What happened
The Supreme Court directed the Central Board of School Education (CBSE) to consider giving a one-time exemption (a limited reprieve) to current Class 6 students from the mandatory third-language Board exam in Class 10.
The Supreme Court’s direction aims to prevent immediate disruption for students while the larger three-language programme continues to move forward. The Court asked CBSE to explain how the rollout can be streamlined for different school boards and student readiness.
Background and earlier position
A three-language scheme is part of India’s school language policy goal, requiring students to learn three languages instead of only one.
In the case before the Supreme Court, CBSE argued through counsel that English should not be treated as a foreign language in the constitutional sense, though English is an official language. CBSE’s position supported the idea that English language status should affect how options are structured for the “third language” requirement.