Tamil Nadu Official Language Act, 1956

No: 39 Dated: Jan, 23 1957

THE TAMIL NADU OFFICIAL LANUAGE ACT, 1956

(Tamil Nadu Act 39 of 1956)

    An Act to provide for the adoption of Tamil as the language to be used for the official purposes of the State of Tamil Nadu.

    Whereas the Constitution enables the Legislature of a State by law to adopt any one or more of the languages in use in the State as the language to be used for all or any of the official purposes of the State and to prescribe any language other than the English language for use in Bills, Acts, Ordinances, Orders, Rules, regulations and bye-laws.

    Be it enacted in the Seventh Year of the Republic of India as follows : -

1. Short title and extent. - (1) This Act may be called the Tamil Nadu Official Language Act, 1956.

(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Tamil Nadu.

2. Tamil to be the official language of the State. - The official language of the State of Tamil Nadu shall be Tamil.

3. English to be continued to be used for official purposes until the Government otherwise direct. - Notwithstanding anything in section 2 and without prejudice to the provisions of Articles 346 and 347 of the Constitution, the English language shall continue to be used for all the official purposes of the State for which it was being used before the commencement of this Act until the State Government, by notification under section 4, otherwise direct in respect of any official purpose specified in such notification.

4. Government's power to notify the official purposes for which Tamil to be used. - The State Government may, by notification issued from time to time, direct that Tamil shall be used in respect of such official purposes as may be specified in the notification.