The Supreme Court is reportedly scheduled to hear next week a petition challenging the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE)’s newly introduced three-language policy for Class 9 students, which is set to be implemented from July 1.
According to reports, the matter was mentioned before a bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant after students, parents and teachers raised concerns over the revised framework. Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the petitioners, reportedly argued that immediate implementation of the policy could create confusion among schools and students while also leading to administrative complications. He sought an urgent hearing from the apex court.
The new policy has been introduced as part of the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCF-SE) 2023. Under the revised system, studying three languages will become compulsory for Class 9 students from the 2026-27 academic session onward. The framework mandates that at least two of the three languages chosen by students must be Indian languages.
As per the CBSE circular issued on May 15, students opting for a foreign language will only be allowed to study it either as the third language after learning two Indian languages or as an optional fourth language.
The board has clarified that there will be no separate Class 10 board examination for the third language component. Instead, evaluation for the subject will remain completely school-based and internal, though student performance will still be reflected in official CBSE certificates. The board has also assured that no student will be prevented from appearing for Class 10 board examinations because of the additional language requirement.
Meanwhile, CBSE has directed schools to update their language offerings for Classes 6 to 9 by June 30. While textbooks for 19 scheduled Indian languages are expected to be made available before July 1, schools have been advised to rely on SCERT and other state-level learning resources for regional languages until dedicated study material is officially released.
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