The National Testing Agency (NTA) successfully conducted Day 1 of JEE Main 2026 Session-1 on January 21, 2026, in two shifts across examination centres nationwide. Lakhs of engineering aspirants appeared for the computer-based test, which marks the beginning of the first session of one of India’s most competitive entrance examinations.

Exam Timing & Pattern

• Shift 1: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM

• Shift 2: 3:00 PM – 6:00 PM

The question paper consisted of three sections – Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics, with a total of 75 questions carrying 300 marks.

Shift 1 Analysis (Morning Session)

Overall Difficulty

According to students and subject experts, the Shift 1 paper was moderate in difficulty. Physics was considered the easiest section, Chemistry was balanced, while Mathematics was slightly lengthy.

Subject-wise Review

Physics

• Difficulty: Easy to Moderate

• Mostly formula-based questions

• Major topics: Current Electricity, Ray Optics, Modern Physics, Semiconductors, Laws of Motion

Chemistry

• Difficulty: Moderate

• Balanced distribution of Organic, Inorganic, and Physical Chemistry

• Questions from Coordination Compounds, Chemical Kinetics, Periodic Table trends, and Hydrocarbons

Mathematics

• Difficulty: Moderate to Tough

• Lengthy calculations

• Topics included Conic Sections, Vectors, 3D Geometry, Straight Lines, and Differentiation

Memory-Based Questions (Shift 1)

Students reported questions from:

• Ohm’s law and electric circuits

• Probability calculation

• Structure of coordination compounds

• Equation of parabola and ellipse

• pH calculation problems

Shift 2 Analysis (Afternoon Session)

Overall Difficulty

The Shift 2 paper was slightly tougher than Shift 1, mainly due to Mathematics and parts of Chemistry.

Subject-wise Review

Physics

• Difficulty: Easy to Moderate

• Direct numerical problems

• Topics: Thermodynamics, Electrostatics, Magnetism, Optics

Chemistry

• Difficulty: Moderate

• More focus on Inorganic Chemistry

• Questions from d-block & f-block elements, Biomolecules, and Chemical Bonding

Mathematics

• Difficulty: Moderate to Tough

• Time-consuming

• Topics included Calculus, Matrices & Determinants, Complex Numbers, Probability, and Vectors

Memory-Based Questions (Shift 2)

Students recalled questions from:

• Capacitor combinations

• Matrix inverse

• Coordination number problems

• Integration by parts

• Hydrocarbon reaction mechanisms

Student Reactions

Many candidates shared that:

• Physics was scoring in both shifts

• Mathematics required strong time management

• Chemistry was NCERT-based and concept-oriented

• Shift 2 felt slightly more challenging than Shift 1

Overall, students described the exam as fair and within the prescribed syllabus.

Expert Opinion

Our Education experts Vikas Kumar Sir stated that:

• The paper followed the standard JEE Main pattern

• No out-of-syllabus questions were reported

• Mathematics remained the deciding factor for high scores

• Physics helped balance the overall difficulty

They advised future candidates to focus on accuracy and speed, especially in Mathematics.

About JEE Main 2026 Session 1

JEE Main 2026 Session-1 is being conducted from January 21 to January 29, 2026 in multiple shifts across India. The exam serves as:

• An entrance test for admission to NITs, IIITs, and GFTIs

• A qualifying exam for JEE Advanced, required for IIT admissions