03-07-2025
After several missed deadlines, Thorat panel report on State Education Policy enters final lap
Bengaluru: With chief minister Siddaramaiah reaffirming his govt's commitment to a two-language policy in primary education, attention is back on the much-delayed State Education Policy (SEP) committee report.
The panel is led by noted academician Sukhdev Thorat.
After several missed deadlines, the panel was scheduled to submit its report in the second week of June. However, higher education minister MC Sudhakar said the committee will submit its final report later this month.
"The tenure of the Thorat panel was extended considering the volume of study it had to carry out," said Sudhakar. "As the CM reiterated, we are committed to ensure school learning in our mother tongue."
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Siddaramaiah's recent affirmation comes amid renewed debate on language policy, especially after Maharashtra put its three-language policy on hold. Eyes are also on President Droupadi Murmu, as The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Karnataka Amendment) Bill, 2015, a legislation mandating mother tongue as the compulsory medium of instruction in primary schools, is pending assent. Siddaramaiah had met Murmu last week to press for speedy approval.
"A two-language policy is an effective solution for the outrage in non-Hindi speaking states against attempted efforts by the Centre to impose Hindi on them," said Niranjanaradhya VP, development educationist who assisted in drafting the bill. "The amendment bill on the right of children to education is related to the language policy as well. We urge the President to give assent without delay."
Meanwhile, pro-Kannada voices are growing louder.
The Kannada Development Authority (KDA) plans to write to the CM reaffirming its support for a two-language policy, while several Kannada organisations under the umbrella of 'Namma Naadu, Namma Aalvike' have launched a statewide online campaign.
"It is our firm belief that Kannada should have supremacy in Karnataka," said KDA chairman Purushothama Bilimale. "While we have already given our opinion to the Thorat committee, the KDA will yet again remind the CM of his commitment to the Kannada cause."
Arun Javagal, vice-president, 'Namma Naadu, Namma Aalvike', said its online campaign is "designed to protect interests of Kannada and sister languages including Tulu and Kodava". "The response has been tremendous," he said.
