Permit English schools, govt tells DPI

In what may come as relief and victory to thousands of unaided schools across the State, the government has instructed the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) to start granting permission for English-medium schools.

The direction assumes significance given that the State government has not given permission to any school to run English-medium classes from classes 1 to 5 since 1994. Unaided schools have for long been fighting against the government’s language policy.

In a circular on Monday, the undersecretary of primary education asked DPI officials to ensure enforcement of an interim order by the High Court (dated February 27), as per which the government must grant permission to English-medium schools and process applications (of new as well as existing schools) before March 31. The DPI is, however, yet to clarify whether it would enforce the order from the academic year 2015-16 or push it to the year
thereafter.

The government had no option but to grant permission for English schools, especially after the Supreme Court quashed its curative petition on the medium of instruction last week.