The Center has clarified that CBSE students currently studying in Classes VII, VIII and IX who have opted for two foreign languages under the three language policy will be allowed to continue with the same combination of subjects till Class X, Education Ministry sources told ANI.The clarification comes weeks after a CBSE circular issued in May said that from July 1, students entering Class IX from the 2026-27 academic session will have to study three languages, with at least two Indian languages, in line with the National Curriculum Framework (NCF). The circular had sparked protests from some students and parents, with petitions later filed in the Supreme Court.According to Ministry sources, the requirement to study at least two Indian languages will apply only to students entering Class VI in the future. It will not be applied retrospectively to students who have already studied in Classes VII, VIII and IX.“The requirement to study at least two Indian languages as part of the three language policy will be implemented prospectively from Class VI and will not apply retrospectively to students already studying in Classes VII, VIII and IX,” they said.However, the clarification should not be seen as a rollback of the policy. “It is not backtracking. This provision was already there; it was not clear enough. There was not enough clarity, and this is only to provide that clarity,” a former employee in the Ministry of Education, said.“About 98.5 percent of CBSE students already follow the three language formula. The problem concerns a very small group of students, especially in urban and metropolitan areas, some of whom had opted for two foreign languages. We make an exception for these particular cases,” they added. Formal orders reflecting the clarification are expected to be issued soon.The clarification comes more than a week after the Supreme Court refused to grant interim relief to petitions challenging the implementation of CBSE’s three-language policy for Class IX students from the 2026-27 academic session. A Bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice V Mohana refused to uphold the policy and ordered that the argument be tagged along with similar petitions already pending before the court.The controversy started after the CBSE circular in May implemented the language provisions of the National Curriculum Framework, which requires students entering Class IX from the 2026-27 academic session to study three languages, including at least two Indian languages. The move had raised concerns among students who had already opted for two foreign languages in the previous framework.
