Language Policy of India — Official Languages Act, Three-Language Formula, 8th Schedule, and Classical Languages

India’s language policy is a complex and frequently tested topic in PSC exams. The Constitution addresses language in Part XVII (Articles 343-351) and the Eighth Schedule. Questions on the number of scheduled languages, classical languages, and the Official Languages Act appear regularly.

1. Constitutional Provisions on Language (Part XVII: Articles 343-351)

Article	Provision
Article 343	Official language of the Union shall be Hindi in Devanagari script; numerals: international form of Indian numerals
Article 343(2)	For 15 years from commencement (i.e., until 1965), English shall continue for all official purposes
Article 343(3)	Parliament may by law provide for continued use of English after 15 years
Article 344	Commission and Committee on Official Language — President shall appoint a Commission at 5-year and 10-year intervals
Article 345	State Legislature may adopt any language in the 8th Schedule OR Hindi as its official language
Article 346	Language for communication between one State and another or between State and Union — Hindi or English
Article 347	President may direct that a language spoken by a section of the population be recognised for official purposes in that State
Article 348	Language of the Supreme Court, High Courts, and all authoritative texts of Acts — English (until Parliament provides otherwise)
Article 349	Special procedure for language legislation during the first 15 years
Article 350	Every person entitled to submit representations in any language used in the Union or State
Article 350A	Facilities for instruction in mother tongue at primary stage for linguistic minorities
Article 350B	Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities appointed by the President (Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities — HQ: Allahabad)
Article 351	Directive to develop Hindi — spread and enrich Hindi drawing from Hindustani and the 8th Schedule languages

PSC Favourite: “Official language of the Union?” — Hindi in Devanagari script (Article 343).

2. Official Languages Act, 1963

Aspect	Detail
Enacted	1963 (came into force: 26 January 1965)
Purpose	Continue the use of English for official purposes of the Union even after 15 years
Key provision	English shall continue to be used alongside Hindi for all official purposes of the Union for which it was being used before 1965
Amendment	Amended in 1967 — made the use of English mandatory (not just permissive) until every State Legislature that has not adopted Hindi passes a resolution for its discontinuance
Section 3(1)	English may continue to be used alongside Hindi for official purposes of the Union
Section 3(3)	Both Hindi and English versions shall be used for: resolutions, general orders, rules, notifications, administrative reports, contracts, agreements, licences, tenders
Bilingual requirement	All documents specified in Section 3(3) must be in BOTH Hindi and English

Official Languages (Amendment) Act, 1967

Key Change	Detail
Section 3 proviso	English shall continue until the legislatures of ALL non-Hindi states pass resolutions for its discontinuance AND Parliament passes a resolution
Practical effect	English continues indefinitely as an associate official language; no state has passed such a resolution

3. Three-Language Formula

Aspect	Detail
Recommended by	Kothari Commission (Education Commission, 1964-66)
Adopted in	National Policy on Education, 1968
Concept	Students should study three languages in school

The Formula

In Hindi-speaking States	In Non-Hindi-speaking States
1. Hindi (with Sanskrit)	1. Regional language (mother tongue)
2. English	2. English
3. A modern Indian language (from South India preferably)	3. Hindi

Issue	Detail
Tamil Nadu	Has consistently rejected the three-language formula; follows a two-language policy (Tamil + English)
NEP 2020	National Education Policy 2020 reaffirmed the three-language formula but made it flexible — no language shall be imposed; states and regions free to choose
Controversy	Southern states fear Hindi imposition; anti-Hindi agitations (1965 and periodically)

4. Eighth Schedule — Scheduled Languages

The Eighth Schedule lists languages recognised by the Constitution. These languages are entitled to representation on the Official Language Commission.

Original Languages (14 in 1950)

S.No.	Language
1	Assamese
2	Bengali
3	Gujarati
4	Hindi
5	Kannada
6	Kashmiri
7	Malayalam
8	Marathi
9	Oriya (now Odia)
10	Punjabi
11	Sanskrit
12	Tamil
13	Telugu
14	Urdu

Languages Added Later

Amendment	Year	Languages Added
21st Amendment	1967	Sindhi (15th language)
71st Amendment	1992	Konkani, Manipuri (Meitei), Nepali (total: 18)
92nd Amendment	2003	Bodo, Dogri, Maithili, Santhali (total: 22)

Current 22 Scheduled Languages (Alphabetical)

S.No.	Language	S.No.	Language
1	Assamese	12	Marathi
2	Bengali	13	Nepali
3	Bodo	14	Odia
4	Dogri	15	Punjabi
5	Gujarati	16	Sanskrit
6	Hindi	17	Santhali
7	Kannada	18	Sindhi
8	Kashmiri	19	Tamil
9	Konkani	20	Telugu
10	Maithili	21	Urdu
11	Malayalam	22	Manipuri (Meitei)

PSC Favourite: “How many languages are in the 8th Schedule?” — 22. “Which amendment added the latest 4?” — 92nd Amendment (2003).

