Supreme Court Extends CBSE Language Relief to Class VI

The Supreme Court has directed the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to extend to current Class VI students the transitional relief already available to students in Classes VII, VIII and IX under the three-language policy. The third language will remain part of students’ studies, but it will be assessed internally by schools and will not carry a separate Class X board examination or a pass-or-fail consequence. The direction addresses the policy’s effect on the current Class VI batch, while leaving the precise implementation timetable unclear in the reports. One account described April 1, 2027, as the date for implementation, while others characterized the decision as extending existing transitional relief to the batch. The court’s order or a later clarification would be needed to resolve that timing question. The court’s decision came as it considered petitions challenging the language framework. The Centre had opposed exempting Class VI students from the policy this academic year. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the bench that about 99% of CBSE schools had adopted the policy and had the necessary facilities, while about 1.2% had not.