Hyderabad: The Azad United Students Federation (AUSF), the students association of Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU) has condemned the Centre’s decision to exclude Urdu from the CBSE as a medium of instruction from the CBSC curriculum.
In a statement condemning the move, the AUSF said, “AUSF strongly condemns CBSE’s decision to bar students from writing board examinations in languages other than English and Hindi. The move has created significant difficulties for three Urdu-medium schools of MANUU in Hyderabad, Nuh, and Darbhanga.”
The three model schools established in 2010 have been offering Urdu as the primary medium of instruction. However, the CBSE board has stopped issuing question papers in Urdu since 2021 although students continued to write answers in Urdu. With the board’s recent decision, students can no longer submit answers in Urdu.
The association further condemns the decision stating that it is a violation of the National Education Policy (NEP) which allows education in the mother tongue. “Forcing students who have received instruction in Urdu to suddenly switch to English or Hindi for examinations is not only unjust but also detrimental to their academic success. It contradicts the essence of the NEP, which promotes mother-tongue-based learning,” the federation stressed.
AUSF alleged that excluding Urdu is a deliberate attempt to deny basic education to Muslims. The AUSF has urged CBSE to withdraw this regressive policy and uphold the values of inclusivity and linguistic diversity as enshrined in the NEP.
The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) order, asking students to write board exams only in English or Hindi, has left Urdu-medium schools confused and uncertain. The latest CBSE order clarifies that students can no longer write answers in Urdu without obtaining permission from the board, an option only available to Delhi-based schools.
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