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Tamil Nadu Hospitals Withdraw Medicine Covers Carrying Hindi Instructions
M
Moneycontrol•07-10-2026, 08:06
Tamil Nadu Hospitals Withdraw Medicine Covers Carrying Hindi Instructions
- •Government hospitals in Karur and Coimbatore have withdrawn brown paper medicine covers that featured dosage instructions in Hindi, Tamil and English.
- •The controversy began after images of the covers circulated on social media, prompting criticism from DMK leaders over the potential dilution of Tamil Nadu's two-language policy.
- •Karur Government Medical College Hospital officials stated that the trilingual text was mistakenly added by an external printer in Erode due to a shortage of plain covers.
- •Coimbatore Medical College Hospital officials noted that while the covers were useful for migrant workers, they have been replaced with plain ones following the backlash.
- •This incident follows the recent suspension of two engineering officials over the use of Hindi on a state highway signboard in Thoothukudi district.
Key Questions Answered
Government hospitals in Karur and Coimbatore withdrew the brown paper medicine covers because they featured dosage instructions in Hindi alongside Tamil and English, triggering a public backlash over the perceived violation of the state's two-language policy.
According to the Karur Government Medical College Hospital dean, due to a shortage of regular plain covers, the hospital ordered covers from an Erode printing press in December 2025, which mistakenly added trilingual text without instructions.
The Tamil Nadu government suspended two Highways Department assistant engineers and initiated departmental action after Hindi appeared on a State Highway signboard in Thoothukudi district, violating the state's official two-language policy.
