Bengaluru, (DHNS): Language issue is set to gather force once again on Saturday when pro-Kannada activists will take out a massive rally, demanding proficiency in Kannada a must for jobs in private and government sectors in the state.

Activists have gone a step further, demanding that all state government jobs should go to Kannadigas only. Additionally, they have made knowledge of Kannada a must for getting jobs in Central government agencies, including banks and railways, in Karnataka.

Kannada Rakshana Vedike state president T A Narayana Gowda said the demands were based on Sarojini Mahishi report, which has not been implemented by the government despite repeated requests. The rally will be taken out from the National College grounds in Basavanagudi to the Vidhana Soudha.

"A bank manager in KM Doddi (Mandya district) told a customer to get out for not speaking in Hindi. The Railways give Hindi and English question papers in their competitive exams for even D group workers. Many Central government departments and agencies in Karnataka do the same. They also conduct interviews in Hindi. Without any rule, we have become outsiders in our own land," Gowda said.

Among the eight demands the Vedike has listed is study of Kannada as a language till Class 10 as a must for jobs in state and Central government agencies. "All jobs based on contracts should go to Kannadigas. The rule should be same for jobs outsourced to agencies," is another demand.

Setting 20-year residency and knowledge of Kannada as necessary qualifications to be considered a Kannadiga, the Vedike also says those who have studied the language in other states (Horanadu) should be recognised as locals and given all the benefits.

Pro-Kannada activist Arun Javagal said private companies have long neglected Kannadigas though they get land at heavily subsidised rates besides tax cuts. "This is essential to protect the interest of the language as well as its speakers," he said.

The demand seeking primacy for Kannada also includes opposition to the "preference to Hindi" that the activists have been protesting over the last few years. The activists recently staged protests against use of Hindi in Namma Metro signboards, arguing that its presence was nothing but 'hegemony'.