Maharashtra Board waives Class 10, 12 exam fees for students in 265 drought-hit talukas

The Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education has waived examination fees for Class 10 and Class 12 students from 265 drought-affected talukas for the upcoming 2027 board examinations.

The board has instructed its divisional offices to accept online applications from eligible students without collecting the prescribed examination fee.

The exemption will apply to students appearing for the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) examinations and will remain in force until further orders.

The Maharashtra Board Class 12 examinations are scheduled from Feb 8 to March 16, 2027, while the SSC examinations will be held from Feb 15 to March 11, 2027.

The fee waiver follows a government resolution issued on Sept 25, which announced a range of concessions for drought-affected areas. Exemption from SSC and HSC examination fees was included as a special measure for students residing in the identified talukas.

The state board has now directed all its divisional units to implement the provision while accepting online examination applications for the upcoming examinations. Students who meet the eligibility conditions will not be required to pay the examination fee while submitting their applications.

The concession covers 265 of Maharashtra's 358 talukas, which amounts to around 74% of the state's talukas. The areas were identified as drought-affected following poor rainfall across several parts of the state.

The government has introduced the concessions to provide relief to people living in the affected regions. For students and their families, the examination fee exemption is intended to reduce some of the financial burden associated with appearing for the state board examinations.

The latest decision will apply specifically to students from the talukas covered under the September 25 government resolution. The divisional offices have been asked to ensure that eligible students can complete the online application process without payment of the examination fee.

The number of students appearing for Maharashtra's SSC and HSC examinations makes the fee-related provision relevant across a large examination system.

During the previous academic year, 1,555,026 regular candidates registered for the SSC examinations across the state's nine divisions. Of these, 1,542,472 students appeared for the examinations and 1,420,486 students passed.

For the HSC examinations, 1,444,713 students registered during the previous academic year, while 1,433,058 appeared. A total of 1,286,843 students secured passing marks.

The fee exemption will continue until further orders and will be implemented by the Maharashtra State Board through its divisional offices during the application process for the 2027 SSC and HSC examinations.