2-Aug-2021: Steps taken by the government to promote the Languages in Eighth Schedule

The policy of the Government of India is to promote all Indian Languages.  Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL), Mysore works for the promotion of all Indian languages including Scheduled/Non-Scheduled and Classical languages. There are separate organisations for development and promotion of Hindi, Urdu, Sindhi and Sanskrit languages. Sanskrit Language is promoted through three Central Universities viz, Central Sanskrit University, New Delhi, Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri National Sanskrit University, New Delhi and National Sanskrit University, Tirupati. Hindi is promoted by Kendriya Hindi Sansthan(KHS) Agra, Central Hindi Directorate (CHD), New Delhi and Commission for Scientific and Technical Terminology (CSTT), New Delhi.

Sindhi is promoted through National Council for Promotion of Sindhi Language (NCPSL), New Delhi and Urdu is promoted through National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language (NCPUL), New Delhi. In addition to promote all Indian languages, Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL), Mysore also works for the promotion of four Classical Languages namely Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam and Odia.  Development and promotion of Classical Tamil is done by Central Institute of Classical Tamil (CICT), Chennai. CIIL works and collaborates with various stakeholders including Universities, Institutes, State Governments, etc. for development of languages through its various schemes like National Translation Mission, Linguistic Data Consortium of Indian Languages, Bharatavani, etc. for development and promotion of languages.

27-Jul-2021: Inclusion of Khasi Language in 8th Schedule

There have been demands from time to time for inclusion of Khasi in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution. Central Government had received a proposal in this regard. As the evolution of dialects and languages is a dynamic process, influenced by socio-cultural, economic and political developments, it is difficult to fix any criteria for languages, whether to distinguish them from dialects, or for their inclusion   in   the   Eighth Schedule to the Constitution.  The earlier attempts, through the Pahwa (1996) and Sitakant Mohapatra (2003) Committees, to evolve such fixed criteria have been inconclusive. Government of India is conscious of the sentiments and requirements for inclusion of other languages in the Eighth Schedule. Such requests have to be considered keeping in mind these sentiments, and the other relevant considerations.

22-Dec-2004: Demand for Bhojpuri Language to be included in the Eighth Schedule

The Government has been receiving demands for inclusion of various languages in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution over the last several years. At present, the Eighth Schedule consists of 22 languages. These are (1) Assamese, (2) Bengali, (3) Gujarati, (4) Hindi, (5) Kannada, (6) Kashmiri, (7) Konkani, (8) Malayalam, (9) Manipuri, (10) Marathi, (11) Nepali, (12) Oriya, (13) Punjabi, (14), Sanskrit, (15) Sindhi, (16) Tamil, (17) Telugu, (18) Urdu (19) Bodo, (20) Santhali, (21) Maithili and (22) Dogri. Of these languages, 14 were initially included in the Constitution. Sindhi language was added in 1967. Thereafter three more languages viz, Konkani, Manipuri and Nepali were included in 1992. Subsequently Bodo, Dogri, Maithili and Santhali were added vide 92nd Constitution Amendment Act, 2003 published in the gazette of India on 8.1.2004.

Demands for inclusion of 35 more languages in the Eighth Schedule are pending with the Government. These are Angika, Banjara, Bazika, Bhojpuri, Bhoti, Bhotia, Chhattisgarhi, Dhatki, English, Garhwali (Pahari), Gondi, Ho, Kachachhi, Kamtapuri, Khasi, Kodava (Coorg), Kok Barak, Kumaoni (Pahari), Kurak, Kurmali, Lepcha, Limbu, Mizo (Lushai), Magahi, Mundari, Nagpuri, Nicobarese, Pahari (Himachali), Pali, Rajasthani, Sambalpuri/Kosali, Shaurseni (Prakrit), Siraiki, Tenyidi and Tulu.

Reference to the Eighth Schedule occurs in articles 344 (1) and 351 of the Constitution. Article 344 (1) provides for the constitution of a Commission by the President on expiration of five years from the commencement of the Constitution and thereafter at the expiration of ten years from such commencement, which shall consist of a Chairman and such other members representing the different languages specified in the Eighth Schedule to make recommendations to the President for the progressive use of Hindi for official purposes of the Union. Article 351 of the Constitution provides that it shall be the duty of the Union to promote the spread of the Hindi language to develop it so that it may serve as a medium of expression for all the elements of the composite culture of India and to secure its enrichment by assimilating without interfering with its genius, the forms, style and expressions used in Hindustani and in the other languages of India specified in the Eighth Schedule, and by drawing, wherever necessary or desirable, for its vocabulary, primarily, on Sanskrit and secondarily on other languages.

In the absence of any objective criteria for inclusion of languages in the Eighth Schedule, a committee was constituted under the Chairmanship of Shri Sita Kant Mohapatra to evolve a set of objective criteria for inclusion of more languages in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India. The Committee has submitted its report to the Government. The recommendations of the Committee are under consideration of the Government and decision on pending demands for inclusion of languages in the eighth Schedule, including Bhojpuri, will be taken in the light of the recommendation of the committee”.