CBSE reschedules classes 10, 12 exams scheduled for March 3

NEW DELHI: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has rescheduled the 2026 board examinations for 13 Class 10 subjects and one Class 12 subject that were slated to be held on March 3, citing “administrative reasons”.

In a December 29 letter to principals of its affiliated schools, the board said the 2026 examinations for 13 Class 10 subjects — Tibetan, German, National Cadet Corps, Bhoti, Bodo, Tangkhul, Japanese, Bhutia, Spanish, Kashmiri, Mizo, Bahasa Melayu, and Elements of Book Keeping and Accountancy — will be held on March 11.

Similarly, the Class 12 Legal Studies examination, also previously slated for March 3, will now be conducted on April 10.

“All other examination dates remain unchanged. Schools are requested to kindly disseminate this information to all concerned students and parents for their information and necessary action please,” Dr Sanyam Bhardwaj, CBSE controller of examinations, said in the letter.

He said that date sheets for Class 10 and 12 board examinations 2026 were being amended accordingly and the revised dates will be reflected in the Admit Cards.

CBSE will start conducting the Class 10 board exams biannually from the 2026 cycle, with the first mandatory exam in mid-February and an optional second exam in May for students aiming to improve their marks in three subjects out of four – science, mathematics, social science, and languages.

This change is in line with the recommendations of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which stressed reducing the ‘high-stakes’ nature of board exams.

About 2.6 million Class 10 students and 2 million Class 12 students are expected to appear for the exams.

According to the schedule announced on October 30, the main board exams will run from February 17 to March 10 for Class 10, and from February 17 to April 9 for Class 12.

CBSE had previously indicated that the second round of exams would be held from May 15 to June 1, and the results announced by July 15, 2026.