The Maharashtra government has made it compulsory for all officials in government and semi-government offices to speak only in Marathi. This rule also applies to local self-government bodies, government corporations, and government-aided organisations.
On Monday, the government announced a rule that says officials must use Marathi in government offices. If they don't follow this rule, they could face punishment. This is part of the Marathi Language Policy that was approved last year, which aims to promote and protect the Marathi language in public work.
The new rule also says that all government office computers must have keyboards with both Marathi and Roman alphabets. This change is expected to encourage the use of Marathi in official communication across the state.
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Marathi: A major Indian language
Marathi is an important language in India, mainly spoken in Maharashtra, but also in states like Goa, Karnataka, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh. Some people even speak it in parts of Pakistan's Sindh province. Marathi is the official language of Maharashtra and one of the official languages of Goa.
As of 2011, about 83 million people speak Marathi, making it the 13th most spoken language in the world. In India, it’s the third most spoken language, after Hindi and Bengali. Marathi has a long history and is home to some of the oldest literature in modern Indian languages.
Marathi comes from an old language called Maharashtri Prakrit, which later developed into Old Marathi. In October 2024, the Indian government recognised Marathi as a classical language because of its rich history and cultural importance. The two main types of Marathi are Standard Marathi and Varhadi Marathi.
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