Govt committed to two-language policy in Karnataka: CM Siddaramaiah
Mysuru, Jun 30 (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday said that his government is committed to a two-language policy in the state's education system.
There is a demand to adopt a two-language policy--Kannada and English--in Karnataka.
The chief minister's statement came in response to a question citing the government in neighbouring Maharashtra withdrawing its orders on the implementation of the three-language policy in that state.
"We are for a two-language policy. Our government is committed to a two language policy," Siddaramaiah told reporters here.
The Maharashtra government, in the face of mounting opposition to the introduction of Hindi for Classes 1 to 5 in schools, has withdrawn two government orders on the implementation of the three-language policy.
Aam Aadmi Party Karnataka state president Mukhya Mantri Chandru has written a letter to the Chief Minister demanding that the two-language policy be implemented in Karnataka at the earliest.
The ruling Congress party too said that mandating Hindi as a third language in schools, especially in non-Hindi-speaking states like Karnataka, creates discord.
"For speakers of Kannada, Tulu, or Kodava who are fluent in Kannada and English, struggling with written Hindi is a significant challenge--a sentiment shared by many students in linguistically rich regions. This issue transcends a single language; it's about fairness and embracing our diversity," the Karnataka Congress said in a post on 'X'.
"We need dynamic, inclusive language policies that honour local identities, empowering students to master regional languages like Kannada or Tamil while offering Hindi as an option, not a mandate. Let's build an education system that amplifies every voice, celebrating India's diversity as its greatest asset," it added.
Earlier, the Kannada Development Authority (KDA) had also written to the chief minister to consider a proposal for Karnataka to adopt a two-language policy.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
