Amid Language Row At Home, Maharashtra Govt To Provide Curriculum To Marathi Schools In US
Maharashtra Minister Ashish Shelar met Maharashtra Mandal members in California, which runs a Marathi school in San Francisco since 2005 for second-gen Marathi children.
In a significant outreach to the global Marathi community, Maharashtra's Information Technology and Cultural Affairs Minister, Ashish Shelar, has assured that the state government will soon provide an official Marathi curriculum to Marathi schools operating in the United States. Currently on a tour of the US, Shelar met office-bearers of the Maharashtra Mandal in the Bay Area, California. The Mandal has been running a Marathi school in San Francisco since 2005, helping second-generation Marathi children learn their mother tongue, culture, history, and the folk traditions of Maharashtra. Around 300 students are enrolled in this school, learning Marathi out of pure community effort and passion. Across the US, more than 50 such volunteer-run Marathi schools are keeping the language alive far from home.
The move comes at a time when the Marathi language has become a point of emotional and political debate back home. In Maharashtra, tensions have simmered for years over the perceived encroachment of Hindi on Marathi's cultural and administrative space. From signboards in Mumbai to school syllabi and competitive exams, pro-Marathi groups have often demanded stronger safeguards to ensure Marathi's primacy in the state. Recent controversies — including demands for mandatory Marathi signage in shops and debates over language policy in schools — have only intensified this sentiment. Against this backdrop, the state government's promise to strengthen Marathi learning even abroad is being seen as an attempt to reassure the global Marathi community that their roots and identity will be nurtured, no matter where they live.
During the meeting in San Francisco, the school's representatives told Minister Shelar that official support from the Maharashtra government would make teaching, examinations, and certification much smoother. Many schools there are run purely on community donations and volunteer teachers, but they lack standardized teaching material and an official stamp that could help students and parents gain confidence in the curriculum's authenticity.
Minister Shelar assured them that he would discuss this initiative with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and School Education Minister Dada Bhuse. He promised that the government will not only prepare and share an official syllabus but also issue necessary recommendations to the local US authorities if needed. For many families living thousands of miles away from Maharashtra, this move could make it easier to pass on their language and cultural roots to their children — ensuring that Marathi thrives, not just in the state, but across the world.
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July 25, 2025, 13:37 IST
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