The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has launched a Budding Authors Programme to nurture the writing skills of children and develop their originality, imagination power and critical skills.The programme aims to provide an opportunity for students to craft and submit their own short stories and get a chance to see their work published.
Eligible students can submit their original, unpublished short stories in Hindi or English under the following categories:
– Classes 5-6: 500-600 words
– Classes 7-8: 600-900 words
– Classes 9-10: 1,000-1,500 words
The first round of the programme will be held from January 6-31, 2026 at school levels wherein each school will nominate one teacher as the Nodal Officer to coordinate and facilitate student participation.
The second round is scheduled for February 3-27, 2026. Each school should fill the total number of students participated in the first round on the portal. Of which, they must shortlist the best 12 .
In the final round, stories submitted in the second round are evaluated by a panel of subject experts. The best entries selected at the national level will be e-published by CBSE as a compilation of short stories for each category.
Students participating in the event are not required to submit any fee as their is no participation fee for the programme.
