CBSE Class X students begin second board exams

New Delhi: Students across the country are appearing for the second phase of the Class X Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) board examinations starting Friday. Mathematics standard and mathematics basic papers were scheduled on the opening day of the optional improvement and compartment exam cycle.

The board has received nearly 6.7 lakh applications for the second examination, introduced for the first time from the 2026 academic session as part of CBSE’s new two-board-exam format for Class X students. Most candidates who registered for the ongoing cycle are seeking to improve their marks in the main board examinations held earlier this year.

According to CBSE data, 6,68,854 regular students have applied for the exams. Among them, 5,25,655 candidates registered under the improvement category, while 85,285 students applied under the compartment category. Another 57,914 candidates opted for both improvement and compartment examinations.

As per the schedule, English communicative and English language and literature papers will be conducted on May 16. Several languages and elective subject examinations, including Hindi, Urdu, Punjabi, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi and Gujarati, along with some foreign languages, are scheduled for May 19. Home science and a few vocational subject papers will also be held on the same day.

Students will appear for Sanskrit, painting, information technology and artificial intelligence examinations on May 20, while the second examination cycle will conclude on May 21 with the social science paper.

Under the revised format, the first board examination conducted in Feb remains compulsory, while the second phase is optional. This allows students to improve their scores or clear subjects in which they were unable to pass in the main examination. Students can appear in a maximum of three subjects during the second examination cycle and are allowed to retain their best scores.

The board is expected to announce the results of the second examination within a month after the exams conclude. Once the results are declared, students will be able to complete admission-related formalities for the next academic session.