The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Sunday announced the postponement of board exams for Classes 10 and 12 scheduled to be held on March 2 in several West Asian countries amid escalating tensions in the region following US and Israeli strikes on Iran and Tehran’s military response.
In a circular, the board informed the principals of over 150 CBSE schools in Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that examinations scheduled to be held on Monday “for both Classes 10 and 12, have been postponed.” She added that the new dates “will be announced later.”
The board also stated that it will review the situation on Tuesday, March 3, and take appropriate decisions regarding examinations scheduled from March 5 onwards.
“All students are advised to stay in touch with their schools for updates and follow official announcements carefully,” said the circular issued by CBSE Controller of Examinations Dr Sanyam Bhardwaj.
The decision affects thousands of Indian students studying in schools affiliated with the Central Board of Secondary Education across the Gulf region. The UAE and Saudi Arabia, in particular, host a large number of Indian expatriate families, and CBSE schools there account for a large proportion of foreign candidates who sit the board exams every year.
CBSE conducts board examinations for Classes 10 and 12 annually in India and in selected foreign centers where its affiliated schools operate. The Gulf region forms the largest overseas concentration of CBSE schools, with Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Riyadh among the major examination centres.
The postponement marks a rare mid-session disruption to board exams abroad. In recent years, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has changed schedules mainly during exceptional circumstances – most notably in 2020 and 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic, when many Class 10 and 12 examinations in India and abroad were postponed or cancelled. In isolated cases, the Council has also postponed examinations at specific centers due to extreme weather conditions, local emergencies or security concerns, while maintaining the broader national timetable.
The latest circular lists India’s ambassadors to the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Iran, as well as the Consul General of India in Dubai, among those who have been copied for information and necessary action.
CBSE board exams for Classes 10 and 12 began on February 18. More than 4.37 million students, including 2.51 million Class 10 students and 1.86 million Class 12 students, are appearing for the 2026 CBSE board exams.
