Supreme Court urges Tamil Nadu to reconsider Navodaya Vidyalaya opposition over language policy

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday urged the Tamil Nadu government to reconsider its opposition to establishing Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas in the state, saying Chennai and New Delhi should not "alienate" each other over differences on language and education policy.

A bench of justices BV Nagarathna and Augustine George Masih asked Tamil Nadu to reconsider its approach to the three-language policy followed by Navodaya Vidyalayas and directed it to identify suitable land in every district for setting up the centrally funded residential schools. The court gave the state three months to identify suitable land and clarified that the direction didn't amount to an immediate order to acquire land.

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During the hearing, the bench stressed the importance of cooperation between the Centre and the state on education. Justice Nagarathna observed that the state could not maintain a position that Hindi should not be taught in Tamil Nadu and remarked that "Chennai should not alienate Delhi and vice versa".

Tamil Nadu has traditionally followed a two-language policy centred on Tamil and English and opposed the Centre's three-language formula. Its opposition to Navodaya schools has largely stemmed from the language policy governing these institutions.

Counsel for the Tamil Nadu government clarified that the state was not opposed to teaching Hindi as such, but had reservations about the three-language framework associated with the proposed schools.

The state also raised concerns about the financial implications of providing land and other resources for schools, particularly amid pending issues related to central funding for education schemes.

The Centre maintained that the state's principal responsibility under the Navodaya scheme was to make suitable land available while the Union government would bear the major expenditure associated with constructing and operating the institutions.

The bench also encouraged the Centre and Tamil Nadu to continue discussions to find a mutually acceptable solution to the language-related differences. It indicated that Tamil could potentially be accommodated within the language framework of the proposed schools.

The dispute stems from proceedings concerning the establishment of Navodaya Vidyalayas in every district of Tamil Nadu. The Supreme Court had earlier directed the state to identify suitable land for the schools, following which Tamil Nadu sought reconsideration of the direction.

The bench on Thursday declined to recall its earlier order and gave the state additional time to comply with the direction to identify land.