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Govt decision to drop German as 3rd language comes under SC scanner

The government dropped German and introduced Sanskrit again as third language in the curriculum of

Kendriya Vidyalayas

recently. (TOI file photo)

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Kendriya Vidyalaya board dumps German for Sanskrit

Manuscripts on palm leaves kept in the library at Sanskrit College in Mylapore, Chennai. (TOI file photo)

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NEW DELHI: While the row over removal of German language from Kendriya Vidyalaya curriculum continues, HRD minister Smriti Irani on Friday stressed on use of local languages in education and even suggested translation of scientific terminology in native languages.Irani was addressing a conference on education organized under the banner of World Hindu Congress. Irani said, “Whenever I talk about history, they (press) make headlines. Everything is not bad about history. Ancient India had great scientific mind and rich knowledge. We need to find how to do its PR.”Stressing on the use of local languages in education, Irani, quoting a report prepared by a multinational software company, said “the report inferred that when reading, writing and comprehension is done in local language, country’s GDP rises”.She also suggested that people should not close their minds to use of scientific terminology in local languages. “Madhavan Nair (scientist) was telling me that scientific terminology can be translated into local languages. Every day new words come we just need to be prepared to adopt them in local language. It’s just a mental challenge,” Irani said.Educationists have often argued that choosing not to teach English to students could make study of science difficult as there are too many languages in India. There have been suggestions from Hindu nationalists, though, to have all terminologies translated into Sanskrit as it is the mother of all Indian languages .On the sidelines of the event, Irani reacted to the German language row saying that an unnecessary and deliberate controversy was being created over the issue. “The eighth schedule of the Constitution has 23 languages. German is not one of them. I have taken an oath of the Constitution. I cannot violate it. The MoU, through which German was allowed in Kendriya Vidyalayas was itself unconstitutional and I could not have extended it,” Irani said.When asked about how students would cope with a new language study midway through their academic year, Irani said, “Counselling is being provided to all such students and they can choose from any Indian language. There is no compulsion to use Sanskrit. If there is one Tamil student in the class, he would be provided a teacher.”VHP patron Ashok Singhal, however, said that Sanskrit should be made compulsory in schools.During the conference, Irani emphasized building a scientific temper among students and giving them value-based education. Narrating the story of a doctor who would facilitate female foeticide and then feed the foetus to dogs to wipe out evidence, Irani said, “The college he studied in made him a doctor, but failed to make him a human being.”