On 23 January 1968, against the backdrop of parliamentary approval of the Official Languages (Amendment) Act, the first DMK government headed by CN Annadurai passed a resolution in the Madras Assembly which abolished the trilingual formula in the state. The resolution decided that only Tamil and English would be taught and Hindi would be removed from the curriculum of all schools. The decision, taken midway through the academic year, has put hundreds of other language teachers in a sticky situation.
“Education authorities and teachers have expressed astonishment at how the government, which gave immediate effect to the transition, would proceed to rehabilitate the more than 4,000 teachers now teaching Hindi and Sanskrit in about 2,400 schools in the state,” wrote a correspondent of The Hindu in the days immediately following the resolution.
“The scrapping of the tri-language formula in schools, ordered by the Madras government in implementation of the Assembly resolution, will remove Hindi from most schools but wipe out Sanskrit altogether. This is the picture that emerges from interviews with principals, Hindi and Sanskrit teachers and education experts,” the report said.
Minimum qualifications
A Hindu Archives survey revealed that their fears stemmed from the fact that most Hindu Pandits did not have the minimum general SSLC qualification. They studied only up to fifth or eighth standard but studied Hindi upto advanced stage (praveen). “In fact, for many of them, Hindi is the only occupation for which they are equipped. Sanskrit Pandits too are more or less in the same condition. It is pointed out that many Sanskrit Pandits learned Hindi five or six years ago when it became important in the school curriculum. There are some Pandits who have minimal general qualifications and who therefore can become high school clerks or clerks or graduates of some training for these jobs but it was not immediately possible undertaking as it is the middle of the school year After the introduction of free education in high schools, the number of officials has been drastically reduced and the chances of Hindi Pandits being absorbed in these posts are not high, the report said.
Parents whose children were studying languages like Urdu and Malayalam were also concerned about the suspension of these languages along with Hindi. They asked why other languages should be abolished to counter Hindi imposition. Their views were represented through Deputy Chairman M. Chelliah at the February council meeting. He urged the government to make its stand on the teaching of other languages in the state clear.
Joint Director of Secondary Education VT Titus also held meetings with district education officials in Madurai, Tiruchi and Thanjavur on ways to offer alternative employment to language teachers. One option that was explored was the deployment of these teachers to master general subjects.
‘Treated as officials or participants’
On 14 February the issue was raised in the Madras Legislative Council. M. Raja Aiyar warned the Government to see to it that Hindi teachers were not sent out of the schools under any circumstances and if possible they should continue as language teachers. He said there was information that they were now being treated as officials or participants.
Education Minister VR Nedunchezhiyan said Hindi teachers affected by the language policy would be offered alternative jobs. | Photo Credit: Hindu Archives
Education Minister VR Nedunchezhiyan said Hindi teachers affected by the language policy would be offered alternative jobs. “The minister said that all the points raised by the member are being considered by the government. The principal has been told that if possible, Hindi teachers should continue to serve as teachers. After the education department provides all the details, further steps will be taken,” said a report in this newspaper.
When Raja Aiyar asked whether a similar assurance would be extended to Sanskrit and Arabic teachers, Nedunchezhiyan said the chief minister had already stated that the interests of minorities would be safeguarded. However, he did not have information on how many teachers will be affected by bilingualism.
To another supplementary question, the minister stated that the language policy applies to all schools.
Schools also encountered another problem. Principals said canceling Part II in the middle of the school year would cause administrative problems. “At present, two class hours per week are reserved for Part II language studies (advanced Tamil, Hindi or Sanskrit). Now these periods will have to be divided into other subjects, which will mean an increase in the workload for other teachers. If the decision is implemented from the beginning of the next school year, such administrative problems would be avoided, they said in the report.”
Published – 06 Feb 2026 05:30 IST
