Articles 345, 346 and 347 form Chapter II, titled "Regional Languages", in Part XVII of the Constitution of India. They deal respectively with the official language or languages of a State, the language used for official communication between States and the Union, and constitutional recognition of a language spoken by a substantial section of a State's population.
Reviewed against the official Constitution text available from the Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice. Updated: 19 September 2026.
What Article 345 covers: It gives the Legislature of a State constitutional authority, subject to Articles 346 and 347, to determine the language or languages to be used for all or any official purposes of that State.
Article 345: Subject to Articles 346 and 347, the Legislature of a State may by law adopt one or more languages in use in the State, or Hindi, for all or any of the official purposes of that State.
The proviso preserves the use of English for the State official purposes for which English was being used immediately before commencement of the Constitution, until the State Legislature otherwise provides by law.
The provision concerns the language of State administration and other official purposes. It does not require every State to adopt the same official language. A State Legislature may select one or more languages in use in that State or Hindi. The opening words make that power expressly subject to Articles 346 and 347.
What Article 346 covers: It identifies the constitutional rule for official communication from one State to another and between a State and the Union.
Article 346: The language for the time being authorised for use in the Union for official purposes is the official language for communication between one State and another State and between a State and the Union.
The proviso permits two or more States that agree to use Hindi for communication between themselves to do so.
Article 346 is concerned with governmental communication across State boundaries and between a State and the Union. It should be read with the provisions governing the official language of the Union, including Article 343, and with applicable parliamentary legislation concerning official languages.
What Article 347 covers: It creates a constitutional mechanism for official recognition of a language desired by a substantial proportion of a State's population.
Article 347: When a demand is made, the President may, if satisfied that a substantial proportion of the population of a State desires the use of a language spoken by them to be recognised by that State, direct that the language shall also be officially recognised throughout the State or in any part of it, for the purpose specified in the direction.
The provision is not an automatic declaration that every language spoken within a State is an official language. Its operation requires a demand, the President's satisfaction regarding the wishes of a substantial proportion of the population, and a Presidential direction specifying the territorial extent and purpose of official recognition.
These Articles address different but connected aspects of language administration. Article 345 concerns a State's choice of language for its own official purposes. Article 346 provides the rule for official communication between States and between a State and the Union. Article 347 provides a special route for recognition of a language spoken by a substantial section of a State's population.
The current official Constitution text can be consulted on the websites of the Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice, and India Code. These official sources should be preferred when verifying the exact wording of Articles 345, 346 and 347.
Constitution of India - Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice