Amid Karnataka’s rethink on Hindi, SSLC students score better than ever

Bengaluru: Amid last-minute confusion over the state govt's proposal to introduce a grading system in place of marks for Hindi subject in SSLC (class 10) exams, the 2026 results have thrown up an unexpected twist. Despite govt push for a two-language formula that seeks to contain the dominance of Hindi in the curriculum, the pass percentage in the subject has surged to 98.6% from 87.5% in 2025, raising fresh questions about the broader implications of language policy on learning outcomes.According to data released by school education and literacy minister Madhu Bangarappa, Karnataka recorded an over 11-percentage-point jump in Hindi performance. Of the over 7 lakh students who appeared for the subject, around 6.9 lakh cleared it. "In 2025, the failure rate in Hindi stood at 13% (around 75,000 students). This has dropped sharply to just 1.3% (around 9,000 students) in 2026," a senior official from the department said. The dramatic improvement complicates the long-standing argument by critics that making Hindi mandatory places an additional burden on non-native speakers, particularly Kannada-medium students in rural areas. The 2026 results indicate a broad-based rise in performance across regions, including rural schools. The outcome has triggered mixed reactions, with calls for a closer examination of the factors behind the surge. While some attribute the improvement to better teaching methods, remedial measures and exam-focused preparation, pro-Kannada groups maintain that the results do not settle the larger policy debate. They argue that concerns over linguistic imposition remain, even as the state moves ahead with plans to introduce a grading system for Hindi from the coming academic year.Joy cut short for Kolar studentThe joy of clearing his SSLC exams lasted only a few hours for Kiran, a boy from Sonnawadi village in Mulbagal taluk, before tragedy struck. Kiran drowned in an open well around 1.30pm Thursday, just hours after the results were declared. Kiran and his friends had gone to a village well to celebrate the exam results, sources said. As Kiran did not know how to swim, his friends tied a wooden log to help him float. After a few attempts at swimming independently, Kiran removed the wooden log and jumped into the well. When he did not resurface after a couple of minutes, a frantic search began. He was later found trapped beneath the steps of the well. "By then, he had lost his breath," said V Lakshmaiah, Kiran's headmaster at Govt High School, Mulbagal. The headmaster said Kiran was a soft-spoken boy who was eager to learn. "He walked 3km daily from his village to attend school," he said.Board's blind error costs student her resultA glaring error in the SSLC results has left a visually impaired student from Sirsi in Uttara Kannada district distressed after she was wrongly marked absent in one subject. Lieza Khanam, a student at Union Urdu High School in Sirsi, appeared for all the exams, but her result recorded her as absent for social science, leading to her being declared failed! Her parents were shocked as Lieza's exam attendance was confirmed by the invigilator's signature on the admission ticket. Despite the error, she performed brilliantly in other subjects, scoring 100 in Kannada, 92 in English, 98 in Economics, and 92 in Political Science, securing a total of 526 marks (84.1%). Karnataka School Examination and Assessment Board acknowledged the lapse, calling it a "technical error". Officials said the issue would be rectified within a day or two after tracing the missing answer script.Oppn target Priyank over Kalaburagi's showingThe SSLC results have triggered a political slugfest in Karnataka, with Kalaburagi once again at the bottom of the charts, recording a pass rate of 85.1%. The outcome has put district in-charge minister Priyank Kharge in the spotlight, as opposition parties BJP and JD(S) launched sharp attacks. JD(S) leaders accused him of failing his own district despite the Kharge family's long political dominance. "Decades of control, yet no progress in education," they said, citing poor infrastructure, teacher shortages, and the lack of conducive learning environment. JD(S) sarcastically asked Kharge to include the result among his "achievements", accusing him of pushing Kalaburagi into "educational darkness" and urging him to back his speeches with action. BJP also joined in, trolling Kharge on social media and highlighting that Kalaburagi has ranked last for the second consecutive year.
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