Non-Marathi auto, taxi drivers urged to learn Marathi, says Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik

Anyone doing business in Maharashtra must be able to speak Marathi with local people in daily dealings, Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik has said. He appealed to non-Marathi drivers of autorickshaws, taxis and app-based passenger vehicles to take the initiative to learn Marathi and join the "Hindu Hrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Marathi Samvad Bhasha Abhiyan".

A meeting to plan the next phase of the "Maharashtra Majha! Marathi Majhi Samvad Bhasha!" campaign was held in Sarnaik's chamber at Mantralaya. Transport Commissioner Rajesh Narvekar, Additional Transport Commissioner Ravi Gaikwad, Pradip Dhavan of the Konkan Marathi Sahitya Parishad, Dr Namdev Bhosale, Joint Secretary in the Marathi Language Department, and Dr Shamakant Deore of the Marathi Vishwakosh Mandal attended. All regional transport officers in the state joined the meeting by video link.

The campaign aims to enable every passenger vehicle driver working in Maharashtra to speak to passengers easily and with confidence. The Transport Department, the Marathi Language Department and the Konkan Marathi Sahitya Parishad are running it together.

In the first phase, training centres were opened at more than 180 places across the state. About 1,800 teachers gave training in practical Marathi to more than 1,65,800 non-Marathi drivers.

Sarnaik said the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) has 4,40,238 autorickshaw drivers and 43,106 taxi drivers. All of them have been urged to take up and complete the Marathi language training.

The minister said that, besides the training centres, facilities to learn practical Marathi online will also be made available.

Implementation of the revised rules on practical Marathi has been suspended until August 18, 2027. Sarnaik clarified that the suspension does not mean the rules have been scrapped. He said the period should be used to learn Marathi and to prepare before the rules come into force.

In the spirit of "Learn Marathi today, be ready for tomorrow's rules!", Minister Sarnaik appealed to all non-Marathi autorickshaw, taxi and app-based vehicle drivers in the state to take part in large numbers in the second phase of the campaign.

The meeting directed that, with the cooperation of local public representatives, training be arranged in local schools or other available spaces where large numbers of drivers are available for it. Regional transport officers were told to carry out the necessary coordination.