New Delhi, July 15 (IANS) Government schools of Delhi wil offer Maithili language as an optional subject for students from Class 8 to 12, Education Minister Manish Sisodia said on Monday.
He said the Delhi Government will arrange free coaching for students taking Maithili as optional subject in IAS/civil service examinations.
While speaking to media, Sisodia said the government will felicitate talents for outstanding contribution to Maithili-Bhojpuri along with organising a five-day Maithili-Bhojpuri festival in November.
"Maithili will be taught as an optional language in Delhi schools from class 8 to 12. Students of Delhi would now be able to learn Maithili as an optional subject like Urdu and Punjabi."
He said his government has done experiment with Sanskrit and have got good results.
"The Maithili-Bhojpuri academy will arrange free coaching for the students who appear in competitive exams like civil services with Maithili as an optional subject."
Sisodia said there is no font for Maithili at present.
"The Delhi government has taken a major step to have a font for Maithili. The government is in touch with Pune based C-DAC. We will get C-DAC to make Maithili font and then will give it to the users."
The Education Minister said the Delhi Government has decided to felicitate people from the field of Maithili and Bhojpuri on the lines of languages like Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi etc.A
"Now, there would be awards for those who work for Maithili - Bhojpuri arts, culture, journalism, theatre etc."
Bhojpuri, he said, is not included in the eighth schedule of the constitution, but Maithili is.
"Even if I want to introduce Bhojpuri in schools as an optional language, I can't. No student can take Bhojpuri as an optional language in any of the competitive examinations for the same reason. I will write to the Centre as the Chairman of the Maithili-Bhojpuri academy to include Bhojpuri in the 8th schedule of the Constitution," he added.
--IANS
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