The Gujral Committee Report - Language in India

The officials and the staff of the East India Company, who had to communicate with the local people were, however, handicapped owing to their ignorance of the local languages. The Company, therefore considered it necessary to train its civil servants in 4.5
languages and customs of India. The Fort 'William college was established at Calcutta in the year 1800 with this object in view. The college was set up to teach the major Indian languages to the British civil and military officers. the,
Simultaneously, in pursuance of the policy, often referred to as the Orientalist policy 4.6
the company two important institutions were set up : (i) the Calcutta Madrasa and (ii) the Banaras Sanskrit College. Lord Minto recommended the establishment of additional madrasas and Sanskrit colleges 'at convenient places within the Company's territories". of
This policy was affirmed by the British Parliament in 1813 when the Company's Charter came up for renewal before it. Thus section XLIII of the Charter as approved by the British Parliament provided that, "it shall be lawful for the Governor-General-in- 4.7
to dirct that out of any surplus which may remain of the rents, revenues and Council
arising from the said territorial acquisitions, after defraying the expenses of the military, civil and commercial establishments and paying the interest of the debt,in manner hereinafter provided, a sum of not less than one lakh of rupees in each year profits
be set apart and applied to the revival and improvement of literature, encouragement of the learned natives of India and for the introduction and promotion of knowledge of sciences among the inhabitants of the British territories of India." shall
A General Committee of Public Instruction was accordingly appointed on July 17, 4.8
by the Governor-General-in-Council and vested with powers to advise, and also to expend the annual grants for the promotion of education. Between 1823 and 1833, the committee recognised the Calcutta Madrasa and the Banaras Sanskrit College, 1823
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The Gujral Committee Report
established a Sanskrit College at Calcutta and two oriental colleges at Agra and Delhi, undertook the, printing and publication of Sanskrit, Arabic and Urdu books on an appreciable scale and employed scholars to translate English works into the languages of India.
on Urdu