The Gujral Committee Report - Language in India

of Urdu speakers about continued neglect. In view of the distress felt by Urdu speakers, the Committee strongly urges that Urdu medium. schools on the basis recommended in this report should be opened within a specified period of two years. It complaints
recommends that provision should be made for appointing an Urdu lecturer in higher secondary schools where Urdu is taught. 4.174 Maharashtra : There were 251 higher secondary schools in Maharashtra with a also
enrolment of 61,900 and a teacher strength of 2,267 in 1971-72. The majority of total
Urdu medium higher secondary schools were run by the linguistic minority. These schools were entitled to grants-in-aid from the Government sometimes to extent of 97.5 per cent if at least 30 pupils were on the rolls of the school. the
The Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities argued that in case the linguistic minorities could not collect necessary finances to establish their own schools, the present arrangement would mean that the linguistic minorities might not receive 4.175
through their mother tongue. This might be disadvantageous to the instruction
backward sections. The question was raised at the 5th meeting of the Western Zonal Council in 1964 and the Chief Minister agreed to make suitable provision for instruction through the medium of minority languages. In October 1966, an order economically
issued by the Government to zila parishads to provide educational facilities in the mother tongue if there were 15 pupils in class VIII and 60 in classes VIII to XI. The absence of Urdu medium Government secondary schools was adversely affecting the was
of the children of linguistic minorities according to a number of witnesses. education
It was stated by witnesses that Urdu speaking pupils were compelled to study through the medium of some other languages in areas where facilities for teaching through the mother tongue did not exist. They demanded that the State Government 4.176
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should consider it as its responsibility to open Urdu medium schools or classes wherever a substantial number of Urdu speakers resided. 4.177 A perusal of the various reports of the Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities revealed that the arrangements for imparting instruction in Urdu upto class VIII were not insufficient. There were,however many demands for introducing Urdu in classes IX to X.
on Urdu