According to sources in the Department of Education, the administration was forced to change the regulations for issuing NOCs to schools after parents challenged the state’s 2015 law mandating Kannada education.
Since all applications seeking approval for the establishment of new schools affiliated with either the Central Board of Secondary Education or the ICSE have already been processed for the current academic year, the new rule mandating teaching Kannada as either the first or second language for obtaining the No Objection Certificate (NOC) will be enforced only in the following academic year.
According to sources in the Department of Education, the administration was forced to change the regulations for issuing NOCs to schools after parents challenged the state’s 2015 law mandating Kannada education. The matter is still ongoing before the High Court. In 2023, no fewer than 25 parents approached the court, expressing concern that the law could prejudice their children.
“Teaching Kannada as a first or second language has been established a requirement for issuing of the NOC. The rules for issuing have been duly changed, and a gazette announcement has been published to that effect.,” said a senior education department official.
Regarding the impact of the new rules, the official stated that no new school linked with a board other than the state’s could be founded unless the management obtained a NOC.
“Beginning next academic year, the school management must clearly inform the government in the NOC application form how they intend to prioritize Kannada education.” Otherwise, their application will be refused. If any school makes false assertions about its intentions to teach Kannada in the NOC application and is later discovered to be in breach of the commitment, the department would remove the NOC and notify the school’s affiliated board.”
D Shashi Kumar, General Secretary of the Associated Management of Primary and Secondary Schools, stated that the new rules will not affect schools associated with the Karnataka state board. “But it will be difficult for new schools linked with other boards. Authorities of these boards must take note of this issue and discuss it with the education department,” he stated.
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