Goa proposes raising Class 1 minimum age to six years to align with NEP 2020

NEW DELHI: The Goa government has introduced a bill in the legislative assembly to raise the minimum age for admission to Class 1 in schools from five-and-a-half years to six years. The move is aimed at bringing the state law in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the Right to Education Act. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant introduced the Goa School Education (Amendment) Bill, 2026, during the ongoing winter session of the assembly on Tuesday.

The bill seeks to amend Section 18 of the Goa School Education Act, 1984, which currently allows admission to Class 1 for children aged five years and six months. As per the proposed amendment, a child who has not completed six years of age on or before June 1 of the academic year will not be eligible for admission to Class 1 or any equivalent class in a recognised school.

The bill, however, provides a one-time relaxation for the academic year 2025-26. Under the proviso, children who have attained the age of five years and six months on or before June 1, 2025, will be permitted to take admission to Class 1 to avoid disruption for students already in the schooling pipeline. The amended law also tightens age eligibility for students seeking first-time admission to classes higher than Class 1.

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Age eligibility for higher classes

It stipulates that a student will not be admitted if, after deducting the number of years of normal schooling between that class and Class 1, the child's age falls short of six years. The amendment is aimed at ensuring uniformity with the NEP 2020 and the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, both of which prescribe six years as the minimum age for entry into formal schooling.

The bill states that admissions to recognised schools will continue to be regulated through rules framed by the government. It also clarifies that the proposed amendment will have no financial implications for the state. The changes are of a regulatory nature and necessary to align Goa's education framework with national standards, said CM Sawant, who holds the education portfolio. The amendment replaces the existing provision, under which the cutoff date and minimum age norms were lower and varied across academic years.