NCERT has added personal income tax to the Class 9 curriculum for the first time. The chapter “Managing Your Personal Finances” appears in the new textbook “Understanding Society: India and Beyond – Part 2”. The book was released on September 30.

Students will learn to calculate income-tax liability under the new tax regime. The chapter carries slab-wise tax tables and step-by-step computation. Notably, it covers only the new regime. The old regime is not mentioned.

The new tax regime was announced in the Union Budget of February 2020. It became the default regime from April 1, 2023. It offers lower tax rates in exchange for giving up most exemptions and deductions.

The chapter also teaches budgeting, saving and investing. It introduces fixed deposits, government bonds, shares and mutual funds. It covers borrowing and risk management through health insurance.

Paying taxes is presented as a civic duty. The textbook calls paying taxes “honestly and on time” an important responsibility of every citizen. It says taxes fund national development. NCERT chief Dinesh Prasad Saklani said students can now work through actual slab-wise calculations. He called it a first for this age group.