Result for the Assam secondary examination this year, which was hit by controversy after question papers of two subjects leaked, was declared on Monday and over 70 per cent candidates cleared it.

The boys outshone the girls in the examination, which recorded an overall pass percentage of 72.69 per cent. The pass percentage for boys was 74.71, while that of girls was 70.96 per cent, the Board of Secondary Education, Assam (SEBA) said.

The overall pass percentage this year was an improvement over that of 2022, when 56.49 per cent candidates cleared the examination.

Hridam Thakuria of Sankardev Sishu Niketan in Dhekiajuli headed the merit list by securing 596 marks out of the total 600.

Congratulating the successful candidates, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma tweeted “Congratulations to all #ExamWarriors who performed well. For those unhappy, remember one exam cannot make or break your career.

“Success is a result of perseverance and hard work. See your result as a beginning and not the end. You have miles to go, this is only a tiny step forward,” he added.

Education Minister Ranoj Pegu extending his best wishes to the successful students, wrote on the micro-blogging site: “HSLC 2023 results are out. 301880 out of 415324 (72.69%) candidates have passed. Congratulations to all of them. Unsuccessful candidates should not be disheartened. Start now preparing for the next exam.”

The board examination, held in March, was mired in controversy as question papers of Mathematics and Modern Indian Language and English had leaked. It had forced SEBA to postpone the two examinations.

More than 30 people, including several students, were arrested in the case by the CID, which was entrusted with the task to probe the leak.

Two teachers, Pranab Dutta and Kumud Rajkhowa were identified as the masterminds and arrested.