DMK Rajya Sabha member Tiruchi Siva has written to Union Minister for Education Dharmendra Pradhan on the issue of Tamil not being taught at Kendriya Vidyalayas in Tamil Nadu.
In the letter, he said recently the CBSE had uploaded textbooks for Kendriya Vidyalaya students of Class 1-10 for being downloaded. But Tamil was not listed as a subject. There were only textbooks for English, Hindi, Mathematics, Sanskrit, Science and Social Science.
Mr. Siva said he had raised the issue in Parliament and also written to the then Education Minister, Ramesh Pokhriyal, who had assured him of action. The CBSE’s action ran counter to the assurance, he said.
Mr. Siva pointed out that the CBSE allowed students of Class 11-12 to choose optional subjects like Applied Mathematics, instead of the second language, which is their mother tongue. In the true spirit of federalism, the Minister should make Tamil a compulsory subject at Kendriya Vidyalayas and other CBSE schools this academic year itself.
Jawahirullah’s plea
Manithaneya Makkal Katchi president M.H. Jawahirullah said on Friday that Kendriya Vidyalayas in the State should immediately appoint Tamil teachers and give preference to the teaching of Tamil. In a statement, he said he was shocked to note that a student had to study only Sanskrit to get promoted to Class VII from Class VI.
Optional subject
“Since 2013-14, Tamil has been taught as an optional subject at Kendriya Vidyalayas. But it has come to light that the Kendriya Vidyalayas have said Tamil cannot be taught,” he said.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi talks about the greatness of Semmozhi Tamil, but the Central government has passed an order not to teach Tamil at Kendriya Vidyalayas,” he said.
According to him, the salaries of Hindi and Sanskrit teachers at the Union government-run schools in Tamil Nadu were being paid by the State government.
