MPSC will add a fifth MCQ option from March 2026 for “none of the above,” with negative marking for unanswered questions.
Multiple-choice questions (MCQs) in the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) recruitment examination will now have a fifth option for answering, which is to be marked if the candidate wishes to choose none of the other four options, the commission announced on December 24. With this, negative marking has also been introduced for any question left unanswered. The changes will be implemented in examinations conducted from March 2026.
In the notification, the MPSC stated, “…a circle for the fifth option has been newly included on the answer sheet… If the candidate does not wish to indicate any answer to a question, the fifth option should be selected. It is mandatory for the candidate to select any one of the five options on the answer sheet for each question, otherwise, 25% or 1/4 of the marks for the said question will be deducted from the total marks obtained by the candidate.”
The same negative marking will also be applicable if the candidate chooses the wrong answer, attempts to shade more than one circle, or attempts to amend the answer. The entire answer sheet will be considered invalid if the candidate does not mark her signature on the prescribed place on Part-2 of the original answer sheet, if a pen of any ink/type other than a black ink ball point pen is used, if irrelevant or inappropriate remarks/marks are made on the answer sheet, and other such violations, it said.
The answer sheet structure has been split into two parts, with the first part being for candidates to mark their answer and the second part to fill in information like the name of the examination, candidate seat number, subject code, question paper number, signature of the candidate and the invigilator, etc.
A candidate’s seat number will now be a seven-digit numeric code instead of an eight-digit alphanumeric code, the statement said. This code will remain the same throughout the admission process.