5. Classical Languages of India

Criterion (MHA Guidelines, 2004)	Detail
1. High antiquity	Recorded history of 1,500-2,000 years
2. Ancient literature/texts	Body of ancient literature/texts considered valuable heritage
3. Original literary tradition	Not borrowed from another speech community
4. Classical language and modern language may be different	The literary tradition may be discontinuous from the modern form

Recognised Classical Languages

Language	Year of Recognition	Key Ancient Text/Heritage
Tamil	2004	Sangam literature (3rd century BCE); Thirukkural
Sanskrit	2005	Vedas, Upanishads, epics (oldest: Rigveda ~1500 BCE)
Telugu	2008	Nannayya’s Mahabharata (11th century)
Kannada	2008	Kavirajamarga (9th century); Halmidi inscription (5th century)
Malayalam	2013	Ramacharitam (12th century); distinct from Tamil by 9th century
Odia	2014	Sarala Mahabharata (15th century); inscriptions from 10th century
Pali	2024	Tipitaka (Buddhist canon); language of Theravada Buddhism
Prakrit	2024	Jain Agamas; ancient literary tradition
Marathi	2024	Mahanubhava and Varkari literature; Yadava period inscriptions
Bengali	2024	Charyapada (8th-12th century); rich medieval and modern literature
Assamese	2024	Charyapada connection; Buranjis; distinct literary tradition from 13th century

PSC Update (2024): 5 new classical languages added in October 2024 (Pali, Prakrit, Marathi, Bengali, Assamese), bringing total to 11 classical languages.

6. Language-Related Commissions and Committees

Body	Detail
Official Language Commission	Under Article 344; appointed by President; first commission: B.G. Kher (1955)
Committee of Parliament on Official Language	30 members (20 Lok Sabha + 10 Rajya Sabha); reviews progress of Hindi
Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities	Under Article 350B; protects linguistic minorities; HQ: Allahabad (now Prayagraj)
National Commission for Minorities	Under National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992 — handles minority (including linguistic) issues

7. Key Language Agitations in India

Agitation	Year	Details
Anti-Hindi agitation (Tamil Nadu)	1937-38	Against compulsory Hindi in Madras Presidency schools
Anti-Hindi agitation (Tamil Nadu)	1965	Against making Hindi the sole official language; violent protests; led to Official Languages (Amendment) Act, 1967
Linguistic reorganisation of states	1953-56	States Reorganisation Commission (Fazl Ali, 1955); Andhra Pradesh formed 1953 (first linguistic state); SRC Act 1956
Gorkhaland agitation	1980s	For Nepali language recognition and separate state
Bodo agitation	1990s	For Bodo language in 8th Schedule (achieved 2003)

8. Language and the Judiciary

Court	Language
Supreme Court	English only (Article 348)
High Courts	English (unless Governor authorises Hindi/State language with President’s consent — Article 348(2))
High Courts using Hindi	Rajasthan, UP, MP, Bihar (authorised)
District/subordinate courts	State official language or Hindi/English as notified

9. Previous Year PSC-Style Questions

Question	Answer
Official language of the Union under the Constitution?	Hindi in Devanagari script (Article 343)
How many languages in the 8th Schedule?	22
Which amendment added Sindhi to the 8th Schedule?	21st Amendment (1967)
Which amendment added Bodo, Dogri, Maithili, Santhali?	92nd Amendment (2003)
Three-language formula was recommended by?	Kothari Commission (1964-66)
First classical language recognised?	Tamil (2004)
How many classical languages as of 2024?	11
Language of the Supreme Court?	English (Article 348)
Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities is appointed under?	Article 350B
Official Languages Act was passed in?	1963
Anti-Hindi agitation of 1965 was in?	Tamil Nadu
Which state follows a two-language formula?	Tamil Nadu (Tamil + English)
Malayalam was declared a classical language in?	2013

Related Notes

Hub: Indian Polity — Complete Guide for Kerala PSC

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