New Delhi, 23 December 2024 – The Centre has formally ended the ‘no-detention policy’ for classes 5 and 8 in schools under its administration, allowing the failure of students who do not pass their final exams, as per official reports. This move comes after a 2019 amendment to the Right to Education (RTE) Act, which prompted 16 states and two Union Territories, including Delhi, to already adopt similar changes.
A recent gazette notification stated that students failing to meet the promotion criteria after the regular examination will be given extra instruction and a chance for re-examination within two months of results. Should the student still fail to meet the required criteria in the re-examination, they will remain in their current grade.
The government added that during the retention period, teachers are responsible for identifying learning gaps and providing both the child and their parents with specialized support to address the gaps. “During the holding back of the child, the class teacher shall guide the child as well as the parents… and provide specialised inputs after identifying the learning gaps,” the notification stated.
Officials clarified that no child would be expelled from school before completing elementary education. The new policy will impact over 3,000 central government schools, including Kendriya Vidyalayas, Navodaya Vidyalayas, and Sainik Schools.
“Since school education is a state matter, individual states have the discretion to decide on the matter. Already, 16 states and 2 Union Territories, including Delhi, have abandoned the no-detention policy for these two classes. States like Haryana and Puducherry have yet to make a decision,” explained a senior official from the Ministry of Education.
