New Delhi, Sep 14 (UNI) union Home Minister Amit Shah on the occasion of Hindi Diwas today, said that Hindi is the companion of Indian languages and that there is no conflict between Hindi and other Indian languages.
“The biggest example of this is Gujarat. In Gujarat, scholars like Swami Dayanand Saraswati, Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and KM Munshi accepted Hindi and also promoted it,” Shah said at the 5th Akhil Bhartiya Rajbhasha Sammelan in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, a Home Ministry statement said.
He added that many visionary leaders taught Indian languages to communicate with each other and urged the promotion of Hindi in every state, as a result of which a person from Gujarat can go anywhere in the country and easily conduct business as well as gain acceptance.
Shah said that for the last five years, the Akhil Bhartiya Rajbhasha Sammelan has been held outside Delhi in different parts of the country, which has provided a very good opportunity to strengthen dialogue between Hindi and other Indian languages.
He added that Hindi should not remain just a language of conversation and administration, but should also become the language of science, technology, justice, and policing. When all work is done in Indian languages, the bonding with the people automatically deepens.
The Minister said that the Sarathi translation system facilitates easy translation from Hindi to all recognized Indian languages.
He urged all Chief Ministers to send him letters in their respective languages, assuring that responses would be sent in the same language.
He emphasised that the Sarathi system is equipped to translate in any language and also translate responses from Hindi into the recipient’s language.
He added that, in the coming days, communication through Sarathi will be in one’s native language.
Shah said that Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj emphasised three key principles in the fight for Swaraj — Swaraj, Swadharma amd Swabhasha — all of which are interconnected with national pride.
“A country where the spoken language is not its own cannot truly experience freedom or pride. To foster pride in our languages, the Shabd Sindhu dictionary was created, starting with 51,000 words and now exceeding seven lakh words,” he said.
Shah expressed confidence that by 2029, it will become the largest dictionary in all languages of the world and highlighted that this dictionary is making Hindi more flexible, which is essential to become a widely used spoken language.
He also mentioned that Mahatma Gandhi made significant contributions to the development of the Gujarati dictionary, recognizing that a society cannot stand tall globally without a strong native language.
Shah emphasised the need to leverage science and technology to fully harness their potential.
He highlighted an AI-powered pair of glasses showcased at the event, which will greatly assist visually impaired individuals. With these glasses, even those who are completely visually impaired can read, and whatever they read will be audible in their native language through the AI-powered system.
Stating that Mahatma Gandhi used to say that Hindi is the language that keeps the nation united, Shah emphasised, “Sanskrit gave us the river of knowledge, Hindi carried that knowledge into every home, and mother tongues spread it to every individual”.
He praised Prime Minister Modi for doing a lot through technology to strengthen local languages.
He mentioned that, inspired by Prime Minister Modi, the Ministry of Home Affairs has created the Bhartiya Bhasha Anubhag under the Department of Official Language. This division will not only strengthen Hindi but also support and promote all Indian languages.
“About 3 lakh 28 thousands government employees from other language backgrounds have been trained in Hindi. In addition, 40,000 employees have been trained in typing, 1,918 in shorthand, and 13,000 in translation,” he said.
He added that Prime Ministerhas introduced JEE, NEET, and UGC examinations in 12 languages, which has increased the chances of success for students who study in their mother tongue.
Shah said that examinations for the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) are now also conducted in 12 languages.
He recalled, “In the 1970s, people used to say that Hindi was becoming a thing of the past, but today we can proudly say that the official language and our Indian languages are the languages of the future, and they will also become the languages of technology, science, and justice”.
On this occasion, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, union Ministers Arjun Ram Meghwal, Bandi Sanjay Kumar and others were also present.
Shah also released several publications.
