Why India Cannot Afford to Reject English in Schools
Should English Be Encouraged as a Medium of Education in India? Absolutely, Yes.
Every few months the debate resurfaces:
“Is English destroying our Indian languages?”
“Is choosing English a colonial mindset?”
“Should English-medium schools be discouraged?”
My answer, with full conviction, is this:
Encouraging English in India is not a sign of mental colonization. It is a necessity in a globalized world.
We cannot help it — English is the world’s most dominant link language. It is the language of opportunity, of knowledge, of global mobility, and of careers that stretch beyond geographical and cultural borders.
To pretend otherwise is not patriotism. It’s self-sabotage.
Wanting English is Not a Colonial Hangover — It’s Survival in a Global World
Today, English is the world’s common language. It is what allows a Japanese engineer to collaborate with a Brazilian researcher. It is what lets a Swedish author present to an Indian audience. It is the bridge across continents.
Those who know English well know its power:
You can travel freely.
You can communicate across cultures.
You can access global knowledge.
You can unlock opportunities that simply do not exist otherwise.
People who mock Indians for wanting English rarely realize that even countries strongly attached to their linguistic identity wish they had invested more in English education.
I’ve been to Germany and South Korea — two deeply proud, culturally rooted nations. And yet? Both my German and Korean friends told me openly:
“We would have been far more successful globally if English had been taught to us properly.”
That says everything.
English Gives Access to the World’s Knowledge — Without It, You’re Locked Out
Here is the uncomfortable truth:
Most of the world’s intellectual, educational, and scientific wealth is stored in English.
Most books are written in English.
Most scientific journals are published in English.
Most magazines, travelogues, and thought-pieces are in English.
Most research papers of global importance are accessible only in English.
Imagine standing outside a massive gate, on the other side of which lies endless treasure — gold, diamonds, ancient manuscripts, rare books, limitless knowledge.
And imagine being told:
“All this could be yours, but you don’t know the key.”
That key is English.
Without English, millions of Indians are locked out of this global library — not because they are less intelligent, but because their language limits their access.
Should we deny them the key?
English Is the Only Language That Truly Unifies India
India is not a monolithic country. It is a linguistic galaxy divided into states, each fiercely protective of its language — and rightly so.
But this also means no Indian language can serve as a truly national medium.
Tamil Nadu will not accept Hindi.
Bengal will not accept Kannada.
Punjab will not accept Marathi.
Meghalaya will not accept Tamil.
The only language neutral enough —
the only language not seen as a political threat —
the only language equally foreign and equally usable to all states is:
English.
English is India’s linguistic Switzerland — neutral territory.
It is the one bridge everyone can cross without feeling they are giving up their identity.
Supporting English Does NOT Mean Rejecting Native Languages
I am a multilingual Indian.
I take pride in it.
And I actively encourage others to preserve their linguistic heritage.
I speak, read, and write in Odia, my mother tongue.
I communicate comfortably in Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Bengali.
I understand Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi, and even Brajbhasha.
I learned Sanskrit in school, and it helped me understand many Indian languages more deeply.
I am raising my daughter to speak Odia + Malayalam + Hindi + English.
She has spoken all four since she turned three.
So let me say this clearly:
Languages do not die because English-medium schools exist.
Languages die because parents stop speaking them at home.
Your linguistic identity is not destroyed by English.
It is destroyed when you hand your child a device instead of speaking to them in your mother tongue.
If you want your child to love your language:
Speak it at home.
Read it to them.
Teach them the script at any age.
Start with simple books.
Let them hear its rhythm daily.
Let it be part of their emotional world.
You have 18 years to pass on your language.
Don’t blame English for what you’re not doing.
English Opens Doors — Nationally and Internationally
When you learn English, you learn:
·The language of global business. Career opportunities multiply.
·The language of research and innovation. STEM, medicine, psychology, engineering — English is the gateway.
·The language of travel. The world becomes easier, safer, and more accessible.
·The language of intercultural collaboration. You can work with people across the world instantly.
·The language of global citizenship. You gain the confidence to step outside the boundaries of geography.
India’s youth deserve this empowerment.
My Family Is Proof That English and Regional Languages Can Coexist
I am Odia.
My husband is Malayali.
We live in Uttar Pradesh.
For most parts, we communicate in English — not because we reject Indian languages, but because:
English is our common language.
The English taught in many schools here – where we live - is poor at best and abysmal at its worse, and therefore, in our case, home exposure matters.
Our daughter is learning to speak in English + Odia + Malayalam + Hindi with increasing ease. She has been fluent in English since she was three. She learnt Hindi from her surroundings. And she is picking up Malayalam and Odia quite well speaking with us and her grandparents on a regular basis.
Nothing was lost.
Everything was gained.
English did not replace our languages. It simply joined them.
Learning English Is Like Learning Any Other Language — But With Much Bigger Returns
The idea that learning English makes you “less Indian” is irrational.
You don’t lose your cultural identity by adding another language to your mind. You expand it.
English is not the enemy.
English is a tool.
A bridge.
A key.
And in today’s world, it is a key no child in India should be denied.
Final Thoughts: Don’t Fear English. Fear Missed Opportunities.
India’s youth stand at a crossroad.
One path leads to global participation, access, opportunity, and competence.
The other leads to isolation in a world that is moving fast.
Supporting English-medium education does not mean abandoning Indian languages.
It means ensuring that our children have both roots and wings.
Roots through their mother tongue.
Wings through English.
Let them have both.
Let them belong everywhere.
And let India rise — not by rejecting the world’s common language, but by mastering it.
