Konkani to be optional third language

Bowing to the Konkani community's longstanding demand, the government has decided to introduce Konkani as an optional third language between class 6 and 10 from the next academic year.

The department of primary and secondary education also decided to stick to Kannada script for the language, though another suggestion to use Devanagari is still in circulation.

In order to protect the interest of Kannada, the government will make it mandatory for students opting for Konkani to compulsorily study Kannada either as a first or second language.

Though the Konkani Sahitya Academy had demanded introduction of Konkani in the coastal districts — Mangalore, Udupi and Uttara Kannada — the government will make it optional for all students across the state to study Konkani as a third language.

The 10-member committee, headed by Konkani Sahitya Academy president Eric Ozario, has prepared the syllabus for the language from class 6 to 10, and the department has accepted the syllabus.

An official order will be issued next week, asking the Department of State Education Research and Training to prepare the textbooks.

Class 6 and 7 students will have four classes per week (40 minutes a period) in Konkani, while classes 8, 9 and 10 students will have longer classes of 45 minutes.