Starting from the 2025-26 academic year, the Ministry of Education has directed the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to prepare for holding board exams twice yearly. Sources indicate that the ministry has decided against introducing a semester system. The CBSE will consult with school principals in the coming month to discuss implementing this new examination structure.
The board is devising a plan to integrate an additional exam session into the academic calendar without affecting the schedule for undergraduate admissions. According to a source, “The ministry has tasked the CBSE with determining the logistics for biannual board exams. The board is finalising the details and will soon consult with school principals.”
The concept would allow two board exam sessions towards the year’s end from the 2025-26 session onward, although specifics are still being finalised. Originally, the ministry aimed to introduce biannual exams in the 2024-25 session, but plans have been delayed by a year.
This initiative aligns with the new national curriculum framework developed under the guidance of former ISRO chairman K Kasturirangan, which supports the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. Released in August of the previous year, the framework suggested the option for students in grades 11 and 12 to take their board exams twice annually.
A source explained, “The CBSE is currently brainstorming how to schedule these sessions to maximise student benefits and reduce exam-related stress. However, logistics remain a significant challenge.”
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan mentioned in an interview with PTI last October that students would not be required to appear for board exams twice. It would be optional, allowing students to choose their best score, similar to the engineering entrance exam JEE.
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This move to offer board exams twice yearly is not the first reform attempt. The Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) exercise was implemented in 2009 for the 10th grade. However, it was discontinued in 2017, returning to the traditional year-end exam model. During the COVID-19 pandemic, board exams for classes 10 and 12 were temporarily divided into two terms, but the conventional format has resumed this year.
