The Jharkhand Academic Council has officially unveiled the examination schedule for the 2026 board examinations, providing clarity to thousands of students across the state. The much-anticipated date sheets for both Class 10 Matric and Class 12 Intermediate levels have been published, setting the stage for the crucial academic assessments.
Examination Schedule and Key Dates
The board examinations will commence on February 3, 2026, with both Class 10 and Class 12 students appearing for vocational subjects on the opening day. The Class 10 secondary examinations will continue until February 17, 2026, while the Class 12 intermediate exams will extend until February 23, 2026, providing a comprehensive testing period for all subjects.
Students will benefit from distinct timing schedules for different levels. Class 10 examinations will be conducted from 9:45 AM to 1:00 PM, while Class 12 exams will run from 2:00 PM to 5:15 PM. This staggered approach ensures smooth administration across examination centers throughout Jharkhand.
Detailed Subject-wise Timetable
The council has released a comprehensive day-by-day schedule for all subjects. On February 4, Class 12 students will appear for Economics and Anthropology, while Class 10 candidates will take Hindi papers. Mathematics and Statistics for Class 12 and Commerce with Home Science for Class 10 are scheduled for February 5.
Science subjects feature prominently in the second week with Physics for Class 12 and Social Science for Class 10 on February 7. Biology examinations for Class 12 and Business Studies with Sociology and Science for Class 10 are set for February 9. The following days will see Geology, Business Studies, and Geography for senior students, while Class 10 examines Music and Mathematics.
The final week includes important subjects like Philosophy and Chemistry for Class 12 on February 13, with English for Class 10. History for senior students and various regional languages for junior students are scheduled for February 14. The examinations conclude with Psychology and Computer Science for Class 12 on February 17, followed by language papers in the subsequent days.
Important Examination Guidelines
A significant provision for 2026 examinations includes 15 minutes of additional reading time for all students to review question papers before beginning to write their answers. This extra time aims to reduce anxiety and help students plan their responses effectively.
The council has specified important scripting requirements for Class 12 intermediate examinations. Answer sheets for non-linguistic subjects must be written only in Devanagari, Roman, Bangla, Urdu, or Oriya scripts to be considered valid. This regulation ensures standardization in evaluation processes.
For the HNB MB subject examination scheduled for February 23 in the second shift, students will use two separate plain answer sheets. It is mandatory to record the serial numbers of both answer sheets in the attendance sheet. However, for biology subjects, only one answer sheet will be utilized, maintaining consistency with previous examination patterns.
Context and Previous Year Statistics
The release of the 2026 timetable follows the successful completion of the 2025 board examinations, which saw impressive participation across the state. Over 4.33 lakh students appeared for the Jharkhand Class 10 board exams in 2025, demonstrating the scale of these annual assessments.
In the previous academic year, written examinations for Class 10 were conducted from February 11 to March 3, followed by practical exams between March 4 and March 20. Similarly, Class 12 board examinations ran from February 11 to March 4, with practical assessments scheduled from March 5 to March 20. The 2026 schedule appears to follow a similar pattern with slight adjustments in dates.
Students and educational institutions across Jharkhand have welcomed the early release of the examination schedule, which allows sufficient time for systematic preparation and revision. The structured timetable provides clarity and helps students create effective study plans for their final board examinations.
