Sanatan Prabhat Exclusive : 30 plus reminders; but even after 11 years, Marathi remains deprived of classical language status

Time to form a committee to follow-up

– By Pritam Nachankar, Mumbai

Mumbai – Over the past 11 years, more than 30 letters have been sent by the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, the Minister of Marathi Language, the Chief Secretary, the Principal Secretary, and other officials to the Union Ministry of Culture, appealing to grant the ‘Classical Language’ status to Marathi. In 2020, resolutions were passed in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council, pushing for this recognition. Despite all these efforts, however, there has been no response from the Union Ministry of Culture. As a result, the Maharashtra Government now feels the need to establish a committee to follow up on the status of the application submitted for granting classical language status to Marathi.

1. Sending multiple reminders has not fetched any response from the Union Ministry of Culture. Some Members of Parliament from Maharashtra have even raised the issue in Parliament, demanding the recognition for Marathi as a classical language.

2. In response, the Union Minister of Culture stated that the proposal has been under consideration, but the Maharashtra Government is still unsure what this response means. Is Marathi not eligible for classical language status, or are there errors in the application submitted by the Maharashtra Government ? At present, the Maharashtra Government has no clear answers.

Meetings yield no results

In February 2024, the ‘Classical Marathi Language Follow-up Committee’ held two meetings in Pune and Mumbai. The decision was made to contact officials from Maharashtra working at the Central level and arrange a meeting with the Union Minister of Culture. However, despite the meetings in April and May, no contact has been made with the officials, nor has an appointment been arranged with the Minister. Furthermore, the minutes of these meetings have not been sent to the Department of Marathi Language.

Plan to meet with the Union Minister of Culture next month : Shyamkant Deole, Member Secretary, ‘Classical Marathi Language Follow-up Committee’

Shyamkant Deole, Member Secretary of the committee, informed daily ‘Sanatan Prabhat’ that no official information has been received from the Ministry of Culture regarding errors, if any, in the application sent by the Maharashtra Government. To get more information, the committee plans to meet the Union Minister of Culture next month. When the representative of ‘Sanatan Prabhat’ contacted officials from the Department of Marathi Language, it was told that the department has been in constant contact with the Union Government.

When was the report submitted ?

On July 12, 2013, a 128-page report was submitted by the Maharashtra Government to the Union Government. This report was prepared by a committee of Marathi language experts, chaired by senior literary figure Prof. Ranganath Pathare. The report includes ancient references, old manuscripts, inscriptions on copperplate, and other historical documents that support Marathi’s eligibility for classical language status. One of the criteria for recognition as a classical language is that the language should be at least 1,500 years old.

Consequences of Marathi getting classical language status

If Marathi is granted classical language status, the Union Government will sponsor its study, research, and collection and preservation of literature. It will be introduced in 450 universities across India, and ancient Marathi texts will be translated into multiple languages. Additionally, financial aid will be provided by the Union Government to improve the Government libraries across Maharashtra. Information about the benefits of classical language status for Marathi has been provided on the Marathi Language Department’s website. So far, Sanskrit, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, and Odia have been recognised as classical languages in India.