GUWAHATI, March 3 - The State unit of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) today welcomed the decision of the Assam Government to introduce Sanskrit as a compulsory subject up to Class VIII in schools.
�We had been pressing for Indianisation of education and promotion of Sanskrit since our inception. Sanskrit is the mother of all languages,� the Parishad said in a release, adding that even the NASA has recognised the importance of the language.
It said the popularity of Sanskrit has increased of late and students in various institutions across the world have been attracted to it.
�Many States are making the language compulsory. The decision of the Assam Government will take the language to new heights,� it said, urging the Government to put in place the necessary infrastructure with competent teachers.
On the other hand, the State unit of All India Save Education Committee has taken serious exception to the �unilateral� and �undemocratic� decision of the Government.
�The decision (to make Sanskrit compulsory) was taken without consulting various stakeholders. It will not only jeopardise the secular scientific and democratic learning but might also have a negative effect on social harmony,� committee�s convener Bhupendra Nath Kakoty said.
Kakoty said the system of teaching and learning in the State schools is in a shambles due to the flawed policies of the Government and hundreds of schools have been either closed down or facing a dark future.
�While it was incumbent upon the State Government to set things right by appointing adequate number of trained teachers and by making available the necessary infrastructure that is absent in most schools, it is looking the other way. While we don�t oppose learning of classical languages like Sanskrit, Arabic and Persian, etc., by introducing them as optional subjects, selecting Sanskrit alone and that too making it compulsory smacks of the design of the BJP-led Government to pursue its hidden agenda of Hindutva being guided by the RSS-Sangh Parivar,� the committee said.
