Your Dear Lottery Ticket and Result Sheet Explained: Series, Number, Price and Every Prize Tier

What's on the front of your ticket

Every regular Dear ticket shows the same set of details. Each one tells you something different when you check a result.

Under section 4(b) of the Lotteries (Regulation) Act, 1998, every state lottery ticket is printed by the state government with the state's imprint and logo, in a way that proves it's authentic. A ticket without them — or a "ticket" sent as a photo on WhatsApp — isn't a state lottery ticket.

If the back of your ticket prints the scheme's conditions, read them once: they are the quickest way to see the claim rules for your draw.

The ticket number: series and number

A regular ticket number has two parts.

74J 42058

• 74J — the series code. Two digits and a letter. Each 5-digit number is printed in many different series.
• 42058 — the 5-digit number. It runs from 00000 to 99999.
• 2058 — the last 4 digits. The lower three prizes look at these only.

Because every 5-digit number exists in many series, the same five digits can be on hundreds of tickets in one draw. The series code is what makes your ticket unique — and it only matters for the top prize.

Bumper tickets use a different format: one letter followed by six digits, such as B 482916. The rules below are for the regular daily draws; our bumper guide covers bumpers.

Find the right result first

There are three regular Dear draws every day — 1 PM and 8 PM by Nagaland, 6 PM by Sikkim — and each has its own winning numbers. A number that wins at 1 PM means nothing in the 8 PM result.

Match the date and time on your ticket to the result. The draw name is useful as a cross-check, but match on date and time first: names repeat every week, so "Dear Vision" alone could be any Saturday.

Today's results are on the 1 PM, 6 PM and 8 PM pages. Earlier dates are in the old results archive.

What's on the result sheet

The top of each sheet shows the state, the draw name, the draw number, the date (in DD/MM/YY form) and the time. Then come the prize lines, in this order:

Two more things can appear on a sheet:

• "Sold by" — some sheets name the stockist or seller who sold the 1st prize ticket, under the winning number.
• "Unsold" — a winning number marked unsold never reached a buyer. Under section 4(f) of the 1998 Act, prize money not claimed or not distributed goes to the state government.

Why the 1st prize and consolation share a number

The 1st prize number appears in every series. Only the series printed next to it on the sheet wins ₹1 crore. Every other series carrying the same five digits wins the ₹1,000 consolation prize. That's why the consolation line on the sheet shows five digits and no series.

Why the lower prizes ignore the series

The 3rd, 4th and 5th prizes are decided on the last 4 digits, whatever the series and whatever the first digit. If 2058 is in the 3rd prize list, then 74J 42058, 12A 92058 and 81C 02058 all win ₹500.

Your odds on each line

The chances follow directly from the sheet: there are 1,00,000 possible 5-digit numbers and 10,000 possible 4-digit endings.

The 1st prize on its own is far less likely than 1 in 1,00,000, because your 5 digits must also be in the winning series out of all series printed. The state doesn't print the total number of tickets on the sheet.

Check a ticket in 4 steps

1. Open the result for your ticket's date and time.
2. Compare your full number and series with the 1st prize. If the 5 digits match but your series is different, you've won the consolation prize.
3. Look for your 5-digit number in the 2nd prize list.
4. Look for your last 4 digits in the 3rd, 4th and 5th prize lists.

Or type the number into the ticket checker. It checks all three of today's draws at once. Type the full number with the series — for example 74J 42058. If you type only the five digits and they match the 1st prize, the checker can't tell 1st prize from consolation and will ask for the series. It needs at least four digits to check anything.

Worked example

Say the 1st prize is 74J 42058, the 2nd prize list includes 63917, and the 3rd prize list includes 5521. These numbers are made up for the example.

Common mistakes

• Checking the wrong time. The 1 PM, 6 PM and 8 PM results are separate draws, and the 6 PM draw is Sikkim's, not Nagaland's.
• Using yesterday's result. Between midnight and the next draw, some pages still show the previous day's numbers. Check the date printed on the sheet.
• Matching 4 digits against the 2nd prize. The 2nd prize needs all five digits.
• Expecting a consolation prize on a bumper. The regular daily sheets have a ₹1,000 consolation line; bumper sheets set their own tiers.
• Trusting a forwarded image. Fake result images circulate every day. Check against the official sheet before you celebrate or claim.

Won something? What to do next

• Keep the original ticket safe and flat. A torn or altered ticket can be refused.
• Up to ₹10,000 — the 2nd to 5th prizes and consolation — claim at an authorised lottery shop.
• Above ₹10,000 — the 1st prize — claim from the state directorate within 30 days of the draw (Nagaland). See our prize claim guide.
• Tax: prizes above ₹10,000 are paid after 30% TDS under section 393(3) of the Income-tax Act, 2025. Smaller prizes are paid in full but still count as taxable income. Our ₹1 crore take-home guide works through the numbers.

18+ only. Lottery is a game of chance; play only with money you can afford to lose. Lottery Sambad Today is not affiliated with the Nagaland or Sikkim State Lotteries. Always confirm a win on the official result sheet.