Mangaluru : The Communist Party of India (Marxists) staged a protest here on Monday opposing the government allowing English medium in select government primary schools in the State from this academic year.

Speaking on the occasion, Vasudeva Uchil, a member of the party, said that the government has announced that more government schools will be allowed to have English medium from the next academic year. If the same trend continued, it will affect Kannada culture, local and regional cultures.

He said that States were constituted on the basis of regional and vernacular languages. It was to give efficient administration, education and infrastructure and also to protect local cultures. The very objective of constituting Karnataka will be derailed if all government schools began teaching in English medium, he added.

Recalling the Gokak movement to save Kannada in 1982-83, he said that it forced the government to allow teaching Kannada compulsorily as a subject in schools.

The corporatisation of education and the government promoting private English medium schools have weakened government schools with many lacking infrastructure.

The latest move by the H.D. Kumaraswamy-led coalition government is aimed at protecting the interests of corporates and further weaken the government schools, he said.

Vasantha Achari, secretary, Dakshina Kannada unit of the party, urged the government to drop the latest decision and allow teaching English as a subject in schools. The government should appoint able teachers to teach English, he said.

Sunil Kumar Bajal also spoke on the occasion.