Team Herald
PANJIM: Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch (BBSM) has hinted at dragging the government to court if it passes the bill continuing grants to English medium primary schools in the Winter session of the Assembly.
“We will resort to the most effective option to ensure that grants to English medium schools discontinue. It could be moving the court or creating such a situation that the government reverses its decision,” BBSM member Uday Bhembre said on Tuesday.
BBSM, criticizing the government over its U-turn on the MoI policy, has warned of this move anticipating that the Goa School Education (Amendment) Bill, 2014 may be passed in the winter session following pressure from Forum for the Right of Children’s Education (FORCE).
“The Bill, which is reportedly with the select committee of the Goa Assembly, does not seem to have been sufficiently analyzed to discern its dangers for Goa’s cultural and emotional integration with the nation,” Arvind Bhatikar of BBSM said.
The group further alleged that the Bill may result in a proliferation of minority schools besides reducing or putting a stop to teaching Hindi/Sanskrit in Goan high schools.
Bhatikar said this will threaten the existence of Indian languages in the schools. “It will eventually lead to the closure of remaining government Marathi and Konkani schools that are already on the way to extinction due to bad infrastructure and neglect,” he said announcing village level meetings from January 15 onwards. Meanwhile, BBSM will also hold a likeminded citizens meeting on Jan 10 at Lingayat hall in Margao on the issue.
