Goa govt tables bill to raise Class 1 school entry age to 6
Panaji (PTI): The Goa government has introduced a bill in the legislative assembly to raise the minimum age for admission to Class 1 in schools from five-and-a-half years to six years.
The move is aimed at bringing the state law in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the Right to Education Act.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant introduced the Goa School Education (Amendment) Bill, 2026, during the ongoing winter session of the assembly on Tuesday.
The bill seeks to amend Section 18 of the Goa School Education Act, 1984, which currently allows admission to Class 1 for children aged five years and six months.
ALSO READ: Fake liquor factor busted in Nagpur; Rs 24 lakh stock, other materials seized
As per the proposed amendment, a child who has not completed six years of age on or before June 1 of the academic year will not be eligible for admission to Class 1 or any equivalent class in a recognised school.
The bill, however, provides a one-time relaxation for the academic year 2025-26. Under the proviso, children who have attained the age of five years and six months on or before June 1, 2025, will be permitted to take admission to Class 1 to avoid disruption for students already in the schooling pipeline.
The amended law also tightens age eligibility for students seeking first-time admission to classes higher than Class 1. It stipulates that a student will not be admitted if, after deducting the number of years of normal schooling between that class and Class 1, the child's age falls short of six years.
The amendment is aimed at ensuring uniformity with the NEP 2020 and the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, both of which prescribe six years as the minimum age for entry into formal schooling.
The bill states that admissions to recognised schools will continue to be regulated through rules framed by the government. It also clarifies that the proposed amendment will have no financial implications for the state.
The changes are of a regulatory nature and necessary to align Goa's education framework with national standards, said CM Sawant, who holds the education portfolio.
The amendment replaces the existing provision, under which the cutoff date and minimum age norms were lower and varied across academic years.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
West Bengal: Cold conditions likely to abate from weekend
Kolkata (PTI): Cold conditions are likely to abate in West Bengal from this weekend, with an increase in the minimum temperatures across all districts by two to three notches, the IMD said on Wednesday.
Dry weather is likely to prevail in the state with the possibility of fog during morning hours over the next five days, it said.
Dense fog is likely in the sub-Himalayan districts of Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar on some days, while shallow to moderate fog will occur in other places of the state, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
It said that cold conditions are likely to abate across the state from Sunday, with the possibility of an increase in minimum temperatures by two to three degrees Celsius, the Met said.
The upper reaches of Darjeeling were the coldest place in the state on Wednesday morning at 3 degrees Celsius, while the hill town recorded a minimum temperature of 4.8 degrees Celsius, it said.
Sriniketan was the coldest place in the state's plains, recording 8.7 degrees Celsius, closely followed by Cooch Behar and Bankura, both places recording 8.9 degrees Celsius, the IMD data said.
The other places that recorded significantly low temperatures were Jalpaiguri (9.6), Kalyani (9.8), Baharampur (10.2) and Medinipur (11.1).
Kolkata recorded a minimum temperature of 13.7 degrees Celsius, the IMD said.
