MHT-CET 2026 PCM results declared: 26 students score 100 percentile, CET Cell introduces two-attempt system

MUMBAI: The State Common Entrance Test (CET) Cell on Monday declared the results of the first MHT-CET 2026 examination for the Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics (PCM) group, conducted for admissions to engineering, pharmacy and agriculture programmes in the academic year 2026-27.

A total of 26 students secured a perfect 100 percentile score, including 24 candidates from Maharashtra and two from outside the state.The examination was conducted in Computer-Based Test (CBT) mode between April 11 and April 20 across 16 sessions over eight days. Of the 4,79,332 candidates who registered for the examination, 4,54,069 appeared, resulting in an attendance rate of 94.73%.Among those who appeared were 2,73,135 male candidates, 1,80,916 female candidates and 18 transgender candidates.

The exam was conducted at 186 centres across all 36 districts of Maharashtra. This year, unlike previous years, no examination centres were set up outside the state.The list of students securing 100 percentile includes candidates from Pune, Mumbai, Nagpur, Chandrapur, Thane, Gondia, Solapur, Latur, Dharashiv and Yavatmal districts. Four of the 26 top scorers are girls.Among the Maharashtra candidates who achieved the highest percentile are Aryan Shailendra Kunjir, Ibadur Rahman Kamrul Barlaskar and Namish Kaushik from Pune; Adarsh Raj and Reyan Kumar from Mumbai; Aryan Ajit Sharma, Kanishk Devendra Wagh, Aishwarya Atul Lade and Shaurya Fulbandhe from Nagpur; and Janhavi Mishra from Chandrapur.

Two candidates from outside Maharashtra — Agastya Pachauri from Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh and Aryaman Dokania from Kolkata in West Bengal — also secured 100 percentile.Two-attempt system introduced for the first timeThe CET Cell has introduced a two-attempt system for MHT-CET PCM, MHT-CET PCB and MBA/MMS entrance examinations from this year. The move is aimed at providing students an opportunity similar to the JEE (Main) examination, which is conducted twice a year.Under the new system, candidates who appeared for both attempts will be considered for admission based on the better percentile score obtained in either examination. Officials said the initiative was introduced following directions from Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil.The CET Cell has made individual scorecards available through candidates’ login accounts. The centralised admission process (CAP) for engineering, pharmacy and agriculture programmes is expected to begin shortly.Percentile not the same as percentageThe CET Cell also clarified that results are declared in percentile and not percentage. While percentage reflects the marks obtained out of the total marks, percentile indicates a candidate’s relative performance compared with all other test-takers.Officials said percentile scores are calculated through a standard statistical process and accurately reflect a candidate’s position in the competition. Students have therefore been advised to focus on percentile scores while assessing admission prospects rather than comparing percentages.