The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has released the detailed marks of candidates finally recommended through the Combined Defence Services Examination (II), 2025. The marks document was published on 21 August 2026 and provides candidates with a detailed picture of the written examination and SSB Interview scores secured by those recommended for the Indian Military Academy (IMA), Indian Naval Academy (INA), Air Force Academy (AFA) and Officers Training Academy (OTA).
The release of the marks completes the major result and score disclosure process for CDS 2 2025, allowing future aspirants to understand the actual level of performance required to secure a place in the final merit lists.
The CDS 2 2025 written examination was conducted on 14 September 2025. UPSC subsequently declared the final results for IMA, INA and AFA on 30 March 2026, followed by a minor revision in the inter-se ranking on 7 April 2026. The OTA final result was announced in early August 2026.
UPSC then published the official CDS 2 2025 cut-off marks on 14 August 2026, followed by the marks of recommended candidates on 21 August 2026.
CDS 2 2025 Recommended Candidates
The marks document contains separate merit details for candidates recommended for different academies.
| Academy | Recommended Candidates | Maximum Marks |
|---|---|---|
| Indian Military Academy (IMA) | 190 | 600 |
| Indian Naval Academy (INA) | 85 | 600 |
| Air Force Academy (AFA) | 27 | 600 |
| Officers Training Academy (OTA) | 483 | 400 |
The numbers in the academy-wise lists should not simply be added to determine the total number of unique candidates. Several candidates feature in more than one academy list because they were recommended for multiple courses according to their eligibility, preferences and position in the merit order.
The total number of unique recommended candidates is approximately 510.
CDS 2 2025 Vacancies
The number of candidates appearing in the recommended lists is higher than the originally notified vacancies for some academies.
The notified vacancies included:
- IMA: 100 vacancies, including 13 reserved for NCC ‘C’ Certificate holders from the Army Wing.
- INA: 26 vacancies, including vacancies for NCC Naval Wing candidates and Hydro.
- AFA: 32 vacancies, including vacancies reserved for NCC Air Wing candidates.
UPSC and the respective service headquarters can recommend candidates beyond the immediate vacancy figure to account for factors such as medical fitness, candidate preferences, withdrawals and other administrative contingencies.
Importantly, the medical examination results are not taken into consideration while preparing the merit lists.
The candidature of recommended candidates also remains provisional until the concerned service headquarters verify their educational qualifications, date of birth and other required documents.
CDS 2 2025 Marking Scheme
The final CDS merit is based on a combination of the written examination and SSB Interview.
IMA, INA and AFA
Candidates appearing for IMA, INA and AFA are tested through three written papers:
| Paper | Maximum Marks |
|---|---|
| English | 100 |
| General Knowledge | 100 |
| Elementary Mathematics | 100 |
| Written Examination Total | 300 |
| SSB Interview | 300 |
| Final Maximum Marks | 600 |
Therefore, the written examination and SSB Interview each carry 50% weightage in the final merit calculation.
OTA
Candidates appearing for OTA have only two written papers:
| Paper | Maximum Marks |
|---|---|
| English | 100 |
| General Knowledge | 100 |
| Written Examination Total | 200 |
| SSB Interview | 200 |
| Final Maximum Marks | 400 |
The minimum qualifying standard in each written paper remained 20%.
CDS 2 2025 Official Cut-Off Marks
The academy-wise written and final aggregate cut-offs provide an important benchmark for candidates preparing for upcoming CDS examinations.
| Academy | Written Cut-Off | Final Aggregate Cut-Off |
|---|---|---|
| IMA | 124.11 | 249.61 / 600 |
| INA | 109.23 | 238.50 / 600 |
| AFA | 132.51 | 263.67 / 600 |
| OTA (Men) | 80.01 | 162.84 / 400 |
| OTA (Women) | 98.06 | 193.01 / 400 |
Among the Permanent Commission academies, the Air Force Academy recorded the highest written as well as final aggregate cut-off.
OTA Women also recorded a substantially higher written and final cut-off compared with OTA Men.
IMA Top 5 Candidates in CDS 2 2025
The Indian Military Academy merit list shows some particularly strong performances in both the written examination and SSB Interview.
| Rank | Candidate | Written | SSB | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Samar Islam Laskar | 183.79 | 161 | 344.79 |
| 2 | Karale Ritesh Shivanand | 171.73 | 168 | 339.73 |
| 3 | Aman Kumar | 175.89 | 160 | 335.89 |
| 4 | Sukhraj Singh Heera | 152.05 | 174 | 326.05 |
| 5 | Ashish Gurjar | 153.22 | 170 | 323.22 |
Samar Islam Laskar topped the IMA list with an aggregate score of 344.79 out of 600, comprising 183.79 marks in the written examination and 161 marks in the SSB Interview.
The highest written score in the IMA list was 183.79, while the highest SSB score reached 177 marks.
The final score of the last recommended candidate was 249.61, while the average final score among recommended IMA candidates was approximately 282 marks.
INA Top 5 Candidates in CDS 2 2025
The leading candidates recommended for the Indian Naval Academy were:
| Rank | Candidate | Written | SSB | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jasnoor Singh | 165.73 | 153 | 318.73 |
| 2 | Anish Venkatesh Shastry | 170.33 | 138 | 308.33 |
| 3 | Vaibhav Walyat | 132.28 | 173 | 305.28 |
| 4 | Prathamesh Shankar Lakhe | 142.77 | 158 | 300.77 |
| 5 | Agam Singh Arora | 120.44 | 179 | 299.44 |
Jasnoor Singh topped the INA list with 318.73 marks.
