The Maharashtra government has taken back its decision to make Hindi a compulsory third language in schools after facing strong opposition from various political parties. School Education Minister Dada Bhuse stated that Hindi will now be offered as an optional subject, while Marathi and English will remain the primary focus. On April 16, the government announced that Hindi would be mandatory for students from Classes 1 to 5, a move included in the state’s School Curriculum Framework-2024 by the State Council of Educational Research and Training.

However, parties like the Shiv Sena (UBT), Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), and the Sharad Pawar-led NCP opposed the decision, accusing the government of trying to force Hindi onto the state. Bhuse announced that the word "mandatory" will be taken out of the government resolution, and Hindi will now be offered as an optional subject. Interested students can study Hindi along with Marathi and English. A new resolution with the updated language policy will be released soon.

Previously, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had defended the original policy, saying it did not undermine the importance of Marathi. However, the Language Consultation Committee, headed by Laxmikant Deshmukh, opposed the move, raising concerns about bypassing proper procedures and the risk of imposing a language.

Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar accepted the state government's move, stressing that Hindi should remain an optional subject to uphold the importance of the Marathi language.

The Maharashtra government had unveiled a comprehensive plan to roll out the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 starting in the 2025-26 academic year. One key aspect of the plan was to make Hindi a mandatory third language for students in Classes 1 to 5 in Marathi and English medium schools. According to the plan, the new curriculum would be introduced gradually, beginning with Class 1 in 2025-26 and extending to all classes by 2028-29.