E-Paper
13 UP districts achieve 100% success in NMMS scholarship exam 2026
Despite sustained efforts by authorities to encourage greater participation, 218 scholarship seats remained vacant this year
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An analysis of the detailed results of the National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship (NMMS) Examination 2026 has revealed that talented students from 13 districts of Uttar Pradesh achieved a remarkable 100% success rate.
According to the results released on February 28 by the Examination Regulatory Authority (ERA), Uttar Pradesh, 14,925 meritorious students have been selected against the state’s total quota of 15,143 seats for class 8 students studying in government-run, government-aided, and local body schools.
Despite sustained efforts by authorities to encourage greater participation, 218 scholarship seats remained vacant this year, officials conceded.
The selected students will receive a scholarship of ₹1,000 per month ( ₹12,000 annually) from Class 9 to Class 12 to support their education, said ERA secretary Anil Bhushan Chaturvedi.
Each district in the state is allotted a fixed quota of scholarship seats.
A review of the detailed results, which have only recently become available, shows that the districts achieving 100% selection against their allotted quota include: Bahraich (172), Ballia (251), Balrampur (118), Chandauli (204), Deoria (235), Ghazipur (184), Kaushambi (105), Kushinagar (254), Lakhimpur Kheri (318), Mau (147), Mirzapur (233), Sonbhadra (159), and Varanasi (269).
The NMMS scholarship scheme was launched by the Central Government in 2008 to reduce dropout rates after Class 8 and provide financial support to students from economically weaker sections. Under the scheme, one lakh students across the country receive scholarships each year.
Officials said the 2026 result is among the best in recent years. In comparison, 14,493 students were selected in 2025, 14,896 in 2024, 14,090 in 2023, and only 6,456 in 2022.
In recent years, the UP Secondary Education Department has intensified efforts to ensure that more students apply for the examination. However, despite improved participation and a record performance this year, 218 scholarship seats in the state still remained unfilled.
Across all 75 districts of Uttar Pradesh, about 77% of registered candidates appeared for the National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship Examination 2026–27 held on November 9, 2025, at 394 examination centres under the supervision of the Prayagraj-headquartered Examination Regulatory Authority.
According to officials, 1,57,721 students registered for the examination, of whom 1,21,445 (77%) appeared, while 36,276 (23%) remained absent.
The examination was conducted in two shifts—from 10 am to 1 pm for general candidates and 10 am to 2 pm for differently-abled students.
Applications were invited from students who had passed Class 7 in the 2024–25 academic session with at least 55% marks (with a 5% relaxation for SC/ST candidates) and are currently studying in Class 8 during the 2025–26 session in government, government-aided, or local body (parishadiya) schools.
