CBSE Class 10th, 12th Boards 2026 Begins: Type of pen, water-bottle, admit card and other instructions for students

CBSE Board Exam 2026: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is scheduled to commence the Class 10th and 12th annual board exams 2026 from February 17, Tuesday. According to the exam timetable issued by CBSE earlier, tests will be conducted in a single shift from 10:30 am to 1:30 pm. This year, an estimated 43.6 lakh candidates are set to appear for both CBSE Secondary and Higher Secondary exams. In light of the ongoing AI Impact Summit, attended by global dignitaries, special arrangements have been made by the Delhi Police to ensure smooth travel for students appearing in the CBSE Board exams. With traffic restrictions in parts of central Delhi due to summit-related movement around Bharat Mandapam, police have issued a special advisory. In a post on X, the police said traffic personnel have been directed to extend assistance to students travelling to their examination centres. Those carrying their CBSE admit cards or date sheets will be given priority to help them reach venues on time. ALSO READ | CBSE Class 10th Math Exam 2026 Prep Tips ## CBSE Board Exams 2026: Exam day guidelines for candidates The first exam for CBSE Class 10 is mathematics, both basic and standard, while for CBSE Class 12, the first exam is biotechnology, entrepreneurship, and shorthand for both English and Hindi. –All students have to bring a hard copy of the CBSE admit cards. They will be denied permission to the exam hall, in case they forget their hall tickets. –Students have to be in the proper school uniform and must also carry their school identity card. –Candidates are required to reach the examination centre at least 25-30 minutes before the exam to avoid last-minute issues. –Candidates are advised not to carry items which are restricted by the Board, such as a smart watch, mobile phone or any other kind of electronic gadgets. If any candidate is found with this type of gadget, he/she will not be allowed to appear in the examination. Also read | What if my CBSE Class 10 Maths exam did not go as planned? –Candidates must remember to carry their own stationery to the examination centre; they will not be allowed to ask for stationary at the examination room. A transparent water bottle is allowed. –Candidates will get 15 minutes to read the question paper, and throughout the examination, candidates only use a ‘blue or black’ pen in the answer sheet. ## What’s new in CBSE Board Exams 2026? The Board has announced changes for both Classes 10 and 12, this year. Last year, the CBSE announced a dual-board exam structure for Class 10 students. The dual-exam system is aimed at allowing candidates to re-appear in certain papers where they might have scored less; allowing for an ‘improvement’ option. Meanwhile, for Class 12, the CBSE will introduce ‘On-Screen Marking’ (OSM) for Class 12 board examinations from 2026. This, according to the Board, will be a “much-needed shift” from physical evaluation of answer sheets to a fully digital assessment system. The Board has estimated, for Class 12 Board Exams 2026, as many as 18,57,479 (18 lakh) students are expected to appear across 120 subjects. The Board will handle an estimated 1,00,44,295 (10.4 crore) answer books. The scale of exams – which also includes several centres abroad, Bhardwaj said, is precisely why CBSE is moving to digital evaluation.