Parents of UKG students are requesting a 90-day age relaxation for Class 1 entry, citing fairness, developmental readiness, and past precedents set by the Education Department.
A collective of parents whose children are currently in Upper Kindergarten (UKG) have submitted an appeal to the Commissioner of Public Instruction, requesting a 90-day extension in the minimum age cut-off for Class 1 admissions for the academic year 2026-27.
Under Karnataka’s current policy, a child must have completed six years of age by June 1 to be eligible for entry into Class 1. However, parents of children born between June 2 and August 31 are urging the state government to extend the cut-off date to August 31. They argue that their children have completed UKG and are developmentally ready for Class 1, but will be denied admission solely due to their date of birth.
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In their petition, the parents cited the one-time concession granted during the 2025-26 academic year. That year, the Education Department had allowed children who were at least 5 years and 5 months old by June 1 and had completed UKG to join Class 1. This was done after widespread concerns were raised and consultations were held with the State Education Policy Commission.
Parents are now seeking parity for the upcoming batch, warning that failure to extend the same concession would result in inequitable treatment.
This situation has arisen due to Karnataka’s 2022 policy shift that raised the minimum age for Class 1 to six years in line with the Right to Education Act and the National Education Policy 2020. Implementation was deferred to 2025-26 to ensure smoother transition.
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