Rajya Sabha passes Central Sanskrit Universities Bill, 2019

Rajya Sabha passed the Central Sanskrit Universities Bill, 2019 aimed at the extension of Central University status to three Sanskrit universities in the country. The bill was passed by voice vote. Replying to the discussion, Human Resource Minister, Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank said, Sanskrit literature is the biggest treasure and legacy of India having a unique identity itself. He said, many countries across the world are doing research on Sanskrit and it is being taught in many universities. The Minister said India has given the knowledge to the entire world.

Three Sanskrit Universities

• The bill will enable to upgrade three universities as Central Sanskrit Universities.
• These three universities are – Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeeth Tirupati, Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan and Sri Lal Bahadur Shastri Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeeth.

Background

• Lok Sabha passed the bill in December 2019 while it was introduced in the Rajya Sabha on March 02, 2020.
• It was introduced in Rajya Sabha by HRD Minister, Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’.
• Now, it will go back to the Lok Sabha for final stage.

Importance

• The government is in favor of strengthening Sanskrit as well as Tamil, Telugu, Bangla, Malayalam, Gujarati, Kannada etc.
• HRD Minister, Ramesh Pokhriyal said that Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan, Sri Lal Bahadur Shastri Vidyapeeth and Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeeth Tirupati are the three important institutes that have been given the status of Central University.
• The Central Sanskrit University Bill 2019 was passed by voice vote in the Lok Sabha.

PAPER-II