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teaching and learning” and it clearly teaching-learning Hindi, the focus languages,” says Menon.
states that “no language will be im- should be on promoting regional and Beyond political opposition to the
posed on any State. The three lan- sub-regional languages such as San- BJP and Hindi imperialism, switching
guages learned by children will be skrit, Urdu, Tulu, and Konkani. Over to a two-language policy — Kannada
the choices of states, regions, and of 75,000 teachers in Karnataka are and English — offers the state’s rul-
course the students themselves, so currently teaching third languages — ing Congress government commercial
long as at least two of the three lan- their livelihoods will be at stake if the benefits. The two language policy will
guages are native to India”. two-language policy is adopted,” says enable the Kannada language lobby
Comments D. Shashi Kumar, Kumar. and local politicians deeply involved
general secretary, Associated Man- However, some educationists in- in teacher recruitment, appointments
agements of Primary and Secondary terpret NEP 2020’s resurrection of the and textbook writing and printing
Schools in Karnataka which has a three-language debate as yet another rackets, to reap rich monetary divi-
membership of 20,000 private schools covert attempt by the BJP govern- dends. The number of captive children
statewide: “The three-language for- ment at the Centre to impose Hindi on who will require Kannada textbooks
mula aligns with the spirit of Article 29 peninsular Indian states. According to will triple.
(1) of the Indian Constitution, which Maya Menon, founder of the Beng- With the Thorat Committee report-
protects the right of citizens to pre- aluru-based The Teacher Foundation, edly set to recommend the adoption
serve their distinct language, script, or implementing NEP 2020’s three-lan- of the two-language policy in Karna-
culture. Encouraging students to learn guage formula requires North Indian taka’s 75,869 schools, implementation
three languages promotes linguistic states to teach a southern regional lan- of NEP 2020, which celebrated its fifth
diversity and strengthens cultural guage. “The main reason why south- anniversary on July 29 (see cover sto-
identity. Research shows that early ern states are opposed to this policy ry), has been adversely affected with
multilingual exposure enhances chil- is because while the Centre expects the southern states including Karna-
dren’s cognitive development, boosts Hindi to be taught in their schools, taka set to reject it in toto.
their attention spans and improves there’s no reciprocal acceptance by
math skills. Rather than banning the North Indian states to teach southern Reshma Ravishanker (Bengaluru)

AUGUST 2025 EDUCATIONWORLD 27