The Madhya Pradesh Board which conducts the Class 10 and Class 12 examinations in the state was established under the Madhya Pradesh Secondary Education Act, 1965. The Board was formed to regulate and conduct the affairs of the secondary education in the state. The MP Board of Secondary Education (MPBSE) serves as an exam conducting body and it regulates the education policies in the affiliated schools. The MPBSE conducts annual board exams to evaluate the academic performance of students at the HSC and the HSSC levels. The first MP Board examinations were held in the year 1959-60, in which approximately 80,000 students participated. Since then, the MP Board has managed to raise the number of participants significantly to approximately 10 lakh in past few years. Each year lakhs of students participate in the MP Board 12 Examinations and MP Board 10 Examinations conducted by the MPBSEs.