NEW DELHI: The Committee of Parliament on Official Language headed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah has recommended that the medium of instruction should mandatorily be Hindi in all technical or non-technical educational institutions including central universities.
In its 11th volume of the report presented to President Droupadi Murmu last month, the Committee states that English should be the medium of instruction only where it is absolutely necessary and gradually English should be replaced with Hindi in those institutions. “Use of Hindi as medium of instruction and other activities should be Hindi in all technical and non-technical institutions in the country and use of English should be made optional,” the committee has recommended.
Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), Indian Institutes of management (IIMs), and All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) are some technical educational institutions under the Central government while Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs), Navodaya Vidyalayas (NVs) and central universities fall under the category of non-technical institutes.
The Committee noted that Hindi can’t be a common language unless the medium of instruction is not Hindi in universities, higher educational institutions including technical or medical institutes.
The Committee was set up in 1976 under the Official Language Act, 1963. The panel comprises 30 members of Parliament; 20 from Lok Sabha and 10 from Rajya Sabha. It reviews the progress made in the use of Hindi for official purposes and submit a report to the President making recommendations.
Hindi medium of instruction in training institutes, elimination of compulsory English-language question paper in the recruitment examinations, and adequate arrangement for Hindi translation of all relevant high court orders for the option of high court proceedings in Hindi are among 112 recommendations made by the Committee in its latest report.
This article first appeared in newindianexpress.com