Maharashtra to Set 6-Year Age Limit for Class 1, Announces Age Rules for Nursery and KG From 2027-28 Three years from now, parents in Maharashtra will have to ensure that their children are at least six years old before enrolling them in Class 1, as per the age criteria prescribed by the government. According to a government resolution issued by the School Education Department, children must have completed the specified minimum age by June 30 of the given year. As reported by PTI, the age restrictions will be rolled out in phases, beginning with nursery admissions in 2027-28. Children will have to be at least three years old to secure admission to Nursery or Balvatika-1 from 2027-28, four years old for Junior KG or Balvatika-2 from 2028-29, and five years old for enrolling in Senior KG or Balvatika-3 from 2029-30, the GR cited by the agency said. The minimum age of six years for Class 1 admission will come into effect from 2030-31, it said. The government underlined that different age cut-offs were being accepted for Class 1 admissions in schools affiliated with the state board, CBSE, ICSE and IB, and that there was no uniform minimum age requirement to secure admission to pre-primary classes. To address this issue, state authorities stepped in. "The state has fixed the age criteria in accordance with the provisions of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the Centre's communication that children should be more than six years old for admission to Class 1," the GR said. It should be noted that the amended age criteria shall not apply to students already enrolled in Nursery to Class 1 during the 2026-27 academic session. Regular students who have cleared the previous standard from any recognised school will also be excused from the revised requirements when advancing to a higher standard. The government resolution also authorised the school heads to offer a 15-day relaxation period in the minimum and maximum age limits for admissions to Nursery to Class 1. The Directorate of Primary Education in Pune will issue detailed instructions and guidelines for admissions under the reworked age criteria, it said. Deepali Samaniya has been covering education for the past 2 years with a passion for SEO and a knack for crafting engaging stories. She specialises in... View More