Telangana mandates Telugu for classes 1-10 in all schools

Hyderabad: The Telangana government has mandated Telugu as a compulsory subject for students from Classes 1 to 10 in all CBSE, ICSE, IB, and other board-affiliated schools across the state, starting from the 2025-26 academic year.

The state government issued orders to enforce this under the Telangana (Compulsory Teaching and Learning of Telugu in Schools) Act.

According to an official release, although the Act, which mandates Telugu education in government, Zilla Parishad, Mandal Parishad, aided, and board-affiliated schools, was enacted on March 30, 2018, the previous government failed to fully implement it due to various reasons.

After assuming office, the new government decided to strictly implement the Act and took necessary steps to enforce it. A meeting was held with the management of CBSE, ICSE, IB, and other board schools, where officials conveyed the decision to introduce Telugu for Classes 9 and 10 from the upcoming academic year.

From 2025-26, Telugu will be compulsory for Classes 1 to 10 in all CBSE, ICSE, IB, and other board-affiliated schools.

To ensure smooth implementation, Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy decided to introduce the simplified Telugu textbook 'Vennela' for conducting exams in Classes 9 and 10, making it easier for students from non-Telugu-speaking backgrounds and those belonging to other states.

A Government Order has been issued replacing the earlier standard Telugu textbook 'Singidi' with 'Vennela' (coded as 089 in the CBSE subject list under Language Group-L). This change will be applicable to Class 9 from 2025-26 and Class 10 from 2026-27.

The government has accepted a proposal from the Director of School Education regarding this revision. Yogita Rana, Secretary of School Education, Government of Telangana, officially issued the orders on Tuesday, finalizing the replacement of 'Singidi' with 'Vennela'.

With IANS inputs