Supreme Court suggests CBSE to implement 3-language policy for Class 6 from next academic year 2027

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the CBSE to consider implementing its policy mandating the study of three languages, including two native Indian languages, for Class 6 students from the next academic session starting 2027. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), represented by Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, told the bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana that it would consider the suggestion.

Justice Bagchi, at the outset, said that just to comfort the children, the CBSE should consider deferring the implementation of the three-language policy from the next academic year. If the students, who are in Class 6 at present, want to study three languages from this year, they can also be allowed, Justice Bagchi added. The law officer said that the CBSE would consider the suggestion and come back with a fresh note on the issue. The bench said its suggestions were without prejudice to the rights and contentions of the parties and the real issues may be decided later.

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Earlier, the Centre and the CBSE told the bench that they were working on its suggestions on implementing the policy mandating the study of three languages, including two native Indian languages, for Class 6 students. On May 27, the top court agreed to examine a plea challenging the policy and issued notices to the Centre, the CBSE and the NCERT seeking their responses. According to a circular issued by the CBSE, the study of three languages, including at least two native Indian languages, has been made compulsory for Class 9 students beginning July 1.

Three-language policy for Class 9

"Every student in Class 9 would study three languages. Out of the three languages, at least two would be Bhartiya Bhashas. Examples of Bhartiya Bhashas: Hindi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Bengali, Punjabi, Gujarati, Odia, Assamese, etc. Examples of non-native languages: English, French, German, Arabic, Spanish, etc.," the CBSE had said in its statement. Two Indian languages have been made mandatory for Class 6, with some relaxations for Classes 7, 8 and 9 students, who were studying two non-native languages. The move is part of the CBSE's alignment of its scheme of studies with the National Education Policy-2020 and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education-2023.

According to the circular issued on May 15, students opting for a foreign language may do so only as the third language after studying two native Indian languages, or as an additional fourth language. "With effect from July 1, 2026, for Class 9, the study of three languages (R1, R2, R3) shall be compulsory, with at least two languages being native Indian languages," the circular said. The board said till the dedicated R3 textbooks are available, Class 9 students shall use Class 6 R3 textbooks (2026-27 edition) of the chosen language. The CBSE said that to keep the focus on learning and reduce any undue pressure on students, no board examination shall be conducted for R3 at the Class 10 level. It also asked schools to update their R3 language offerings for Classes 6 to 9 on the OASIS portal by June 30.