BharatNotes Official Languages Act, 1963
/əˈfɪʃəl ˈlæŋɡwɪdʒɪz ækt/A Central legislation that gave continued official status to English beyond 1965 (when only Hindi was to become the official language under Article 343) for official purposes of the Union and for communication between the Union and non-Hindi states — effectively preserving English as an associate official language and resolving the Hindi imposition controversy that had triggered violent protests (Anti-Hindi Agitation) in Tamil Nadu in 1965.
Context & Background
Article 343 designated Hindi as the official language of the Union from the Constitution's commencement, with English to continue for 15 years (until 1965). The prospect of Hindi replacing English triggered the Anti-Hindi Agitation in Tamil Nadu (January–March 1965) in which 66 people died. Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri's assurance (and subsequent Official Languages Amendment Act, 1967) permanently retained English as an associate official language. The three-language formula (1968 National Policy Resolution) — Hindi, English, and a regional language in Hindi-speaking states; regional language, Hindi, and English in others — attempted a compromise, but Tamil Nadu follows its own two-language policy (Tamil + English).
UPSC Exam Relevance
GS1 & GS2 — Prelims: Article 343 (Hindi, Devanagari script = official language, 1950); Article 344 (Official Language Commission — every 10 years); Article 345-347 (State languages); Article 348 (High Courts, Supreme Court — English); Article 351 (spread of Hindi); Official Languages Act 1963, amended 1967; 8th Schedule (22 languages); three-language formula (1968) — rejected by Tamil Nadu; Anti-Hindi Agitation 1965 (Tamil Nadu — 66 deaths). Mains: linguistic politics and national integration; Hindi imposition debate; NEP 2020 and three-language formula; classical language policy (11 classical languages: Tamil, Sanskrit, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Odia, Marathi, Pali, Prakrit, Assamese, Bengali — last 6 added 2024).
