The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to grant one-time exemption from its three-language policy to students currently studying in Class 6, observing that the decision is taken to extend the same “comfort” as available to students of Class 7, 8, and 9.
What we are saying is that so many months have passed since the academic session began in April. By then, the books and requisite teachers will also be available. The court clarified, “Please consider that we are not putting any interdict on the CBSE scheme. The court even proposed to have a committee of officers who are experts to reach out to the schools which are facing difficulties in implementing the policy.
The interim order was passed by a bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant while hearing a bunch of petitions challenging the rollout of the three-language policy, initially for Class 9 students and a subsequent one for implementing it from Class 6. Mehta told the court that out of the 28,000 odd CBSE schools in the country, almost 99% have adopted the policy and have the requisite books and teachers. He said that only 1.2% of the schools are facing difficulty implementing the rollout. He further said that Class 6 was intended to be the starting point for the relevant cohort under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCF-SE) 2023. Exempting the present batch would mean that students enter Class 7 and 8 without the learning exposure and continuity contemplated under the revised framework, according to him. The bench, also comprising justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana said, “Let students of Class 6 have the same comfort as Class 7 students. Have it implemented from April 2027. Mehta said that the books and teachers for Class 6 are available and only about 1.2% of schools are facing difficulty.
We asked for an exemption this year so that students can come to terms with the change. It was only a question of a soft launch so that they could be given the same privilege as Class 7 students. The petitioners represented by senior advocates Gopal Sankaranarayanan and Anand Grover among others said that the issue cannot be prolonged due to anxiety among students.
The bench said, “We direct the students of Class 6 may be granted the same exemption as granted to Class 7 students,” as it posted the hearing on the main issue concerning the three-language policy and treating English as a foreign language after six weeks.
