Despite Marathi being granted classical language status, schools in the medium are worried about drastically falling admissions amid lack of govt support. In 2010-11, Mumbai had 413 Marathi-medium schools. By 2014-15, this number had dropped to 368. As of 2023-24, the figure dipped to just 262
The Nabar Guruji Vidyalaya, which is run by the Indian Education Society, in Dadar. PIC/By special arrangement
Even as Marathi was recently conferred the prestigious status of an Abhijaat Bhasha (classical language), the possible closure of Dadar’s Nabar Guruji Vidyalaya, one of Mumbai’s oldest Marathi-medium schools, has reignited concerns about the fading presence of institutions imparting education in the regional tongue in the city.
Run by the Indian Education Society (IES), the Nabar Guruji Vidyalaya, an institution with a proud legacy dating back to the 1940s, is now staring at an uncertain future. News of its potential shutdown raises a difficult but urgent question: Is the decline of Marathi-medium schools in Maharashtra accelerating towards a point of no return?
After 35 Class 10 students from Nabar Guruji Vidyalaya’s graduated this year, only 17 students remain enrolled in the school across Class 9 and Class 10 for the upcoming academic year, a stark reflection of the enrolment crisis.
Though the trustees have clarified that no official decision has been taken on closure, they opened up about the mounting difficulties in sustaining operations, citing dwindling numbers and insufficient support. Satish Rama Nayak, one of the trustees of the Nabar Guruji Vidyalaya, said, “We have not taken any decision to close the school. However, enrolment has dropped drastically. This year, 35 students appeared for the SSC exams, but in the current academic session, only 17 students remain in Class 9 and Class 10. This sharp decline is impacting the teacher-student ratio.”
He explained that while the government’s stipulated pupil-teacher ratio (PTR) is 40:1, the threshold was brought down to 25:1 for Marathi-medium schools. “In our case, the PTR has now fallen well below the mandated level. Therefore, we wrote to the education department seeking their guidance—not to request the school’s closure,” he said.
Pointing out a broader social shift, Nayak said, “Many parents who themselves studied in Marathi-medium schools and now hold respectable positions are beginning to question the quality of education in these very institutions. Even daily wage earners are willing to take loans to secure admission for their children in English-medium or CBSE-affiliated schools. At our school, we offer free education and teacher salaries are paid through government grants, so we are financially capable of running the institution. But what can we do if the students simply don’t come?”
He added that they are still awaiting a response from the education department, and have tried to reassure anxious parents. “We’ve assured parents that, should any changes be required, we will transfer their children to another of our well-established schools, Raja Shivaji Vidyalaya, located within the same complex, all they have to do is fill up a form. Despite this, at least 10 of the 17 remaining students have already applied for leaving certificates. The IES operates 60 schools across Mumbai and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, each offering both Marathi and English-medium sections. It’s not just Nabar Guruji Vidyalaya that is struggling, dwindling enrolments and operational challenges are faced by majority of aided Marathi-medium schools. Aided schools like ours are also now facing stiff competition from BMC-run Mumbai public schools, which are expanding rapidly, offering English-medium instruction and even ICSE, CBSE and IB curricula.”
Broader crisis
Data from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) education department, submitted to the Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE) for the year 2023-24, highlights a troubling trend—a steady decline in the number of Marathi-medium civic schools over the past decade.
In 2010-11, Mumbai had 413 such schools. By 2014-15, this number had dropped to 368. The downward trend continued, with only 280 such schools remaining in the academic year 2021-2022. As of 2023-24, the figure dipped to just 262. This sharp decline has sparked serious concern among educators and activists. Falling student enrolment, lack of infrastructural support and shifting parental preferences towards English-medium education have put immense pressure on trusts and managements that run these schools.
Harsh reality
Sushil Shejule, a member of the Marathi Abhyas Kendra and president of the organisation Aamhi Shikshak (We Teachers), said, “While Marathi has been granted classical language status, the closure of Marathi schools, which are the true lifeline of the language, is a serious warning bell. Someone must take responsibility for this situation. It would be unfair to place the entire blame on parents.
