New Delhi, May 14 -- The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Wednesday declared the Class 12 board examination results for 2026, with the overall pass percentage dropping to 85.20% from 88.39% last year, even as nearly 76,000 more students appeared for the exams. A total of 1.77 million students appeared for the examinations this year, compared with 1.69 million in 2025. The pass percentage was the lowest in the post-pandemic period and the lowest overall since 2019, when it stood at 83.40%. The decline was reflected across regions, with some of the steepest falls recorded in northern and central India. Patna recorded the sharpest drop of 8.41 percentage points, falling from 82.86% in 2025 to 74.45% this year. Prayagraj saw a dec...