Hyderabad: Parents to hold ‘Maha Dharna’ over Telugu language mandate for students

Parents warned that the issue would escalate when schools reopen in June and were even considering legal action to challenge the decision

Hyderabad: Parents, especially from CBSE affiliated schools, will hold a ‘Maha Dharna’ at Dharna Chowk on Saturday, demanding roll back of the decision to make Telugu mandatory as a second language for students up to Class X.

In a statement on Thursday, parents said the State government’s decision sparked controversy among private schools, which scrapped options like Hindi and Urdu, enforcing Telugu as only second language from the academic year 2025-26. Parents warned that the issue would escalate when schools reopen in June and were even considering legal action to challenge the decision.

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Due to the sudden change, thousands of parents from Hyderabad launched a campaign urging the State government to roll back its decision. They argued that making Telugu mandatory in higher classes would create difficulties for students appearing for Board exams.

Instead as a second language, parents proposed that Telugu be introduced as a third language in a phased manner and allow students to choose the second language as per their own choice.

Over the past 10 days, they sought meetings with officials and political leaders to voice their concerns. On Wednesday, they also launched an email campaign titled ‘Freedom to Choose Language’ to push for their demands.