Migrant children in TN's government schools face an uncertain future as Centre halts funds over 3-language policy. Should kids pay the price for politics?
Thousands of migrant children studying in Tamil Nadu’s government schools now face an uncertain future as the Centre withholds funding due to the state’s refusal to implement the three-language policy under the New Education Policy (NEP).
For decades, Tamil Nadu has followed a two-language policy — Tamil and English — rejecting the Centre’s push for a three-language system, which includes Hindi. The state government sees this as an attempt to impose Hindi and has refused to comply.
As a result, the Centre has withheld funds for the Samagra Shiksha scheme, which supports government-run schools, leaving thousands of migrant children in limbo.
Migrant students affected
Many migrant families from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, and other Hindi-speaking states have settled in Tamil Nadu, enrolling their children in Tamil-medium schools. These schools help them integrate by offering free Tamil language classes, meals, uniforms, and other support.
Fathima, a Class Six student whose family migrated from Bihar to Krishnagiri district, is among them. She speaks and reads Tamil fluently.
"I'm studying in this school from Class One. When I joined, teachers treated me like family and taught me well. Now, I am in Class Six. I’m from Bihar, and teachers continue to support us. We receive free breakfast, lunch, shoes, and uniforms," says Fathima.
Education at risk due to funding cuts
With the Centre blocking funds, key programmes that help migrant students — such as Tamil language support and free school resources — are now at risk. Experts warn that if the deadlock continues, it will directly affect the quality of education for these children.
Educationist Nedunchezhiyan explains:
"Thousands of migrant children are enrolled in Tamil Nadu’s government schools. Language-inclusive initiatives benefit both migrant and local students. Cutting funds would severely diminish the quality of education available to them."
Parents fear losing access to quality education:
For many migrant families, Tamil Nadu’s schools provide opportunities they never had in their home states.
"I never had the opportunity to go to school in Bihar," says Mumaza Kathun. "Here, I can study. Schools in Bihar lacked proper facilities and teaching quality. But here, they teach well. I encourage others to join schools here, study well, and progress in life."
A crisis for migrant workers and their children:
According to the 2011 Census (as per a PIB release), India has 45.51 crore migrant workers, with 34 lakh in Tamil Nadu alone. In industrial hubs like Tirupur, over 20 lakh workers are employed in knitting mills, many of whom have enrolled their children in local schools.
Recognizing the importance of linguistic inclusion, Tamil Nadu’s School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi recently launched the ‘Tamil Mozhi Karpom’ (‘Let’s Learn Tamil’) initiative, allocating ₹71.1 lakh to help migrant children learn Tamil. However, the Centre’s decision to withhold funds could undermine these efforts.
Are children paying the price for politics?:
The Centre’s stance on the three-language policy and Tamil Nadu’s resistance to NEP 2020 have turned education into a battleground. But should children suffer because of political disagreements?
The content above has been generated using a fine-tuned AI model. To ensure accuracy, quality, and editorial integrity, we employ a Human-In-The-Loop (HITL) process. While AI assists in creating the initial draft, our experienced editorial team carefully reviews, edits, and refines the content before publication. At The Federal, we combine the efficiency of AI with the expertise of human editors to deliver reliable and insightful journalism.
