DHAKA : The Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) and equivalent examinations for 2026 began today simultaneously across the country, with a total of 1,270,583 examinees appearing under the country's 11 education boards.

In a press briefing held at the Secretariat on Wednesday, Secretary of the Secondary and Higher Education Division Abdul Khaleque said the examinations will be held at 2,697 centres, involving students from 9,439 educational institutions. 

"The nine general education boards will conduct the HSC examinations using a single and uniform question paper," he said.

Of the total candidates, 621,969 are male and 648,614 are female, featuring female candidates outnumber males by 26,645, reflecting continued progress in girls' education.

Among the examinees, 1,069,714 are from the nine general education boards, 92,905 from the Madrasah Education Board and 107,964 from the Technical Education Board. 

The Dhaka Education Board has the highest number of candidates at 300,393, while the Barishal Education Board has the lowest at 58,694.

The examinations will cover 77 subjects over 21 days. Regular classes will continue at educational institutions on days when no examinations are scheduled.

To ensure fair and malpractice-free examinations, CCTV cameras have been installed at all centres, while a central CCTV monitoring cell has been set up at the Ministry of Education to oversee examination activities nationwide in real time.

Candidates have been requested to enter their examination centres by 8:30 am to avoid traffic congestion.

Authorities have cancelled examination venues previously identified as prone to cheating, although some centres in remote haor, hill and char areas have been retained with enhanced security arrangements for the convenience of the students.

The secretary said strict measures have also been taken to prevent question paper leaks.

Anyone found spreading fake questions or attempting to leak examination papers on social media will face exemplary punishment under the amended Public Examinations (Offences) Act, 1980.