Mumbai: Nearly six in every 10 Class X students who reappeared for CBSE‘s first-ever second board examination improved their scores, pushing the overall pass percentage for the 2026 batch to 96.78%. The board on Saturday declared the results of the exam, which saw more than 6.63 lakh candidates appear, including more than 5.13 lakh seeking to better their performance in the main examination.Of the 6,64,027 candidates who registered for the second board examination, 6,63,777 appeared. As many as 5,13,955 students took the examination to improve their marks after the main board exams, with 3,08,095 of them — 59.95% — successfully bettering their performance. Another 1,49,822 students appeared in the compartment category, of whom 78,503 passed, taking the compartment pass percentage to 52.40%, up from 48.68% last year. Following the combined results of the main and second examinations, the overall Class X pass percentage for 2026 stood at 96.78%.The second board examination marks the first year of CBSE’s new two-exam system for Class X, introduced in line with reforms proposed under the National Education Policy 2020. Under the revised format, the main board examinations were conducted from Feb 17 to March 11, while the second examination was held from May 15 to 21. Regular students were given an additional opportunity to improve their scores in selected subjects, with the better of the two performances being considered for the final result.“The results have come out quite late at night, so the details aren’t clear yet, but overall the results have been very good and students have done significantly better,” said Hari Vashisht, former principal of DPS Navi Mumbai and current principal of DPS Noida.The declaration of the second board examination results comes after much of this year’s admission cycle has already run its course. In Maharashtra, four rounds of First Year Junior College admissions have been completed and classes have already begun. The improved scores are likely to have limited impact on admissions for the current academic year, even though they will be reflected in students’ final board results.
