Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Tuesday said the State has not received any information from the Central Government about a move to shift the Central Institute of Classical Tamil (CICT) from Chennai and merge it with the Central University of Tamil Nadu (CUT) at Tiruvarur.
During the proceedings in the State Legislative Assembly, DMK Tiruchuli legislator Thangam Thennarasu referred to reports about the move to shift the CICT and urged the State government to take steps to ensure that the institute continued to function as a standalone centre of excellence.
Recalling the efforts taken by DMK president and former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi for the shifting of the institution from Mysuru to Chennai in 2008 and its renaming as Central Institute of Classical Tamil, Mr. Thennarasu alleged that the decision of the BJP government at the Centre to merge it with CUT was based on a proposal by the NITI Aayog.
“The BJP government’s is trying to relegate Tamil to an inferior position. The Tamils cannot accept this. On behalf of the DMK, I urge the State government to pass a resolution against the BJP government’s decision,” Mr. Thennarasu insisted.
Tamil, incidentally, was the first among languages to be accorded the legal status of Classical Language by the Centre in 2004.
However, the Chief Minister denied knowledge about any proposal to shift the CICT.
“Once information (to the effect) is received from the Centre, the Tamil Nadu government will take necessary and appropriate steps,” Mr. Palaniswami said.
