Urdu is set to be granted the status of an official language in areas in West Bengal where Urdu speaking population exceeds 10 per cent.
A Bill to this effect was passed in the Legislative Assembly on Monday.
Announcing this in the Assembly, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said similar legislation would be brought for other languages such as Nepali, Santhali and Hindi in the next session.
The West Bengal Official Language (Amendment) Bill, 2012, passed in the House proposes that Urdu be used as an official language in districts, blocks and sub-divisions, where the Urdu-speaking population exceeds 10 per cent.