The government must act with intent to save Marathi-medium schools. It should appoint a special committee of experts for Mumbai or even for the entire state to investigate the reasons behind the declining student enrolment in these schools and implement solutions on a war footing. The BMC’s decision to start English-medium schools affiliated with other boards, despite no real demand for them, was a self-destructive move. If this continues, a time will come when Marathi schools in Mumbai will completely disappear. This reality needs to be acknowledged with the seriousness it deserves.”
He added, “In Maharashtra, public funds should be directed towards strengthening Marathi schools rather than being spent on English-medium institutions. This leads us to a fundamental question: Do the government and the administration truly want Marathi schools to survive? If a school is offering quality and value-based education, student numbers do not decline.”
Systemic neglect?
Girish Samant, a trustee of the AB Goregaonkar School, run by the Goregaon-based Shikshan Mandal Trust, stated, “The education department has completely stopped granting approvals for new Marathi-medium schools. Non-salary grants, which are critical for school operations, were discontinued for a long time and only resumed after sustained pressure, yet they remain irregular and insufficient. There has been no sanction for non-teaching staff appointments either. Secondary sections don’t even have laboratory assistants, and the workload on teachers is overwhelming.”
Samant added that several Marathi-medium schools have been waiting for official permissions and support since as far back as 2012-13, with no resolution in sight. “It appears that the authorities are indifferent to the shutdown of Marathi-medium schools. In fact, it feels like the government is deliberately creating a situation where aided Marathi schools become unsustainable. Over the past decade, policies have only made things harder for school managements and staff,” he said.
Pointing out the contradiction between policy and practice in Maharashtra, Samant said, “Marathi schools are being ignored even as the NEP [National Education Policy] promotes mother-tongue learning. There’s no on-ground campaign by the government to promote Marathi. All signs point to an unwritten mandate to phase out aided Marathi-medium schools.”
Matter of survival
Slamming the authorities’ approach towards Marathi-medium education, Prasad Gokhale, a parent and convenor of the awareness group and social media community Marathi Shala Aapan Tikavlya Pahijet (We Must Save Marathi Schools), said, “If the government, and a section of Marathi society, believes that the Marathi language is not capable of being used as a medium to teach school subjects, then the recently conferred Abhijaat Darja (classical language status) should be immediately withdrawn and English be deemed a classical language instead. Before making grand declarations, government officials, politicians, ministers, teachers, and members of Marathi school committees must answer a basic question: Have they enrolled their own children in Marathi-medium schools, past or present? And if not, what are the reasons behind those decisions?
If education in a child’s mother tongue continues to be sidelined, then what is the point of introducing a new NEP? It all seems like a well-orchestrated plan to promote the commercial interests of non-state and international boards and private English-medium schools. In the process, the middle and lower-middle-class families are being financially exploited. The real victims of this system are the children themselves. Forcing them to study complex subjects in English from a young age, when it is not their native language, puts an unnatural cognitive burden on them. What happened to protecting our children’s best interests?"
Gokhale added, “The importance of school education in one’s mother tongue is a universally accepted principle. While we keep talking about it in various forums, why are we ignoring it when it comes to implementation? The government must take responsibility to promote and protect Marathi and other regional-language schools proactively and without excuses. This is not just about language; it’s about preserving cultural identity and ensuring meaningful learning for our children. Marathi schools shutting down due to low enrolment in Maharashtra is a sorry state of affairs.”
Parents torn
For many parents, the choice between Marathi and English is less about culture and more about social mobility. “I studied in a Marathi school, and so did my siblings and my wife, who is a doctor, and we all are doing fine in life, but today’s reality is different,” said Satish Patil, a parent of a Std III student. “We feel pressure from society, relatives and even schools that consider English the only way forward. But deep down, we know it’s not fair to the child to learn complex subjects in a non-native language,” explained Patil.
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