Panaji: The Marathi Rajbhasha Nirdhar Samiti has announced an intensified campaign demanding that Marathi be granted official language status in Goa, with a march of around 5,000 Marathi language supporters planned towards the Goa Legislative Assembly on Monday, August 31, coinciding with the opening day of the Assembly session.
The announcement was made at a press conference held on August 24 at Hotel Manoshanti, where members of the committee outlined a series of programmes planned to press the government to take up a resolution on Marathi as an official language. The campaign will include meetings with MLAs, Marathi goodwill gatherings across different blocks and an ongoing signature campaign.
The committee said its signature drive has so far reached around 2.5 lakh households across Goa. August 31 has been set as the final date for the campaign, with the committee expressing confidence that nearly three lakh signatures will be collected. Following the completion of the fourth phase of the campaign, the committee plans to seek an appointment with the President of India to present its demand.
With the Assembly session beginning on August 31, the committee has also started meeting MLAs from various constituencies and submitting memoranda urging them to support the introduction of a resolution on granting Marathi official language status in Goa. According to the committee, representatives have so far met 33 MLAs. It also issued a political warning, saying that the government should not force Marathi supporters to repeat the electoral outcome of 2027.
As part of efforts to broaden support for the campaign, Marathi goodwill gatherings have been organised in six blocks — Mormugao, Ponda, Mandre, Mapusa, Sattari and Tiswadi. The committee said it plans to organise another 10 such gatherings during the first and last weeks of September, bringing together prominent and respected individuals from different areas and submitting their representations to the Chief Minister.
For the August 31 march, supporters have been asked to assemble at 9.30 am near the circle at the new bridge opposite the Kadamba Bus Stand. The committee has appealed to Marathi supporters from across Goa to participate in large numbers.
The committee warned that if the ruling party fails to introduce a resolution on Marathi as an official language during the upcoming Assembly session, it would adopt a strong opposition stand against the government. The committee also said it was prepared to take the agitation to any level necessary to pursue its demand.
The press conference was attended by Subhash Velingkar, Govind Ram Dhawalikar, Diwakar Shirodkar, Ashok Naik, Govind Dev, Dr Anita Tilve, Sandeep Palni, Nitin Faldessai, Vinayak Tyagi and Adv. Roshan Samant, among others.
