Supriya Sule urges Maharashtra govt to explain Hindi third language policy

NCP SP MP Supriya Sule has urged the Maharashtra government to provide clarity on the reported move to mandate Hindi as the default third language in schools across the state reported news agency ANIThere is no clarity on itI request that the Maharashtra government hold a proper press conference and make a clear clarification of what the policy really is Sule told ANIEarlier the Maharashtra government in its Government Resolution GR stated Hindi will be the third language For those who want to learn another language at least 20 willing students are requiredSpeaking on the issue of the state government mandating Hindi as default third language in schools Maharashtra Education Minister Dadaji Bhuse said Let me clarify that in all medium schools Marathi which is our state language is mandated by the government to be taught in Mumbai Maharashtra and India In many schools a third language has been taught for several years Therefore the Maharashtra government has decided that any third language will be taught based on the demands of students and their parents reported ANIEarlier Maharashtra Navnirman Sena MNS chief Raj Thackeray issued a stern warning to the educational institutions in the state not to support the Fadnavis governments plan to impose the language that is spoken in some northern provincesThackeray asserted that if schools actions support the governments hidden agenda then MNS will consider it a betrayal of MaharashtraIn a letter written to all the principals of schools in Maharashtra Raj Thackeray said While we are raising this issue with you we have also sent a similar letter to the government We have firmly told the government that we need a written letter stating that the Hindi language or any third language in general will not be taught They may or may not issue such a letter but if your actions support the governments hidden agenda we will surely consider it a betrayal of MaharashtraDo keep in mind that there is growing discontent in Maharashtra regarding this imposition of languages Word to the wise What more can I say it addedReferring to recent developments in the education department Thackeray alleged that since April the situation in Maharashtra has been chaoticThe letter dated June 12 reads Since April the education department has been in a state of chaos in Maharashtra First it was decided that three languages should be taught from class one in schools following the Maharashtra State Board of Education curriculum and Marathi English and Hindi should be made compulsory This decision was strongly opposed by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena which formed a public opinionThere is no question of making Hindi compulsory Because Hindi is not the national language It is a language spoken in some northern provinces so in a sense it is a state language In the states where it is spoken there are many local languages which are starting to come under the sway of Hindi and there is a fear that the local dialects there will disappear over time Anyway it is their decision whether they wish to let their local dialects die or not It is of no concern to us the letter readsThe MNS chief accused the Maharashtra government of planning to impose Hindi language in the state discreetly and urged the schools not to cooperate with thisHe said But when such a compulsion was forced upon Maharashtra we raised our voice and will continue to raise it The government further said that only two languages will be taught from class one But where is the written order If one has been published we havent seen it yet A government good at playing around with documents will play with this one as well Then our question is if the children do not want to learn a third language then why are textbooks getting printed as noticed by my Maharashtra Sainiks This means that the government is planning to impose the language discreetly Your schools should not cooperate with thisRaj Thackeray went on to say that the people of the north want to capture Maharashtra and language imposition is an easy way to do thatIn April a row was erupted over the Maharashtra governments decision to make Hindi a compulsory third languageWith inputs from ANI