GUWAHATI: Assam Sahitya Sabha (ASS) president Paramananda Rajbongshi Monday alleged that the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) was "conspiring to deprive students in its schools their "birthright" to study Assamese and other regional languages.
Rajbongshi at a press conference here claimed that a recent KVS notification "will deprive the students in the Kendriya Vidyalaya schools in Assam along with the rest of the country of their birth right and democratic right to study Assamese and other indigenous languages".
He claimed that till last year teaching of mother tongue languages was carried out in Kendriya Vidyalaya schools, but the notification of March 29 making physical education and some other subjects compulsory had stated that classes on regional languages will be given for one hour either before school begins or at the end of it.
"This will compel students to remain in school for long hours from 7.45 am till 4 pm, naturally it will decrease the students interest to study their own language, and thereby the importance of imparting education in mother tongue in KVs will be lost", he said.
Rajbongshi demanded that the KVS notification of March 29 be withdrawn immediately.
The ASS also submitted a letter with its demand to Deputy Commissioner, KVS, Guwahati region Chandradeep Neelap who was also present on the occasion.
Neelap said the state government and the MHRD will hold discussions for formulating the educational system to allow students to learn their own regional language.