AMN
HYDERABAD: Telengana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao Tuesday approved the long pending proposal for use of Urdu as first language for both school and higher education. Now students in Telangana can now opt for Urdu as their first language.
Currently, Urdu is being taught only as a second language, while Telugu is the official first language. With the amended rules, interested students can pursue their education in Urdu as their first language. Telugu will also continue to be the first language for interested students.
Incidentally, Osmania University was the first university in the country to have Urdu as a medium of instruction. Over the years, there were several representations from the minority community from across the State, especially from Hyderabad, to restore the pride of place to Urdu. The Chief Minister also announced a separate residential school and hostel for students from minority communities in every district of Telangana and issued orders in this regard. Extending support to them, he also decided to give pre-matric scholarships to eligible students from minority groups.
According to available data, around 75,000 students are receiving pre-matric scholarships from Central grants. However, it is estimated that there might be 75,000 more who are not receiving this scholarship. KCR directed the officials to collect the data of such students and provide them scholarships.