Overview
- The Ministry of Education approved the plan, with agency reports published on Saturday, October 3, confirming formal clearance to set up the five centres.
- Designated host institutions are Tezpur University for Assamese, Visva‑Bharati for Bengali, Deccan College Pune for Marathi, Central University of Odisha for Pali, and Central University of Gujarat for Prakrit.
- The centres are tasked with strengthening academic research, digitisation of texts, preservation of manuscripts and wider dissemination of each language’s heritage.
- The announcement was shared on social media by the Central Secretariat Service Forum and drew public praise from regional leaders, notably Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi for the Pali centre.
- Officials have not yet published details on funding, staffing, governance or timelines, but the move builds on the 2024 decision that granted classical status to these languages and could expand institutional support for scholarship and public access.