Data Point: Do schools in north India teach southern languages?
| Video Credit:
The Hindu
With the debate over Tamil Nadu’s refusal to adopt the three-language policy still ongoing, the latest data needed to address key questions on the issue is lacking. Vital data that could help bring clarity is the list of languages currently being taught in schools across the States.
DMK MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi raised this question in the Lok Sabha last month. However, the reply only provided the share of schools that taught three languages without mentioning the specific languages. Why was this data missing? Is it because the government doesn’t collect it? Actually, they do.
In this video, The Hindu data team analyses the 2009 All India School Education Survey, which was accessed through sources in the Education Ministry. An analysis of the 2009 Data shows that in Hindi-speaking states, Sanskrit remains the default choice for a third language, with hardly anyone choosing southern languages.
Read more: Data show Sanskrit and Hindi are choices for third language in many Indian schools
Presentation and scripting: Vignesh Radhakrishnan
Editing and data support: Sambavi Parthasarathy
Reporting: Maitri Porecha, Amit Bhelari, Mayank Kumar
Videography: Shivaraj S
Published – April 08, 2025 12:02 pm IST