Maharashtra: Panel opposes move to make Hindi compulsory third language in schools
A language consultation committee appointed by the Maharashtra government on Sunday opposed a decision to make Hindi a compulsory third language for students in Classes 1 to 5 in Marathi and English medium schools, The Hindu reported.
Laxmikant Deshmukh, chairperson of the committee, urged Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to scrap the order.
On April 16, the state government announced a plan to implement the National Education Policy 2020 from the academic year 2025-’26.
The plan makes it compulsory for students in Classes 1 to 5 in Marathi and English medium schools to learn Hindi as a third language. The policy’s three-language formula will replace the prevailing two-language structure in these schools.
The phased implementation of the plan will begin with Class 1 in 2025-’26 and cover all grades by 2028-’29.
In a letter to Fadnavis on Sunday, Deshmukh said that primary school students should be taught in their mother tongue and that the three-language policy should be implemented only at the higher secondary level.
“The forced decision on Hindi language is unnecessary,” The Hindu quoted from the letter.
Deshmukh also noted that the quality of Marathi and English language instruction was poor as most schools had only one or two teachers. “Introducing a third language will increase the burden of the teachers and in the process the possibility of learning one...
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