Kannada may be mandatory in four undergraduate semesters

BENGALURU: The state government is hell-bent on proving its pro-Kannada credentials. The higher education council on Wednesday approved a proposal to make Kannada a mandatory subject in the first four semesters of undergraduate courses. Recently, the state government was forced by judicial pressure to roll back its plan to make Kannada the mandatory medium of instruction policy in primary education. The council, headed by higher education minister RV Deshpande, set up a committee to examine how the proposal can be implemented in undergraduate medical, engineering and law courses. The panel will look into whether the proposals should be limited to two or four semesters for these courses. The proposal to make Kannada the mandatory language in UG programmes was made by the Kannada Development Authority. The council is tasked with guiding the growth of higher education in accordance with the state's socio-economic requirements. Though the council's decision is binding on all state universities, many varsities have not toed its line. Sources said the council's decision takes immediate effect, but it's up to universities to work out the modalities. After the council meeting, L Hanumanthaiah, writer and authority chairman, said Kannada will be offered in two syllabus — one for Kannadigas and the other for non-Kannadigas. The syllabus for non-Kannadigas will be very easy and help them read and speak Kannada, which will make it easy for them to live in the state and understand its culture. The council also decided to make June 21 the International Yoga Day and draft uniform rules to award MPhil and PhD degrees. "Kannada should not be a compulsory examination subject as this will be a burden for non-Kannadiga students. It's a violation of human rights. It should be a non-examination subject and students should be asked to have a good attendance in Kannada classes as it'll help them learn the language to live in the state", says R Chandrashekar, former vice-chancellor, RGUHS. -TOI