Maharashtra Govt Drops Hindi From Class 1 Curriculum In Revised SCERT Timetable
Maharashtra Govt Drops Hindi From Class 1 Curriculum In Revised SCERT Timetable
In a significant policy shift, the Maharashtra State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) has removed Hindi from the Class 1 timetable, following widespread criticism of its earlier decision to make it a compulsory third language.
The revised timetable, issued by the state education department, now mandates only Marathi and English for students in Classes 1 and 2. The decision comes after educationists, language experts, activists, and political leaders raised concerns that imposing a third language at such an early stage could negatively impact learning outcomes in a multilingual state like Maharashtra.
The time previously allocated to Hindi will now be used for co-curricular and physical development subjects such as Art, Sports, Work Education, and Health & Physical Education. This restructuring aims to ease the academic burden on young learners and promote holistic child development.
According to the updated schedule, the school day will include nine 35-minute sessions from Monday to Saturday, with a focus on core subjects like Mathematics and Languages during the first half of the day to match students’ peak attention levels. Saturdays will have a lighter academic load, prioritising creativity, physical activities, and life skills under programmes such as the Adolescence Education Programme (AEP).
The total instructional time is now set at 990 minutes per week, spread across 30 sessions, ensuring a balance between academics and extracurricular engagement.
