New Delhi: Girls once again stole a march over boys in the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) class XII examination, results of which were announced today (May 26, 2004).

Of the 3,87,774 students who appeared in the Senior School Certificate Examination across the country this year, 76 per cent passed, an increase of 2.41 per cent from last year, CBSE chairman Ashok Ganguly told reporters in New Delhi.

The percentage of girls who cleared the examination was much above that of boys - 82.28 per cent as compared to 71.29 per cent.

In Delhi region, which covers all CBSE schools in Delhi and foreign countries, the difference was even higher - 82.58 per cent for girls against 69.43 per cent for boys.

Results for Delhi and Allahabad regions, which include the national capital, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal, Uttaranchal, Jharkhand and foreign countries, were declared today while those of Ajmer, Chennai, Chandigarh and Guwahati regions covering rest of the country were available to students on Sunday (May 23, 2004).

Chennai region, which includes all Southern States, was the most successful region with a pass percentage of 90.51, followed by Ajmer, Chandigarh and Delhi at 75.75 per cent, Ganguly said.

The Kendriya Vidyalaya schools emerged the most successful as a group, with 92.62 per cent of students clearing the examination, a record.

This was followed by Central Tibetans schools, which registered as a group this year, with a success rate of 86 per cent.