Bengaluru, April 23 : Karnataka on Thursday recorded a historic performance, with a pass percentage of 94.1 per cent in the SSLC (Secondary School Leaving Certificate) Examination-1 (Class 10) results this year.

Authorities have reported a sharp rise in the overall pass percentage, along with improved outcomes across categories. Girls have outperformed boys in the board examination.

It may be noted that the state government has reduced the minimum passing marks from 35 per cent to 33 per cent.

The SSLC Exam-1 was conducted from March 18 to April 2.

A total of 7,24,794 have passed the examination taking the passing percentage to 94.1 per cent against 80.04 per cent in 2024-25.

A total of 7,75,999 regular fresh students registered for the examination, of whom 7,70,209 appeared, while 5,790 students were absent.

The attendance rate stood at an impressive 99.2 per cent.

The girls have outperformed boys in the board exams by achieving the passing percentage of 96.18, the passing percentage of boys stood at 91. 94 per cent.

A total of 3,77,922 girl students and 3,46,872 boys have appeared for the exams.

According to official data, the pass percentage among regular fresh students stood at 94.1 per cent this year, marking an increase of 14.06 percentage points compared to the combined results of all three exams last year.

Notably, rural students (94.80 per cent) outperformed their urban counterparts (93.2 per cent), registering a higher pass percentage.

Government schools also recorded a significant improvement, with a 16.8 percentage point increase in pass percentage compared to last year.

Another key highlight is the rise in individual student performance. Around 66.5 per cent of students scored 60 per cent and above. Additionally, 1,532 students benefited from the reduction in the minimum passing marks from 35 per cent to 33 per cent.

Karnataka Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa while announcing the Class 10 results extended congratulations, lauded the efforts of officials, students and parents for achieving the milestone, and also acknowledged the contribution of senior officials, Deputy Director of Public Instruction officers, Block Education Officers and teachers for their role in delivering the results.

Evaluation of answer scripts was carried out across 237 camps in 35 districts and was completed on April 16.

The results have been communicated to students and parents via SMS and WhatsApp. In a first, marks cards have also been made available through DigiLocker.

Officials noted that students across all categories performed well this year, with no significant gaps observed.

The 92.4 per cent candidates belonging to the Scheduled Caste category, 93.17 per cent of Scheduled Tribe and 95.35 hailing from general category have passed the exams.

The number of schools achieving a 100 per cent pass rate has increased, and notably, no government school recorded a zero per cent result this year.

Authorities described the outcome as a reflection of sustained efforts to improve academic performance and ensure equitable results across regions and school types.

The coastal district of Mangaluru stood first by achieving 98.40 per cent. Udupi stood next with 98.18 per cent and Karwar district stood at third position with 98.08 per cent. Bengaluru North (95.33 per cent), Bengaluru Rural (95.83 per cent) and Bengaluru South district (91.64 per cent) of students passed the exams.

Kalaburagi district in North Karnataka stood at the bottom of the list with 85.06 per cent.

It can noted that Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and his son and Karnataka Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Priyank Kharge hail from this district.

Prarthana Nagappa Biradar Patil of Government High School at Kategeri in Belagavi district; Bharath G of Sri Vidyalakshmi English Medium School at Kabbala in Davanagere district; Brunda M Tapse of St. Maryâ??s High School in Fort Chikkamagaluru; Dhanush Sudhir Mysore of Poorna Prajna Education Centre at Sadashivanagar in Bengaluru; Preetham G Poojary of Mother Theresa Memorial School at Shankaranarayana in Udupi district; Soujanya Basavaraj Kandakur of Oxford English Medium High School at Nagaranabetta in Vijayapura district; and Sukhadeva of BVR English Medium High School at Manvi in Raichur district have scored a perfect 625 out of 625 marks.

/IANS