Imposition of 3-language to affect 3,500 students in Lakshadweep

Thiruvananthapuram: The imposition of the central government's trilingual scheme in schools in Lakshadweep is going to affect more than 3,500 students who are choosing Arabic and Mahal as their medium of study. Seventy per cent of students in Kerala syllabus Malayalam medium schools in the ten islands of the Union Territory are studying Arabic. In the new academic year starting on June 9 in Lakshadweep, Malayalam will be taught as the mother tongue in addition to English and Hindi in the Kerala syllabus and the CBSE syllabus, according to the order of the island's education director, Padmakar Ram Tripathi.

From Class 1 onwards, Malayalam medium schools here using Kerala syllabus should teach Malayalam as the first language, English as the second language and Hindi as the third language. In English medium schools, in the CBSE syllabus, English is the first language, Malayalam is the second language, and Hindi is the third language. The order states that the action is as per the National Education Policy for knowledge in multiple languages. With the implementation of the order, 3348 students who studied Arabic in the Kerala and CBSE syllabus till last year will be in crisis.

With the disruption of Mahal language studies in schools on Minicoy Island, the number of students in crisis will exceed 3,500. There are 42 Arabic teachers working in various government schools in Minicoy. With the addition of teachers working on a contractual basis, over 50 teachers will also be in crisis. In Andrott alone, 769 students are studying Arabic under the Kerala syllabus. In Agatti, 647, Amini, 370, Kadamat, 342, Kilthan, 274, Chetlat, 203, Kalpeni, 202, Kavaratti, 200, Minicoy, 56 and Bitra are studying Arabic. In CBSE schools on Kavaratti, Minicoy and Agatti islands, 256 students are studying Arabic.