"Supreme Court Questions English's Status Under Three-Language Formula"
Eighth Schedule
Constitutional list of 22 languages officially recognised as India's scheduled languages.
Three-language formula
Policy requiring school students to learn three languages, typically Hindi, a regional language, and English.
India's language policy rests on a constitutional framework designed to manage extraordinary linguistic diversity without imposing a single dominant language. Article 343 designates Hindi in the Devanagari script as the Union's official language. Article 343(2), operationalised through the Official Languages Act, 1963, retained English as an associate official language for official purposes, recognising that an abrupt shift would disadvantage non-Hindi-speaking states. Article 345 empowers state legislatures to adopt any regional language for official use. Article 350A mandates mother-tongue-based instruction at the primary stage. Article 351 directs the Union to promote Hindi while drawing on other scheduled languages, envisaging organic linguistic evolution rather than imposition.
The Eighth Schedule currently lists 22 scheduled languages. English, despite its pervasive role in administration, the judiciary, and higher education, is absent from this list. The three-language formula was first recommended by the Official Language Commission (1956) and endorsed by the Kothari Commission (1964–66). It sought to balance Hindi, a regional language, and English in school curricula. Implementation has remained uneven. The National Education Policy 2020 reaffirmed the formula but specified that at least two of the three languages must be native Indian languages, explicitly excluding English from that count.
The question of whether English is 'foreign' or 'indigenous' cannot be resolved by geography or origin alone. Linguistically, both Hindi and English belong to the Indo-European language family. Sanskrit arrived on the subcontinent roughly 3,500 years ago; English arrived through European contact from the 17th century onward. Tamil is frequently cited as the only major language with an unambiguously indigenous origin, having no external root. This linguistic genealogy complicates any simple native-versus-foreign binary.
Historically, English entered India as the language of traders and missionaries before becoming the language of colonial administration. Macaulay's Minute of 1835 is often treated as the turning point, but English had been used by the East India Company for nearly two centuries before that. Crucially, English also became the medium through which nationalist ideas circulated and through which marginalised communities accessed education and social mobility. …
The Constitution (71st Amendment) Act, 1992 amends the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution to include which of the following languages?
1.Konkani
2.Manipuri
3.Nepali
4.Maithili
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Consider the following statements in respect of election to the President of India:
1.The members nominated to either House of the Parliament or the Legislative Assemblies of States are also eligible to be included in the Electoral College.
2.Higher the number of elective Assembly seats, higher is the value of vote of each MLA of that State.
3.The value of vote of each MLA of Madhya Pradesh is greater than that of Kerala.
4.The value of vote of each MLA of Puducherry is higher than that of Arunachal Pradesh because the ratio of total population to total number of elective seats in Puducherry is greater as compared to Arunachal Pradesh.
How many of the above statements are correct?
Consider the following statements regarding the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution:
1.It currently lists 22 languages as scheduled languages.
2.English is included in the Eighth Schedule as an associate official language.
3.The Constitution (92nd Amendment) Act, 2003 added Maithili to the Eighth Schedule.
4.A candidate for Central Government examinations may opt to take the examination in any scheduled language.
How many of the above statements are correct?
Match the following constitutional provisions with their subject matter:
List I (Provision) — List II (Subject Matter)
A.Article 343(2) — 1. Mother-tongue instruction at primary stage
B.Article 345 — 2. English as associate official language
C.Article 350A — 3. Promotion of Hindi
D.Article 351 — 4. State legislature may adopt regional language for official use
Select the correct match:
Consider the following statements about the three-language formula in India:
1.The three-language formula was first formally recommended by the Kothari Commission (1964–66).
2.The National Education Policy 2020 specifies that at least two of the three languages must be native Indian languages.
3.English is classified as a scheduled language under the Eighth Schedule and therefore qualifies as one of the native Indian languages under the formula.
4.The Official Language Commission of 1956 recommended a version of the three-language formula before the Kothari Commission.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
With reference to the Census of India's treatment of languages, consider the following:
1.Languages spoken by fewer than 10,000 persons are not classified as distinct languages in the Census.
2.The 2011 Census recorded more than 1,300 distinct mother tongues before grouping.
3.Several languages including Bhojpuri and Maithili are grouped under Hindi in Census enumeration.
4.The Census accurately reflects the number of English speakers because it counts all second-language users.
Which of the above statements are correct?
Which of the following constitutional amendments added languages to the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution?
1.Constitution (71st Amendment) Act, 1992 — added Konkani, Manipuri, and Nepali
2.Constitution (92nd Amendment) Act, 2003 — added Bodo, Dogri, Maithili, and Santhali
3.Constitution (100th Amendment) Act, 2015 — added Tulu and Rajasthani
4.Constitution (21st Amendment) Act, 1967 — added Sindhi
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
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