The Ministry of Education of India has released a communication to all central government ministries, departments, and autonomous organizations requesting them to employ their capacity-building budgets in the promotion of Indian languages. In keeping with the accordance with National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 which calls for Indian languages to be integrated in the education system.
The need to build an ecosystem conducive to the growth of literatures and educational materials in Indian languages was conveyed by K Sanjay Murthy, the Higher Education Secretary, via a letter to the secretaries of diverse ministries. The ministry of education announced that it would increase the knowledge and appreciation of the young people and help them move from one phase of education to entering into the working environment quite easily. “Such ecosystem would assist the young people in making an education space to a workplace transition, courtesy of Bharatiya Bhasha,” as put across in the letter.
To enable the chiefs of various institutions to fulfil the purpose, the NEP seeks to improve the existing higher education structure and to keep it in accordance with the principles of India. One of the tactics for achieving this aim is the promotion of Indian languages. Thus, the policy recommends that Indian languages should be used at every stage of teaching-learning and the Ministry of Education is putting measures in place to create a conducive environment for this policy.
The Ministry of Education (MoE) and University Grants Commission (UGC) adopted the ‘Asmita’ initiative in July 2024 and proposed to develop study materials for the major disciplines in 22 Schedule Languages. A project championed by the Bharatiya Bhasha Samiti, this endeavor seeks to produce 22000 discipline-related academic books in higher education system, both through new writing and translation.
In addition, the Ministry of Education (MoE) has also established the National Education Technology Forum (NETF), that would enable the use of real-time translation and interpretation across the nation, advocating for inclusive linguistic approaches. The Centre has also maintained the importance of teaching in Indian languages in higher education institutions though this policy which has been opposed by certain political parties and academic constituencies.
In addition, the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) allowed for local languages courses in technical education institutions from 2021. At present, 30 technical institutions in 13 states are running regional language programmes. Nevertheless, certain states like Karnataka, West Bengal and Kerala have ceased these courses citing low enrolment.
The MoE’s efforts to popularize regional languages in technical education shows initiative towards a deeper understanding of retention of linguistic – cultural diversity in the education system, which is meant to equip the young people of the nation in the end.
