pie charts, and other graphs representing data), 2- and 3-dimensional plots, maps, and tables Numerical computation and estimation: ratios, percentages, powers, exponents and logarithms, permutations and combinations, and series Mensuration and geometry Elementary statistics and probability. 

Verbal Aptitude

Basic English grammar: tenses, articles, adjectives, prepositions, conjunctions, verb-noun agreement, and other parts of speech Basic vocabulary: words, idioms, and phrases in context Reading and comprehension Narrative sequencing

Engineering Mathematics

• Maxima and minima of function with several independent variables

• Eigenvalues and Eigenvectors

• physical interpretations-line, surface and volume integrals

• Poisson, normal, and binomial distributions;

Farm Machinery

• Overload safety devices used in farm machinery

• Measurement of force, stress, torque, speed, displacement, and acceleration on machine elements - shafts, couplings, keys, bearings, and knuckle joints

Farm Power

• Engine Components

• calculation of power, torque, fuel consumption, heat load, and power losses

• Steering and hydraulic control systems used in tractors

• Human engineering and safety considerations in the design of tractor and agricultural implements

Soil and Water Conservation Engineering

• Hydrostatic pressure and its measurement

• Bernoulli’s theorem

• Laminar and turbulent flow in pipes

• Index properties of soils

• Stability of slopes

• Measurement of angles and bearings

• Biological and engineering measures to control erosion

• Gully control structures, drop, drop inlet, and chute spillways

Irrigation and Drainage Engineering

• Measurement of infiltration, soil moisture, and irrigation water infiltration

• Irrigation scheduling

• Leaching requirement and salinity control

• Darcy’s Law, steady and unsteady flow in confined and unconfined aquifers

• Design and construction of water wells

Agricultural Process Engineering

• Hydrothermal treatments

• Drying kinetics

• Fluidization of granular solids-pneumatic

• Centrifugal separation of solids, liquids, and gases

• Value addition of agricultural produce

• Perishable food storage

Dairy and Food Engineering

• Working principles of heat exchangers

• Material and energy balances in food processing systems

• Water activity, sorption, and desorption isotherms

• Preservation of food by cooling and freezing

General Aptitude

10

Engineering Mathematics

10-12

Farm Machinery

10

Soil and Water Conservation Engineering

15

Dairy and Food Engineering

5-8

Engineering Hydrology

K. Subramanya

Engineering Principle of Agricultural Machines

Ajit K. Srivastava.

Heat Transfer

J.P. Holman

Soil and Water Conservation Engineering

Glenn O Schwab.

Elements of Agricultural Engineering

J. Sahay

Numerical Approach in Agricultural Engineering

Er. Sanjay Kumar

Applied Hydrology

Ven Chow, David Maidment, Larry Mays

Gate Digest in Agricultural Engineering

Er. Sanjay Kumar

Land and Water Management Engineering

V.V.N. Murty

Fundamentals of Food Process Engineering

R.T. Toledo

Postharvest Technology and Food Process Engineering

Amalendu Chakraverty, R. Paul Singh, CRC Press (2014)

Introduction to Food Process Engineering

P. G. Smith

Higher Engineering Mathematics

Dr. B.S Grewal

Application and Concept in Agricultural Engineering

Dash & Mohanty

Advanced Engineering Mathematics

Erwin Kreyszig (10th Edition)