Supreme Court Seeks CBSE's Response on Controversial Three-Language Policy

The Supreme Court has requested responses from the CBSE and the Union government regarding petitions challenging the three-language policy. Petitioners argue the policy, implemented without proper preparation and resources, disrupts academics. The court has refused to stay the policy's implementation and seeks a government reply within ten days.

The Supreme Court has called upon the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and the Union government to respond to petitions contesting the three-language policy's enforcement. Petitioners argue the policy was rolled out hastily, leaving schools ill-prepared with insufficient teachers, textbooks, and infrastructure.

A bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, and comprising justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana, issued a notice demanding CBSE's response to the challenges, which are linked to the National Education Policy, 2020, and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education, 2023. The court has, however, declined to stay the policy at this stage and directed the government to reply within ten days.

The petitioners contend that the CBSE's circulars impose language options without statutory backing and that the revised framework lacks necessary academic infrastructure. Issues highlighted include a lack of textbooks for various languages and inadequate faculty, leading to academic disruption for students who must change languages mid-course. The Union government has been granted a short timeframe to provide its response.