Goemkarponn desk
PANAJI: The Goa State Education Department has declared that starting in the Academic Year 2026–2027, schools must set a minimum age of six years old for admission to Class I (grade I).
The decision was made at the same time that the State was instructed by the Union Education Ministry to make sure that the age limit of six years or older is enforced starting in the upcoming academic year 2024–2025.
The Department of School Education and Literacy, Union Ministry of Education, requested that schools set a minimum age of six years for admission to Class 1 in accordance with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education in a letter sent on February 15 to all States and Union Territories.
“New admissions will start in the upcoming session 2024–2025. The ministry stated in its letter that “it is anticipated that the age in your State/UT has now been aligned to 6+ for admission to Grade-I.”
According to Director of Education Shailesh Zingade, the new system will be implemented by the State starting with the 2026–2027 academic year.
He explained that the current age limit for admission to Foundation Level I (Nursery) is three years, for Foundation Level II (KG I) it is four years, and for Class I it is five and a half years.
According to Zingade, Section 18 of the Goa School Education Act 1984 will still apply to admissions to Class I during the interim, up until June 2026.
It is interesting to note that Goa is one of the few States, according to the Union Ministry, that permits children who have not completed six years to be admitted to Class I. This category includes a total of 14 States and Union Territories.
The Center has previously stated that measuring net enrolment ratios in various states is impacted when the minimum age is not in line with the NEP requirement.
