Guest column: NEP-2020, landmark step towards promoting education in mother tongue

As the Indian education system also needed to give due respect and credit to every language in the country, the NEP 2020 initiated a new form of justice for the students with education in the mother tongue. It is a significant step towards social justice as no language will be imposed on any student.

Language is a key element of culture. As poet Acharya Dandi said, “If the light of language does not exist, we will be groping in a dark world.” Having over 19,500 dialects, India is a linguistic treasure trove and the most multilingual country in the world.

Having over 19,500 dialects, India is a linguistic treasure trove and the most multilingual country in the world. (Shutterstock)

But as 96% of the Indian population speaks at least one of the 22 official languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution and only 121 major languages are spoken by 10,000 or more people in India, India tops Unesco’s list of nations with the highest number of dialects on the verge of extinction with languages like Madhika, spoken by the Chakaliya community, as well as the Great Andamanese languages, Toda, and Balti, facing severe decline.

However, as we observe International Mother Language Day on February 21, it is encouraging to recognise the commitment of the Government of India to promoting Indian languages during the past 10 years.

Landmark National Education Policy, 2020

The National Education Policy (NEP), 2020, introduced under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership after 34 years, has been a transformative step in promoting Indian languages as it emphasises teaching in the mother tongue or local language up to Class 5 and, wherever possible, up to Class 8. According to the Unified District Information System for Education Plus 2020-21, teaching in grades 1 to 5 is already taking place in 28 languages.

Studies worldwide show that learning in one’s mother tongue boosts understanding, cognitive development, and confidence. Countries like Switzerland and Singapore thrive by promoting native languages, with regional languages and bilingual policies enhancing student performance and growth. In the Netherlands, Dutch is the primary language in childcare, with bilingual schools offering English, contributing to both educational success and the happiness of children.

As the Indian education system also needed to give due respect and credit to every language in the country, the NEP 2020 initiated a new form of justice for the students with education in the mother tongue. It is a significant step towards social justice as no language will be imposed on any student.

Reduction in school dropout rate

Earlier, children would commonly drop out of schools or quit studying altogether because of language handicaps. The NEP is eradicating such obstacles. Not surprisingly, school dropout rates at all levels have witnessed a steady decline in recent years. According to the Economic Survey 2024-25, school dropout rates have steadily declined in recent years, standing at 1.9 % for primary, 5.2 % for upper primary, and 14.1 % for secondary levels. The Gross Enrolment Ratio is near universal at the primary (93 %) and efforts are underway to bridge the gaps at the secondary (77.4 %) and higher secondary level (56.2 %).

To support language development in school education, 104 primary books have been introduced in 22 states and Union Territories to enable children to learn in their mother tongue or local language. Indian Sign Language (ISL) has been developed, with teaching material and books translated into ISL for Classes 1 to 12. To improve accessibility, the ISL dictionary is available in 10 regional languages now.

The government is promoting linguistic and cultural diversity to develop students’ skills as per the changing demands of different sectors. Over 200 TV channels provide educational content in 29 languages, while the DIKSHA platform offers over 3,66,370 e-content pieces in 133 languages, including 126 Indian and seven foreign languages.

In higher education, significant strides have been made, including the establishment of 51 Indian knowledge systems centres, translation of 1,500 undergraduate textbooks into 12 Indian languages, and the integration of Indian knowledge systems into the curriculum of over 8,000 higher education institutions.

Digital study material in Indian languages

As per the NEP, the government decided that study material for all courses under school and higher education will be made available digitally in Indian languages. The Union ministry of education in January 2024 directed all school and higher education regulators like UGC, AICTE, NCERT, NIOS, IGNOU and heads of INIs like IITs, CUs and NITs to make study material in Indian languages available for all courses in three years. The government has already been working in this direction during the past two years, with translation of engineering, medical, law, UG, PG and skill books being done through the Anuvadini AI based App. In school education, study material is available in multiple Indian languages, including over 30 languages, on DIKSHA.

The Centre has given recognition to Marathi, Pali, Prakrit, Assamese, and Bengali as classical languages in October 2024, bringing the total to 11. With this, India is now the only country globally to recognise 11 classical languages, each with over 1,000 years of written and oral history. In contrast, English, with just 300 years of history, is relatively young.

Three Central Universities for Sanskrit were set up in 2020, the Central Institute of Classical Tamil was created for research and translation, and study centres for Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, and Odia were formed under the Central Institute of Indian Languages in Mysore. While 117 endangered mother tongues have been chosen from all over India for study and documentation on priority, the UGC has initiated two schemes for protecting endangered languages.

The Centre believes that Indian languages can bring governance closer to the people, making it more inclusive and people-centric. Parliament allows members to speak in any of the 22 scheduled languages, and the Supreme Court has adopted AI-driven translation for judicial documents. As of November 25, 2024, 36,316 Supreme Court judgments have been translated into Hindi, and 42,457 into 17 other regional languages.

While government job tests are now conducted in 15 Indian languages, plans are afoot to allow written tests in all 22 scheduled languages so that the language barrier does not let any youth miss the job opportunity. Competitive exams like JEE, NEET, and CUET are also conducted in 13 regional languages, and engineering courses are available in eight Indian languages.

PM Modi has reiterated his commitment to developing all Indian languages, guiding the nation towards ‘Viksit Bharat’ that embraces its cultural and linguistic wealth.

satnam.sandhu@sansad.nic.in

The writer is a Rajya Sabha member. Views expressed are personal.