APPENDIX U (a)-
QUESTION OF RETENTION OF ENGLISH
 IN THE LOWER CLASSES OF HIGH
 SCHOOLS
 

1. The following memorandum has been received from the Government of Assam:-

" With the withdrawal of British Rule from India it is no longer necessary to teach the English language as a principal compulsory subject in our High and Middle English Schools.

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The Constituent Assembly has decided that Hindustani should be the lingua franca of India Union. In the Provinces the principal language of the Province concerned will naturally take the place of English as the court language. The teaChing of English as a compulsory subject retards the progress of our pupils very consi- derably. It is, therefore, considered necessary that the teaching of English should be gradually eliminated from Class III to VI of High and Middle English Schools and the teaching of Hindustani introduced in its place.

2. The Central Advisory Board of Education in their report on Post-War Educational Development in India carefully considered the question of introduction of English as a subject in schools in India and came to the conclusion that under no circumstances should English find a place in the curriculum of the Junior Basic (Primary) School. Although the Board were not satisfied as to the desirability of introducing it in the Senior Basic (Middle) School, they recognised that there might be a strong public demand for it in certain areas and, in modification of the recommendation of this First Committee on Basic Education, they suggested that the final decision in this matter must be left in the hands of the Provincial Education Departments. With regard to High Schools, the Board have recommended that English should be a compulsory second language.

3. The solution to the problem of Scientific Terminology in the Indian languages has an important bearing on this question.