The Central Board of Secondary Education on Monday relaxed its new rules on the mandatory study of two Indian languages, as part of its three-language formula, from Class IX.
The current batches of Class VII, VIII and IX students who are already studying two foreign languages can continue with them — while studying only one Indian language as the third language — up to Class X, the board said.
Under the old two-language formula for Classes IX and X, students could study English and another language that could be a foreign language or an Indian language.
As in other years, many Class IX students had opted for two foreign languages at the start of the current academic session in April.
But last month, the CBSE told all its 33,000 affiliated schools that Class IX students must, from July 1, study three languages including two Indian languages.
Monday’s relaxation spares many Class IX students from having to make a mid-session switch from one of the foreign languages to an Indian language.
Additionally, the CBSE has offered the same relaxation to the current batches of Class VII and VIII students who now study two foreign languages — as the rules allow them to — from having to make a similar switch in Class IX.
Many schoolteachers and parents had protested against the new formula, saying that forcing Class IX students into a mid-session switch of language subjects was unfair. Several parents had written to the parliamentary standing committee on education.
The then committee chairman Digvijaya Singh (whose term has since ended on June 21) wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the parents’ concerns.
A CBSE media release on Monday said: “As a special one-time relaxation for students who are already in Class IX during 2026-27, you may continue with those two non-native languages and need to add one Bhartiya Bhasha as your third language.”
As for students of Classes VI, VII and VIII, they had until now to study their mother tongue, English, and one more language that could be a foreign language, such as German or French, or an Indian language.
From the start of this academic session, Class VI students have had to study English and two Indian languages. For them, this formula will continue till Class X without any relaxation.
Internal exams
The CBSE has clarified that Class IX and X students, forced to take up a third language from this year, will have to only face an internal examination by their school — and no board exam — in the third language.
This arrangement will continue for the current Class VII, VIII and IX batches, with the first board exams in the third language to be held in 2031 — for students currently studying in Class VI.
