Tamil Nadu Board Exams 2026: The Tamil Nadu Higher Secondary (Class 12) examinations have begun today, March 2, for the academic year 2025-26. A total of 8,27,475 students will appear for the exams over 24 days at 3,412 centres across the state, with the examinations scheduled to conclude on March 26. This includes 7,99,692 regular school students and 27,783 private candidates. The exams are being conducted from 10 am to 1:15 pm.
The Tamil Nadu Directorate of Government Examinations has put in place elaborate security and monitoring arrangements to ensure the smooth conduct of the exams.
Discontinuation of Class 11 Public Examination System
The government has discontinued the Class 11 public examination system in line with recommendations under the State Education Policy. Under the system, the Class 11 exams are conducted as similar to Class 10 and 12 board exams. However, re-examinations for students who had not cleared the earlier Class 11 public exams will be conducted from March 3 to March 27 at 2,615 centres.
281 Prison Inmates To Appear For Tamil Nadu Exams
As many as 25,051 candidates - including 19,107 school students and 5,944 private candidates -will write the arrear examinations. Notably, 281 inmates lodged in prisons across Tamil Nadu will also be appearing for the Higher Secondary public examinations this year, reflecting the state's continued emphasis on educational access and rehabilitation.
To ensure the smooth conduct of examinations, more than 49,000 teachers will be deployed daily as room invigilators across centres. In addition, over 4,900 flying squads have been constituted to prevent malpractice and maintain transparency in the examination process.
In Chennai district alone, 64,359 students from 578 Higher Secondary schools - comprising 30,663 boys and 33,696 girls - will appear for the Class 12 examinations at 250 centres. Additionally, 3,157 private candidates will write their exams in the district.
Extensive logistical arrangements have been put in place in Chennai to ensure secure handling of question papers and answer scripts.
Five question paper storage depots, five answer script collection centres and 65 distribution routes have been established. Around 6,150 personnel, including 250 chief invigilators, 250 departmental officers, 550 flying and stationary squad members, 4,100 room invigilators, scribes and 1,000 non-teaching staff, have been deployed for examination duties in the district.
Officials stated that all precautionary measures are in place to conduct the examinations smoothly and fairly across Tamil Nadu.
The SSLC (Class 10) examinations will be held from March 11 to April 6 across the state.