Haryana Class 1 Age Rule Changes

Haryana has removed all age relaxations for Class 1 admissions. From the 2026–27 academic session, children must have completed six years to be eligible

for admissions. It comes in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The state has amended the Haryana Right to Education Rules, 2011. Earlier, children between five and six years were allowed to enter Class 1, which often led to confusion and legal challenges every year. The change is likely to impact many families, especially in Gurgaon and other urban areas, where demand for entry-level seats is high and admission schedules are closely followed. As per the latest update, the children who do not meet the age cut-off will be admitted to Balvatika or pre-primary classes. They will be moved to class 1 once they become eligible.

Class 1 Minimum Age Norms Across States / UTs (2026)

State / UT	Minimum Age for Class 1	Status and Notes (2026)	Official Reference (Examples)
Haryana	6 years	Mandatory from 2026–27; no age relaxation allowed	SCERT Haryana, school portals
Delhi	6 years	Uniform age norm for all schools	edudel.nic.in
Goa	6 years	Implemented via School Education Bill	education.goa.gov.in
Uttar Pradesh	6 years	Transition to NEP norm completed	upbasiceduboard.gov.in
Bihar	6 years	Following NEP framework	educationbihar.gov.in
Karnataka	6 years	Phased rollout with June 1 cut-off	SSP Karnataka portal
Gujarat	6 years	Fully implemented; June 1 cut-off	gujarat-education.gov.in
Maharashtra	6 years	Implemented across the state	maharashtra.gov.in/education
Punjab	6 years	Pre-primary structure reorganised	education.punjab.gov.in
Assam, Jharkhand, Odisha (and others)	Mostly 6 years	Largely NEP-compliant; local checks advised	Respective state portals
Tamil Nadu	5 years or below	Not aligned with NEP age norm	tnedu.gov.in
Kerala	5+ years	Lower entry age continues	education.kerala.gov.in
Andhra Pradesh	5+ years	NEP age norm not adopted	ap.gov.in/education
Telangana	5 years	Lower age rule in force	tgtwguru.net
Puducherry	5 years	Lower age norm followed	education.py.gov.in
Chhattisgarh	Varies	Age criteria not standardised statewide	cgeducation.nic.in

For more details, one can connect with the schools.