India's three-language promise lost in translation across states amid politics & poor planning

Time of India

5 hours ago

India's three-language policy, designed to promote multilingualism and national integration, is facing serious challenges on the ground. Despite its clear goals, the policy is faltering due to a mix of inadequate resources, lack of trained teachers, and inconsistent implementation across states, reported TOI.
olitical differences, regional preferences, and administrative hurdles have turned what should be a unifying educational framework into a fragmented and often neglected mandate.
As a result, the 'third language' — meant to broaden students' cultural and linguistic horizons — is frequently reduced to a poorly taught, unpopular subject, undermining the very objectives the policy aims to achieve.
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Undo
Bengal: makeshift teaching, minimal incentives
In West Bengal, the
State Education Policy
was launched as a counterbalance to the
NEP
, with the third language beginning only in Class 5.
But finding someone to teach it is a challenge.
Live Events
Principals juggle staffing needs by hiring retired or part-time teachers on token honorariums. 'We brought in a
Sanskrit
teacher who works voluntarily, and a Hindi teacher who earns ₹5,000,' says Amit Sen Majumder of Jodhpur Park Boys' School in Kolkata.
Parent cooperation is also fragile. Anjana Dutta, whose son is in Class 7, says, 'It's only taught for two years. Parents and students don't see the point. The government should make it more useful and consistent.'
While Bengali remains compulsory from Class 1, and reading outcomes have seen some gains—71.3% of Class 8 students can now read Class 2-level texts, according to
ASER
2024—there's widespread concern over declining engagement and teaching quality for other languages.
Bihar: Gaps between policy & ground reality
In Bihar, the three-language policy exists mostly on paper. Most schools offer Hindi and English, with Sanskrit or
Urdu
as the third language. But many don't have enough teachers—or enough students who show up.
'There are schools where language teachers wait for students and others where students wait for a teacher,' Manoj Kumar, head of the state's primary teachers' association told TOI.
Maithili, a constitutionally recognised language spoken across the state's Mithilanchal region, is not taught in most schools. Linguist Bhairav Lal Das calls it a missed opportunity. 'There's rich heritage here. But our education system has no room for that heritage,' he said.
Even so, Bihar has seen improvements in reading skills. ASER data shows 41.2% of Class 5 students can read Class 2 texts. Still, the curriculum does little to reflect the state's linguistic richness.
Uttar Pradesh: Urdu thrives, Sanskrit struggles
In UP, Urdu and Sanskrit are officially part of the curriculum in many government and private schools. Urdu, in particular, finds enthusiastic takers.
'We have 15 Urdu learners in a class of 40, and they aren't all Muslim,' Urdu teacher Mirza Shafiq Husain Shafaq in Lucknow told the news outlet. His classes sometimes stray into poetry and verse, which keeps students interested.
Sanskrit, however, doesn't enjoy the same appeal. Recruitment is a bottleneck. 'It's tough to find qualified Sanskrit or Urdu teachers. Science and commerce aspirants are everywhere, but not enough students are pursuing higher studies in these languages,' said Anil Agarwal of St Joseph Institutions.
Experts in the state are calling for more investment in teacher training and curriculum planning. 'Language education can't survive on enthusiasm alone,' says Agarwal. 'We need mentoring, workshops, and real policy push.'
Karnataka: Native tongues sidelined
In linguistically diverse Karnataka, students often speak Kannada, Urdu, or Marathi—but are expected to learn Hindi as a third language. 'It feels foreign to them. They don't hear it in daily life,' Belagavi-based teacher Hema Idagal told TOI.
In coastal districts like
Mangaluru
, community efforts keep languages like Tulu and
Konkani
afloat. But it's a patchy effort. Tulu is taught in about 40 schools, but there's no structured curriculum beyond Class 10. Konkani survives in just four or five schools.
'Why not formalise our own languages?' asked Joachim Alvares of the Konkani Academy, which pays for teacher salaries without state help.
Maharashtra: Early start, few resources
Maharashtra mandates third language education from Class 1, but teachers say the move came without warning or preparation.
'There was no training, no staffing, just an order,' Mahendra Ganpule, a former headmaster and education activist, told TOI.
In English-medium schools, Marathi becomes the burden; in Marathi-medium schools, English is the challenge. The third language, usually Hindi, is the casualty. Reading outcomes in rural areas have dipped, too—only 50.3% of rural students could read a Class 2 text in 2024, down from 2018. English reading proficiency is worse—only 12.1% of Class 5 students could read basic English sentences.
'There's no demand for some languages, so hiring doesn't happen,' says Zafar Khan, a headmasters' association president. 'No students, no teachers. No teachers, no future for the subject.'
The bigger picture: A promise unmet
For a country with over a thousand languages and dialects, India's education system offers little room for linguistic diversity beyond the major tongues. The NEP's third-language policy was meant to celebrate this diversity—but has instead created logistical headaches without real results.
'People don't learn languages because the government says so,' linguist Peggy Mohan told the media house. 'They learn what's around them. We're forcing children into a system designed for politics, not pedagogy.'
Some educators, though, still believe in its potential. 'Multiple languages build empathy and cultural understanding,' said Prof Madri Kakoti of Lucknow University. 'They open doors to other worlds, other ways of thinking.'
But for now, too many of those doors remain shut—not for lack of intent, but for lack of infrastructure, imagination, and will.