BENGALURU: A group of parents whose children are currently in Upper Kindergarten (UKG) have appealed to the Commissioner of Public Instruction, seeking a 90-day relaxation in age eligibility cut-off for admission to Class 1 for the academic year 2026–27.
As per current state policy, children should have completed six years of age by June 1 to qualify for Class 1 admission. However, many children born between June 2 and August 31 fall just short of this requirement, despite completing UKG and being developmentally ready to enter primary school. These parents are requesting that the age cut-off be extended to August 31, to prevent their children from having to repeat UKG solely due to date of birth.
In their letter, the parents pointed out that a similar exception was made during the 2025–26 academic year, when the state Education department had allowed children who had completed 5 years and 5 months by June 1 and finished UKG, to enrol in Class 1. That one-time relaxation, granted following widespread concern and consultation with the State Education Policy Commission, had helped thousands of children.
Parents fear that without a similar concession this year, children from the next batch will face unequal treatment, despite being in the same learning stage. They have urged the department to maintain fairness by issuing a circular to schools, allowing a 90-day age relaxation for Class 1 admissions in 2026–27.
The issue stems from a major policy shift in July 2022, when Karnataka raised the minimum age for Class 1 admission from 5.5 to 6 years, aligning with the Right to Education Act and National Education Policy 2020. To ease transition, implementation of the new rule was deferred until 2025-26.