Education revolution: Students to enjoy biannual board exams starting in the year 2025-26

In a significant move to alleviate the academic stress faced by students all over the country, Dharmendra Pradhan, Education Minister, announced a groundbreaking development during the launch of the Prime Minister Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) scheme in Chhattisgarh.

Beginning from the academic session of 2025-26, students will now have the option to appear for their class 10 and class 12 Board exams twice a year.

This progressive step aligns with the National Education Policy (NEP) of 2020, which aims to mitigate the pressure on students and foster a more holistic approach to education.

The NEP envisions a reduction in stress levels by introducing novel concepts such as ’10 bag-less'”‘ days annually, emphasising student engagement more in activities such as art, culture, and sports to provide a well-rounded educational experience.

Under the New Curriculum Framework (NCF) introduced by the Ministry of Education in August of the preceding year, the Board exams will be conducted at least twice annually. This initiative ensures that students have ample time and opportunities to showcase their capabilities, with the added advantage of the option to retain their best scores.

The Minister, addressing the gathering at the Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Auditorium in Raipur, sought feedback from the students present and encouraged them to retain their highest scores obtained from both exam attempts.

He also emphasised that the overarching goal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision, as articulated in the NEP, is to cultivate stress-free learning environments, provide quality education, nurture cultural connections, and equip students for the future, ultimately propelling India towards developed status by 2047.

Taking a swipe at the previous Congress government in the state, Pradhan also underscored the newfound importance given to the education sector by the BJP-led government and Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai.

The launch of the PM SHRI scheme in Chhattisgarh, earmarking Rs 2 crore for the upgrade of 211 schools in the first phase, operates on a ‘hub and spoke’ model. In this model, mentor institutions, or ‘hubs,’ centrally guide and support mentee institutions, or ‘spokes,’ fostering self-improvement in the latter.

Responding to a request from Chhattisgarh’s School and Higher Education Minister Brijmohan Agrawal, Pradhan assured that more secondary and higher secondary schools would be incorporated into the PM SHRI scheme in subsequent phases.

In an unexpected twist, Minister Pradhan expressed India’s ambition to bid for the 2036 Olympic Games and called for the initiation of preparations, anticipating that 10 percent of the country’s medals should ideally come from Chhattisgarh athletes.

The announcement was made in the presence of Chief Minister Sai, Minister Agrawal, and other senior officials, marking a momentous occasion in the evolution of India’s education and sports landscape.