Nagpur: Maharashtra school education minister Dadaji Bhuse on Monday said schools across all educational mediums in state would face strict action, including derecognition, if they fail to teach Marathi as a compulsory subject from Class 1 to 10.Addressing the assembly, Bhuse said govt made Marathi mandatory in the recently implemented Marathi language law and any violation by institutions would attract penalties up to 1 lakh. “If schools continue to violate rules, their recognition will be cancelled,” he warned.The minister said all schools, irrespective of their medium of instruction, must appoint qualified teachers to teach Marathi and ensure proper classroom instruction and examination in the language. He added school inspections would specifically verify whether Marathi was being taught effectively across grades.Bhuse also announced the state would expand the presence of Maharashtra’s social reformers, historical figures and cultural icons in the revised curriculum. He said the educational and social contributions of Mahatma Jyotiba Phule and Krantijyoti Savitribai Phule would receive greater emphasis in textbooks.“History, contribution of Maharashtra’s icons will be included more comprehensively so that students understand work and ideas in a wider context,” he said.The minister further said history of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was now incorporated in detail in national-level curriculum and would be taught more extensively to students across country.Calling Marathi a matter of “state pride and identity,” Bhuse said govt also directed schools to ensure singing the state song ‘Jai Jai Maharashtra Maza’ after the national anthem. The issue was raised in the assembly by BJP MLA Atul Bhatkhalkar.The move comes amid a push by govt to reinforce Marathi language instruction and integrate state’s cultural identity more prominently into school education at a time when debates around language, regional identity and syllabus content are intensifying across India.
