CBSE removes three new subjects for 2028 board cohort

CBSE announced that the subjects Individuals in Society, Computational Thinking & AI modules, and Environmental Education will be excluded from the curriculum of students sitting the 2028 Class IX‑X board exams. The decision follows confusion and pressure after the subjects were introduced in the previous cycle, which forced learners to handle up to ten subjects. With the change, exam candidates can concentrate on the five mandatory papers – two languages, mathematics, science and social science – while still receiving instruction in nine core curricular areas such as a third language, art, physical education, well‑being and vocational training. The board clarified that the removal applies to the batch entering Class IX in the 2026‑27 academic year and moving to Class X in 2027‑28; the existing scheme remains for the current Class X cohort of 2026‑27. A circular to school principals stated that the alignment of the new curricular areas with the rollout schedule necessitated dropping these three subjects for the mentioned batches. Vocational Education will stay compulsory for the same groups, with students allowed to choose either the Kaushal Vikas program or any of the 22 skill subjects the board has listed. The move aims to ease the academic load and give students a clearer path to scoring in the board examinations.

Context

Removing the new subjects reduces the total number of exam‑relevant papers, aligning the workload with earlier years and preventing a sudden jump in subject count for the upcoming cohort.