Newspaper reports that appear about mental stress among students from time to time have come to the notice of the Government. However, no specific study has been conducted by this Ministry in the matter. The Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 recognizes the need for stress free education. Section 30 (1) of the RTE Act provides that no child should be required to pass any Board examinations till completion of elementary education. The National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005 recommends measures like reduction of curriculum load, emphasis on comprehension and application of knowledge, focus on continuous and comprehensive evaluation, emphasis on testing of competencies rather than rote memory, making examinations more flexible, provision of guidance and counseling in schools, and making learning child-centric.

As regards schools affiliated with the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), a number of initiatives have been taken to deal with stress related to examination. These include, restructuring and simplification of question papers, introduction of grading system at Secondary School level for Classes IX & X, additional time to read the Question Paper, optional Class X Board Examination w.e.f. 2011, introduction of Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) in Classes IX and X, counseling services in schools and web-based interaction with CBSE throughout the year.

This information was given by the Union Human Resource Development Minister, Sh. Prakash Javadekar today in a written reply to a Rajya Sabha question.