The INA list is particularly interesting from an SSB perspective. Candidates with comparatively lower written scores were able to move significantly higher in the final merit order through excellent SSB performances.
The highest SSB score across the Permanent Commission lists reached 186 marks, while the final score of the last recommended candidate for INA was 238.50 marks.
AFA Top 5 Candidates in CDS 2 2025
The Air Force Academy had the highest final cut-off among IMA, INA and AFA.
| Rank | Candidate | Written | SSB | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jasnoor Singh | 165.73 | 153 | 318.73 |
| 2 | Alok Singh | 162.17 | 144 | 306.17 |
| 3 | Chakshu | 161.17 | 141 | 302.17 |
| 4 | Ayush Kumar | 161.23 | 139 | 300.23 |
| 5 | V Pavan Karthikeya Chandaka | 136.78 | 163 | 299.78 |
Only 27 candidates feature in the AFA recommended list.
The final aggregate cut-off stood at 263.67 out of 600, while the written cut-off was 132.51 marks, making AFA the highest-cut-off academy among the three Permanent Commission courses.
Jasnoor Singh, who also topped the INA list, secured the highest aggregate among the candidates appearing in the AFA list with 318.73 marks.
CDS 2 2025 OTA Marks
The Officers Training Academy selection process carries a maximum of 400 marks, equally divided between the 200-mark written examination and 200-mark SSB Interview.
Among the notable performances, Khushmeet Kaur Sona secured an aggregate of 239.20 marks, with 115.20 marks in the written examination and 124 marks in the SSB Interview.
Several candidates appearing in the IMA and INA lists also feature among the OTA recommendations, demonstrating how candidates eligible for multiple academies can appear across different merit lists.
The final cut-off for OTA Men was 162.84 marks, while the cut-off for OTA Women stood considerably higher at 193.01 marks.
The marks document also shows candidates at or very close to the final qualifying threshold, providing aspirants with a useful indication of the scores that ultimately determined the merit boundary.
What CDS 2 2025 Marks Tell Future Aspirants
The detailed marks offer several important lessons for candidates preparing for CDS and the SSB Interview.
1. SSB Interview Can Completely Change the Merit Position
The biggest takeaway is the importance of SSB performance. The written examination represents only half of the total marks used to prepare the final merit list.
Several candidates with written scores in the 130–150 range achieved excellent final positions after scoring 160 or more marks at SSB.
At the same time, a high written score alone cannot guarantee a strong final merit position if the candidate’s SSB score is comparatively lower.
2. AFA Remains Highly Competitive
The Air Force Academy recorded a written cut-off of 132.51 and final cut-off of 263.67, the highest among IMA, INA and AFA.
Candidates targeting AFA should therefore aim substantially above the bare written qualifying level to provide themselves with a comfortable margin before SSB.
3. OTA Women Recorded a Higher Cut-Off
OTA Women recorded a written cut-off of 98.06, compared with 80.01 for OTA Men.
The difference continued in the final merit, where OTA Women’s cut-off reached 193.01, compared with 162.84 for OTA Men.
This demonstrates the highly competitive nature of the women’s OTA merit list.
4. Multiple Academy Recommendations Are Common
Candidates such as Jasnoor Singh, Anish Venkatesh Shastry, Karale Ritesh Shivanand and Sukhraj Singh Heera feature across multiple academy lists.
This happens because eligible candidates may give preferences for multiple academies. Their eventual allocation depends on merit, eligibility, preferences, vacancies, medical fitness and other applicable conditions.
5. Written + SSB Balance Is Crucial
For IMA, INA and AFA:
Written Examination: 300 marks
SSB Interview: 300 marks
For OTA:
Written Examination: 200 marks
SSB Interview: 200 marks
In both cases, the SSB Interview carries exactly 50% of the maximum marks used for final merit.
Aspirants should therefore avoid treating SSB preparation as something to begin only after clearing the written examination. Developing communication skills, awareness, psychological-test familiarity, group participation, reasoning and officer-like qualities should form part of long-term CDS preparation.
Download CDS 2 2025 Marks of Recommended Candidates PDF
Candidates can check the complete academy-wise marks, including Roll Number, Candidate Name, Written Marks, SSB Marks, Final Total and Date of Birth, in the detailed marks document.
Candidates should preserve the marks document for reference, particularly those preparing for CDS 1 2026, CDS 2 2026 and subsequent examinations.
CDS 2 2025 Marks: Final Takeaway
The CDS 2 2025 marks once again demonstrate that clearing the written cut-off is only the first stage of the selection process.
A candidate targeting IMA, INA, AFA or OTA must perform consistently across both the written examination and SSB Interview. With the SSB carrying half of the final marks, even a candidate with an outstanding written score cannot afford an average performance at the interview stage.
At the same time, candidates who clear the written examination with moderate scores can significantly improve their final merit position through an exceptional SSB performance.
For future CDS aspirants, these marks provide a realistic benchmark: aim comfortably above the written cut-off and prepare for the SSB with the same seriousness as the written examination.
