In India, CBSE sets 3-year deadline to limit student numbers to 40 per class

Five years after it had first set a ceiling on the maximum number of students that each class can

have, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has set a three-year deadline for schools to comply with the board’s 40-students-per-class rule.

In a circular issued earlier this month, CBSE pointed out that while schools were adhering to the ceiling, with several pupils quitting during the Covid pandemic, the situation is back to square one with many schools flouting.

According to the latest CBSE circular, schools have been given time until the 2025-26 academic year to rationalize student numbers for each class and are “expected to systematically and gradually reduce and maintain the strength in all sections up to 40, so that the student ratio is followed in letter and spirit”. In an attempt to ensure compliance, the board has advised schools to regulate admissions in junior classes and apply for additional sections, if they had the requisite infrastructure. The deadline for such applications has been extended till August 31, 2023. In keeping with the 2018 affiliation byelaws, the board had, in 2019, specifically stated that each class should have a maximum of 40 students and only in case of direct admissions to Classes X and XII can that number go up to 45.

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