Nearly 2.66 lakh left out boys of government schools in Punjab will get free uniforms. The Punjab Cabinet on Tuesday decided to provide free uniforms to government schools students of general category from classes 1 to 8. The state government will spend approx Rs 15.98 crores in the current financial year, Chief Minister Office informed, as reported by news agency ANI.
Meanwhile, Punjabi has been made a compulsory subject in all schools in the state. Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said, "To promote mother tongue, Punjabi has been made a compulsory subject for all students from class I to X in Punjab. Schools to be fined up to 2 lakh for violation."
Notably, the Punjab Learning of Punjabi and Other Languages Act, 2008 was enacted by the state government with the objective to provide for learning of Punjabi as a compulsory subject by all students studying in classes 1 to 10.
The Punjab Vidhan Sabha had also passed the Punjab Official Language (Amendment) Bill, 2021, whereby an official now can be fined up to Rs 5,000 for not conducting official business in the Punjabi language.