Controversy Arises Over Maharashtra's Three-Language Policy

Pune, Jun 19 (PTI) The Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Mahamandal, a leading Marathi literary organization, has taken a stand against the Maharashtra government's move to introduce a three-language policy for students in classes 1 to 5. The Mahamandal argues that the New Education Policy (NEP) does not advocate for this change.

The announcement from the Mahamandal emerged on Wednesday, coinciding with resistance from both the Congress and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, led by Raj Thackeray. They opposed an amended government directive released on Tuesday, which proposed that Hindi would "generally" serve as the third language in these early classes.

According to the Mahamandal's release, the NEP explicitly states that a third language should be introduced starting from Class 6. The organization also questioned the practicality of implementing a third language at a time when numerous schools face a shortage of teachers, and when students in higher classes are reportedly struggling to comprehend Marathi books meant for Class 2 readers.

"Instead of enhancing the quality of education, there are efforts being made to make a third language mandatory," the organization claimed. While the state government has allowed students to choose any other Indian language as an alternative to Hindi, the Mahamandal argued that this would be logistically challenging. It would necessitate recruiting teachers from other states, which it described as a difficult task.

The Mahamandal attributed its opposition to Hindi to cultural reasons, stating that the infiltration of Hindi into Marathi culture was intensifying. The organization further questioned why the Maharashtra government had chosen to adopt such a policy when no other state requires Hindi from Class 1.

A government resolution (GR) issued on Tuesday indicated that Hindi will "generally" serve as the third language, rather than being compulsory. However, it provided an opt-out option if 20 students per grade in a school express a preference for any other Indian language.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis clarified on Wednesday, "We had initially made Hindi compulsory, but in the GR issued yesterday, that mandate has been lifted... students can now choose any Indian language as a third language."

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