Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday announced that the state government has decided to give auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers one year to learn functional Marathi.
The government had announced in April that non-Marathi drivers must learn basic Marathi, and set a deadline of August 15 while organising Marathi classes for them.
No action will be taken against drivers during this period for not having the required knowledge of the state’s official language, he said, days after the Transport Department headed by Shiv Sena minister Pratap Sarnaik carried out a checking drive and issued notices to the drivers who failed a Marathi test. However, the representatives pointed out that drivers belong to different age groups and many of them had left formal education years ago, making it difficult to learn Marathi in a short period, the chief minister said. The drivers failing the Marathi test were given one month to acquire the working knowledge of the state’s primary language, failing which their badges will be suspended for three months, the minister had said.
“They requested that they be given one year’s time. The state government has accepted their demand and is giving them one year. “They have themselves come forward and are willing to learn.
Therefore, it was necessary to give them time,” the chief minister said.
No action will be taken during this period,” Fadnavis said. During the one-year period, Marathi classes will be organised and study material will be provided to help auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers learn functional Marathi, he said.
