Mumbai, April 18: The Maharashtra government has mandated the teaching of the Marathi language in schools from grades 1 to 10. Schools failing to comply with this regulation will face strict penalties.
The School Education Department has outlined a comprehensive process for enforcement and issued a government resolution (GR) regarding this matter. The proposal emphasizes that Marathi has been a compulsory subject in schools across the state since the academic year 2020-21, following the implementation of the ‘Maharashtra Compulsory Education and Marathi Language Learning Act, 2020.’
Schools that violate this rule will receive an initial notice and must provide an explanation within 15 days. If the response is unsatisfactory, the school management could face fines of up to one lakh rupees. Additionally, orders will be issued for the mandatory introduction of the Marathi subject in the next academic year.
Schools will also have the opportunity to appeal this decision within 30 days. If the order is still not followed after the appeal, actions will be taken to revoke the school’s recognition. A final decision will be made within three months after a hearing at the level of the School Education Commissioner. The department has stated that this decision will help ensure effective teaching of the Marathi language in all state schools.
Recently, the Maharashtra government also made the Marathi language compulsory for taxi drivers. Congress leader Hussain Dalwai criticized these measures, claiming they burden the poor and questioned the timing of such regulations. He alleged that these initiatives are merely a means to extract money from rickshaw and taxi drivers.
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