The Minister of Culture Smt. Chandresh Kumari Katoch in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today has said that the criteria evolved by Government to determine declaration of a language as a Classical language is as under:-

(i)                 High antiquity of its early texts/recorded history over a period of 1500-2000 years;

(ii)               A body of ancient literature/texts, which is considered a valuable heritage by generations of speakers;

(iii)             The literary tradition be original and not borrowed from another speech community;

(iv)             The classical language and literature being distinct from modern, there may also be a discontinuity between the classical language and its later forms or its offshoots.

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