Mumbai, April 18 (IANS) The Maharashtra government has decided to take strict action against schools that fail to comply with the rule mandating the teaching of Marathi as a compulsory subject from Classes 1 to 10. To enforce this, the School Education Department has laid out a detailed procedure and issued a Government Resolution (GR) in this regard.

The GR underlines that Marathi has been a mandatory subject in all schools across the state since the 2020–21 academic year. This requirement was introduced following the enactment of the Maharashtra Compulsory Teaching and Learning of Marathi Language Act, 2020.

Schools found violating the rules will first be issued a notice, and it will be mandatory for them to submit an explanation within 15 days. If a satisfactory response is not received, a fine of up to Rs 1 lakh will be imposed on the concerned school management. Additionally, the school will be directed to introduce Marathi as a compulsory subject from the next academic year.

Furthermore, the school concerned will be given an opportunity to appeal against the decision within 30 days. If the order is not complied with even after the appeal, steps will be taken to cancel the school’s recognition. The final decision in such cases will be taken within three months after a hearing at the level of the School Education Commissioner. The department stated that this move will help ensure effective teaching of the Marathi language in all schools across the state.

Deepak Pawar, founder of the Marathi Abhyas Kendra and a leading advocate for Marathi-medium education, has called on the government to clarify the language’s status as a first, second, or third language. Pawar argued that the current grading system, which sees many schools teaching Marathi for only 50 marks, undermines its importance. He proposed that Marathi be made a mandatory 100-mark paper in Board exams to ensure schools prioritise it, warning that a lack of clear management could lead to significant curricular confusion.

Earlier, Marathi was a compulsory subject up to class 8 in schools run by the Central Board of Secondary Education and the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, a private board which conducts the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education examination.

–IANS

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