CBSE schools wary of mandatory Marathi rule

Nagpur: The bill to make Marathi a compulsory subject in all schools is all set to become a law on Thursday as it will be tabled in the state legislature’s lower house where the government has sufficient numbers to pass it.
On Wednesday, the bill cleared the upper house without any hitch, making it clear that no party would be opposing it. Once the bill is passed, Marathi will be compulsory from Std I to X in all schools operating in the state.
In Nagpur, CBSE, ICSE and international board schools are, however, unhappy with the ‘mandatory’ tag citing ground realities.
Not wanting to speak openly considering the political sensitivity, a school’s trustee said, “What happens if a student comes from Kerala in Std IX or X due to the transfer of a parent? Do we expect the child to cope with Marathi at that level even though the language is alien to it?.”
Another CBSE school principal said “I have Marathi till Std VIII in my school and now I have to plan properly on how to proceed with the higher classes. I am sure CBSE will inform us about the curriculum well in advance.”
State education minister Varsha Gaikwad told the state legislature that the new policy will be implemented in a phased manner. Her short statement suggested that in the first phase, it will be only the primary section in which Marathi as a mandatory subject will be implemented. And going by the same statement, it seemed that the implementation of the policy in totality, till Std X, might take a couple of years.
A senior CBSE school principal said this seemed more of a game of one upmanship. “It’s almost like the state government wants to show who’s the boss. I’m sure they also know that it’s going to be chaotic for those getting transferred,” said the principal.
Another trustee of a school said this could even lead to people avoiding admissions in the state. “If an army officer is moving from Jaipur to Nagpur when his son is in Std IX, he would prefer to keep his family back there for a couple of years,” she said.
For all schools, the ball is now in CBSE’s court. “If it’s mandatory in Std X then CBSE comes into play immediately. They have to intimate us with all the details as it will affect the grade sheet with an additional mandatory subject,” said a principal.