Maharashtra mulls law to make Marathi mandatory in all schools

The Maharashtra government has formed a committee to prepare a draft law to make Marathi mandatory in schools affiliated to all boards, including ICSE and CBSE, in the state, officials said on Tuesday. The 14-member panel will have Marathi literary and education experts as well as state ministers as members.

It will prepare the preliminary draft of the relevant legislation after wide-ranging discussion and detailed study of local and regional languages in other states. The draft will be put on the education department's website for suggestions and objections from the public and other sections of the society, said Minister for Marathi Language Vinod Tawde.

The committee comprises Tawde, Minister for School Education Ashish Shelar, the principal secretary of the education department and Marathi literary figures like Madhu Mangesh Karnik and Kautikrao Thale-Patil, among others. An official from the education department said two meetings were held on the issue in June and July were representatives from the Marathi literary world and also institutions promoting the language took part.

Issues such as making Marathi compulsory in schools, developing a reading culture among students, empowerment of Marathi schools and popularising the language, among others, were discussed at the meetings, he added.