Union Minister Nityanand Rai.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai on Tuesday informed Lok Sabha that the government is conscious of the sentiments and requirements for the inclusion of other languages, including Tulu language, into the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution.
Replying to Dakshina Kannada BJP Lok Sabha member Capt Brijesh Chowta’s question, the minister said such requests have to be considered keeping in mind these sentiments and the other relevant factors.
“A total of 22 languages of India are included in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India. There have been demands from time to time for the inclusion of several languages into the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, including Tulu,” he said.
Rai said there is no fixed criteria for consideration of any language for inclusion in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution.
As the evolution of dialects and languages is a dynamic process, influenced by socio-cultural, economic and political developments, it is difficult to fix any criterion for languages for inclusion into the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution. The earlier attempts, through the Pahwa (1996) and Sitakant Mohapatra (2003) Committees, to evolve such fixed criteria have been inconclusive, he said.