The minimum age of admission to school is now six years, the ministry of education has announced.
In a statement released on February 15, all Indian state governments and Union Territories were directed to align the age of admission to six years for grade 1 for the 2024-25 academic session. This is in accordance with the provisions given in the New Education Policy (NEP), 2020, and the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009.
The statement read, “The session 2024-25 is soon to begin when new admissions will take place. It is expected that the age in your state/UT has now been aligned to over six years for admission to grade I accordingly.”
According to NEP 2020, the foundational stage consists of five years of learning opportunities for all children between 3 to 8 years, which includes three years of preschool education followed by grade 1 and 2.
