Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: As many as 63 male and three female cadets from the state-run Services Preparatory Institute here have cleared the written examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commision for admission to the National Defence Academy (NDA) last month, an official said on Friday.

The Maharashtra government established the institute in 1977 to increase the percentage of Maharashtrians in the armed forces.
The successful candidates will appear for interviews next month before the final selection, said acting director of the institute Maj Sayeda Firasat in a press release.

This was the highest number of candidates clearing the NDA exam from any single institute in the country, and currently 685 SPI alumni are serving in the armed forces across all three branches, the official said.