Chandigarh, 28 February — Punjab School Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains has urged Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to reinstate Punjabi as a main subject for Class 10 students in Punjab, calling its relegation to an optional language a direct threat to the state’s linguistic identity.
In a letter to Pradhan, Bains objected to the Central Board of Secondary Education’s (CBSE) decision to exclude Punjabi from its core subjects, stating that it contradicts Punjab’s policy, which mandates Punjabi as a main subject in all schools, regardless of the board.
CBSE’s revised curriculum recognizes only five main subjects—Mathematics, Science, Social Science, English, and Hindi—while Punjabi has been left out. Bains also noted that Punjabi was not even listed among regional or foreign languages, despite the inclusion of German, French, Thai, and Japanese.
“It was only after my strong protest and media pressure that CBSE was forced to acknowledge this grave mistake,” he wrote.
Demanding corrective action, Bains called for Punjabi to be classified as a regional language nationwide, ensuring students across India have the option to study it. He also pointed out that CBSE’s decision directly contradicts Punjab’s February 26 notification, which makes Punjabi a compulsory main subject in all schools statewide.
