Mumbai, April 22 (NationPress) Amid the ongoing debate, the Maharashtra government made a significant shift on Tuesday regarding the status of Hindi as a third language in English and Marathi medium schools for classes 1 to 5, originally set for implementation in the academic year 2025-26.

In response to widespread dissent from various groups, State Minister of School Education Dadaji Bhuse announced that Hindi will remain an optional subject for the time being in classes 1 to 5.

He further stated that a conclusive decision regarding the compulsion of the Hindi language will be made after thorough consultations.

"Currently, we will retain Hindi as an optional language. Future decisions concerning other subjects will be made in due course. Students interested in learning Hindi will be instructed alongside Marathi and English. The official government announcement on this matter will be released shortly," Bhuse mentioned.

The Maharashtra government faced significant backlash from opposition parties and regional leaders, who contended that enforcing Hindi in classes 1 to 5 posed a threat to Marathi identity.

Minister Bhuse also clarified, "The notification issued by the state government on April 16 stated that Hindi would be mandatory in classes 1 to 5. It clearly outlined that Marathi would remain the primary subject, followed by English and then Hindi. The Central government has not mandated Hindi as a subject. The steering committee accepted Hindi as the third language. The government's phrasing suggested that Hindi would be mandatory, which raised questions from many quarters. If another language besides Hindi is to be taught, adjustments to teaching staff will be necessary. A policy decision must be made regarding this."

Recently, the State Educational Reforms and Training Council developed the State School Curriculum Plan-2024.

This plan mandated that students in Marathi and English medium schools learn Hindi as a third language in addition to Marathi and English.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis stated on Sunday, "Hindi is not made mandatory over Marathi. Marathi remains compulsory. However, the new education policy allows for the learning of three languages. Learning three languages is compulsory. There is a stipulation that out of these three, two must be Indian languages. Therefore, we have made Marathi mandatory among the two. The other language can be Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam, Gujarati, or any other Indian language. Languages outside of these are not permissible."

Previously, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena-UBT declared that it would resist any moves by the state government to enforce Hindi as a compulsory language, while the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), founded by Raj Thackeray, warned that protests would ensue if the government did not retract its decision.

The Congress party accused the government of attempting to undermine the Marathi language, culture, and identity through the enforcement of Hindi.

The Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party cautioned that any effort to diminish Marathi under the guise of the New Education Policy would not be tolerated.

The language consultation committee of the state government has urged Chief Minister Fadnavis to withdraw the mandate of Hindi as a third language for students in classes 1 to 5.

Laxmikant Deshmukh, chief of the language consultation committee, asserted that the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) did not heed their views and recommendations prior to the announcement of Hindi as a third language subject.