Panjabi Language Activist Arrested While Protesting Against Local School

On 7 Nov, maverick Panjabi language activist Lakha Sidhana went to Rampura Phul-based, RSS-run, Sarvhitkari Vidya Mandir School. He found that neither the school principal, nor many staff members knew how to speak or read Panjabi. He also noticed pictures of Hedgewar and Golwalkar, but no Panjabi icons prominently displayed in the principal's office. When he protested, the Bathinda police took Sidhana and his supporters into preventive custody. They were later released. While this was going on, some students came out from their classes and informed the media about how the school discouraged them from speaking in Panjabi. The next day, the Global Sikh Council (GSC) condemned the neglect of Panjabi teaching in Panjab. In a letter to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, GSC urged him to take urgent action to enforce mandatory monthly inspections and reporting by all district education officers (DEOs) and district languages officers (DLOs) on imparting and usage of Panjabi education across all schools, especially those under private management. They emphasized the need for proactive enforcement of the Punjabi Official Language (Amendment) Act of 2008 and the Punjab Learning of Punjabi and Other Languages Act of 2008 in all educational institutions and state administrative offices. A citizen’s initiative has now mandated that schools and factories across the state display boards that Panjabi is allowed at their premises. To promote Panjabi language, the Panjab government announced it would conduct an online International Punjabi Language Olympiad on 9-10 Dec. Students from across the world, up to grade IX, can participate in the Olympiad. Students can register on the Punjab School Education Board website.