KARNATAKA GOVERNMENT made a major one-time age relaxation in the minimum age requirement for admission to Class 1 in state board schools for the year 2025–26. In a gesture to counter parent worries regarding a change in the admission norms, the Department of School Education and Literacy made it clear that children completing their 5th year and 5 months on June 1, 2025, would now be considered eligible for admission.
This relief is a temporary respite after months of lobbying by parents statewide who complained that the government’s previous amendment to a compulsory 6-year age requirement—in July 2022 but notified only in November—interrupted the education plan of their children. Numerous parents had already enrolled their children into nursery in mid-2022 anticipating to abide by the 5.5-year standard that had been used to date.
The move has relieved thousands of families whose children would otherwise have been made ineligible for entry into Class 1, having moved through nursery and kindergarten in line. The 7-month relaxation is only being applied for a single year and is not a permanent policy change.
KARNATAKA GOVERNMENT’s sudden enforcement of the new age rule raised several questions. Why did the KARNATAKA GOVERNMENT take so long to formally notify the revised age eligibility even after announcing the decision several months ago?
As per School Education Department sources, the initial policy shift—to increase the minimum age of admission from 5.5 years to 6 years—was done to align with the State Education Policy’s recommendations and overall guidelines of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. The aim was to encourage a developmentally sound age for formal learning and make sure that children who join Class 1 are ready mentally, socially, and emotionally for systematic classroom teaching.
But the rollout was criticized for lack of communication and timing. Parents complained that the lag between the original announcement in July 2022 and the official government order in November caused confusion, as many had already mapped out their children’s educational journey according to the previous norm. The outcry led the KARNATAKA GOVERNMENT to implement a one-time relief for students who were impacted by this policy gap in implementation.
According to the new regulation, the age criterion for Class 1 will be rigorously applied from the 2026–27 academic session. Children will be eligible only if they are 6 years old by June 1 of the particular year to join state board schools. It has been asserted by officials that the decision will not impose its applicability on institutions that have affiliation with national boards such as CBSE and ICSE, which have their own academic structures and eligibility standards.
A top education department official stressed that the short-term easing should be viewed as an interim provision, not a rollback of the policy. “The aim is to provide relief to parents and students already in pre-primary courses. But we are determined to gradually implement the 6-year age norm in the interest of a scientifically rational educational path,” the official stated.
School Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa stressed again that age alignment is grounded in psychological as well as pedagogical reason. “We want to ensure that children come to formal school with the necessary cognitive and emotional maturity for regimented learning. We are not reversing our stand, but also realize the strain on families if such changes happen abruptly,” said Bangarappa.
Teachers and school principals in Karnataka have largely appreciated the government’s move to offer a grace period. Most concur that moving in line with NEP 2020 is a positive step but believe that changes of this kind should be introduced gradually with wider stakeholder involvement and better communication.
“This is a prudent decision,” stated Prashanth Rao, the principal of a government-aided school in Bengaluru. “Although the new age norm is in alignment with NEP’s emphasis on foundational literacy and numeracy, bringing it in abruptly would have left many children in uncertainty. The relaxation will enable schools and parents to better prepare.”
Parent groups, who had filed a series of petitions with the education department, breathed a sigh of relief. “We welcome that the KARNATAKA GOVERNMENT is listening to us. It reflects that it is sensitive to the feelings of parents and children who were not provided with sufficient time to adjust to the new regulations,” noted Geeta N, a parent activist in Mysuru.
In the future, parents have been asked by the government to pay close attention to school circulars and ensure their children’s age eligibility well in advance. Education authorities added that additional awareness drives and information campaigns would be rolled out in order to prevent future confusion.
The KARNATAKA GOVERNMENT has also reaffirmed that from 2026 onwards, no exceptions would be made, and all state board schools must comply with the revised age rule. Its aim is to prevent a repeat of the 2022–2023 scenario, when many parents were caught out by the change.
For the moment, the temporary waiver is a relief welcome for the families stuck in limbo, yet also placing Karnataka squarely in line with positioning its educational apparatus to harmonize with shifting national and international teaching standards.
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