The Maharashtra government has permanently scrapped the compulsory Hindi proficiency examination for gazetted and non-gazetted officers and employees.
The language test, in place for over seven decades since its rollout, has now been cancelled for said recruitment posts due to its “negligible” use in government work and for correspondence with the Centre and other states, according to a TOI report. “...after the formation of Maharashtra, Marathi is being used for all govt purposes. Considering the provisions of the Maharashtra Official Languages Act and the current nature of govt work, it is unreasonable to impose the Hindi test. The use of Hindi in govt work is very negligible, and correspondence with the Centre and other states is mainly done in English. Considering this fact, the govt was considering the cancellation of the Hindi test conducted by the Directorate of Languages,” stated a govt resolution (GR) issued on Monday. The latest GR replaces all other resolutions, circulars, orders and letters issued on this subject. The government’s decision follows industries’ and Marathi language minister Uday Samant’s stay on the June 28 examination amid strong opposition and threats of agitation by Marathi language activists, Shiv Sena (UBT) and MNS over the purported imposition of Hindi. The minister later said the government would review the necessity of such a test.
How The Hindi Test Began
The Bombay government announced a mandatory Hindi examination for government employees through its 1951 resolution, which mandated qualifying the language test within three years of appointment to avoid withholding of annual increment.
The enforcement came in accordance with the provisions under Articles 343 and 345 of the Constitution, which state that “Hindi as the official language of India” came into effect from 26 January 1965. Even before this, Hindi was already used in official work in some states. Therefore, the objective was to ensure that “officers and employees become proficient in the use of Hindi for official purposes.”
Gradually, the system evolved into structured tiers, and exemptions were also announced. For instance, candidates who had studied the language at school or college level, whose mother tongue was Hindi, and technical staff and employees above 45 years of age were exempted from the proficiency test.
A GR dated June 10, 1976, made the Hindi language test “mandatory” for state employees.
