Hindi no longer mandatory in Maharashtra schools after public backlash

Maharashtra's education minister said the word 'mandatory' would be removed from the directive, following public criticism over making Hindi compulsory in Marathi and English schools

Under pressure from multiple quarters, the Maharashtra government on Tuesday (April 22) withdrew its directive making Hindi a compulsory third language from Classes 1 to 5 in Marathi- and English-medium schools. State School Education Minister Dadaji Bhuse announced the rollback after a Cabinet meeting, stating that the word “mandatory” would be removed from the order.

 

Bhuse said the three-language formula would remain in place but added that schools must now accommodate alternative language preferences if a significant number of students request it. The clarification marks a retreat from the April 16 order, which had triggered intense opposition across political, cultural, and social groups in the state.

 

Backlash over Hindi imposition forces Maharashtra to withdraw language order 

Since the original notification was issued on April 16, the government has faced strong criticism from both allies and the Opposition. The timing of the move—coinciding with Tamil Nadu’s protest against a similar push for Hindi—added to the political sensitivity. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who had previously defended the policy, briefed the Cabinet about the provisions under the National Education Policy (NEP) before the decision was rescinded. 

Fadnavis defends National Education Policy amid Hindi language row 

The controversy had earlier prompted Fadnavis to publicly respond to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on social media. Fadnavis argued that the NEP did not impose any language but only encouraged students to learn two Indian languages apart from English. He maintained that Maharashtra was open to Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Sanskrit, or any language of the student’s choice.

 

Attempting to address local concerns, Fadnavis clarified on Sunday that Marathi remained compulsory in the school curriculum and that there was no attempt to replace it with Hindi.

 

Centre’s push for Hindi in schools, embassies draws state resistance 

The rollback in Maharashtra comes in the backdrop of a sustained effort by the Centre to promote Hindi across government and educational platforms. In 2022, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) wrote to the Ministry of External Affairs seeking the promotion of Hindi in official work in Indian embassies, public sector units, and banks operating abroad.

 

The MHA also urged the formation of Official Language Implementation Committees in these institutions. These directives were part of a wider campaign, with the government implementing several recommendations of a 2011 parliamentary standing committee report on Hindi in 2017. These included making Hindi compulsory in signage, railway announcements, exams, and government advertisements—especially in non-Hindi-speaking states.

 

NEP 2020 and three-language formula: What it says about multilingual education 

The National Education Policy 2020 encourages multilingualism and endorses a three-language formula, with at least two Indian languages in the curriculum. The policy recommends the mother tongue or regional language as the medium of instruction up to at least Grade 5, and ideally until Grade 8 or beyond.

 

To support this, the Centre has developed bilingual and trilingual textbooks for early education and has made learning materials available in 33 Indian languages through the DIKSHA platform.

 

Despite the Centre’s emphasis on flexibility, several southern and non-Hindi-speaking states have expressed concerns over what they see as an aggressive push for Hindi. These concerns are compounded by developments such as default Hindi settings on websites of key institutions like the CRPF, BSF, and National Crime Records Bureau.

 

The Maharashtra government’s recent reversal suggests that even BJP-led states are now treading carefully on language issues, particularly when public sentiment appears to be against any perception of imposition.