The era of Marathi medium schools in Vadodara is on the verge of collapse, only one school survived

Vadodara: Vadodara was once known as Gaekwad State and was ruled by Maratha rulers, due to which The influence of Maharashtrian culture is visible on Vadodara.

Due to which there was a time when the highest number of schools after Gujarati medium were marathi medium. However, just as the era of schools imparting Gujarati education is coming to an end, the era of Marathi medium schools is also going on. As many as 400 students are currently pursuing education.

Madhav Sadashivrao Golwelkar School , the only remaining Marathi medium school located in sayajiganj area of the Nagar Prathmik Shikshan Samiti, has been merged with Dr Hedgewar Primary School, which imparts education in Hindi and Gujarati medium. Authorities say there was no alternative.

Under no circumstances will we allow the closure of the only school in Vadodara.

After the removal of slum areas near the school, families kept moving away and this led to a decrease in the number of students.

"We will not allow our school to close under any circumstances," says P R Nirbhavane, principal of Maharani Chimnabai High School, the only Marathi-medium school in Vadodara. We used to go to live  in the houses built in areas like Bhayli, Makarpura. Now it is natural for them to get our school away. We have kept a fee of only Rs 600 per month in primary so that children from poor families can study. In the past, many students studying in this school have gained a prominent position in the society. In the game of Kabaddi, two to three students are still selected at the state level every year from this school.

Maharaja Sayajirao had given land for the 112-year-old Maharani Chimnabai School

The only Maharani Chimnabai High School in Vadodara has a glorious history. It is one of the oldest schools in Vadodara, which was established in 1911. It has been 112 years since the school. Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad donated the land for the school at that time. Students are coming to teach without taking any salary so that their education is not spoiled.

Marathi medium schools should be opened in the new area

An opinion is also being expressed that instead of closing Marathi medium schools due to lack of number of children, the City Primary Education Committee should start Marathi medium schools in the areas where Marathi families have been living from slum areas.

Reasons for the decline in the number of students studying in Marathi medium

Sanjay Bachhav , a Maharashtrian teacher, writer and a resident of Baroda High School in the city, conducted a survey on Marathi-medium schools and colleges running in Gujarat for the publication of The Brihad Maharashtra Mandal, an organization based in New Delhi.

In 2002, when the riots broke out, many people migrated from the Kot area and the impact was on the number of Marathi-medium schools.

When the Akota Dandia Bazar bridge was built, the families of 418 children living in the vicinity had migrated and these children were studying in nearby Marathi medium schools at that time.

The reason for the decline in the craze for Marathi medium among the middle class and upper middle class was the increasing currency  of English medium. At the same time, the board had announced in 2014 that students studying in Marathi medium would also have to take the examination through Gujarati medium paper.

Marathi families in the city started thinking that if they wanted to stay in Gujarat forever, then they should teach the children either in English medium or gujarati medium.

There were also fewer options for good coaching classes for Marathi medium and there was no other reference material available in Marathi language other than text book.

There were once 33 Marathi medium primary schools in Vadodara

Teacher Sanjay Bachhav's survey says that there was a time when there were 33 primary schools in Vadodara teaching in Marathi medium as well as five high schools.

Surat tops, 30,000 plus students study in Marathi medium

Even though Vadodara was the capital of  Gaekwadi state, Surat has now overtaken Vadodara in Marathi medium education. In Surat, 64 government primary schools, eight private primary schools and high schools teach in Marathi medium.