The controversy over introducing a third language from Class 6 onwards stems from an unresolved contradiction in the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. At several places, the NEP, rightly, extols the special importance of English, especially in mathematics, science and even legal education, and does not club it with other “foreign” languages such as French or Spanish. At the same time, it advocates the three-language formula, with two languages required to be native to India, one of them Ideally the mother tongue, in effect relegating English to the status of a foreign language. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has implemented this aspect of the NEP, ignoring other welcome observations the policy makes on language learning. While introducing three languages from Class 6 onwards, it said students currently in Classes 7, 8 and 9 should also study three languages, of which two should be “Bharatiya”, in effect relegating English to the status of a foreign language. Thus, if a student had taken French as a second language along with English, they would have had to forego French and switch to two Bharatiya languages, one of which would be entirely new to them. This could adversely affect their Class 10 Board examination performance, apart from rendering redundant the capability and teaching resources schools had built in those foreign languages. Following the backlash, the CBSE has said students in Classes 7, 8 and 9 need take only one additional Bharatiya language if they had taken English and, say, Spanish. The third language, moreover, will not be tested in their Class 10 Board examinations. These are, however, temporary arrangements and the CBSE is going ahead with the three language policy with two Bharatiya languages from Class 6 onwards.Prudence demands that if the NEP is to guide the Union government’s decisions, it should ensure language learning serves the best interests of students. The policy speaks of the need for “high-quality bilingual textbooks and teaching-learning materials for science and mathematics, so that students are enabled to think and speak about the two subjects both in their home language/mother tongue and in English.” Here, the NEP places the mother tongue and English on an equal footing if STEM is to be central to India’s progress. In the same breath, it speaks of the importance of learning languages such as Japanese and German at the secondary level to enhance students’ “mobility”. The government’s vision for India’s development involves skilling Indians to work across the world in cutting-edge sectors, building a base of human capital that can take India higher. Instead of atavistic relapses, India’s education initiatives therefore should look ahead to serve at least this vision, even if that model itself is open to question. Given that the CBSE often becomes the template for much of India, the better course would be to teach the mother tongue and English and, where resources permit and students desire, offer a third language of their choice. Published - July 01, 2026 12:20 am IST