Bhubaneswar: The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bhubaneswar Tuesday celebrated ‘Matrubhasha Diwas’ to commemorate ‘Fostering multilingualism for inclusion in education and society’, the theme observed by UNESCO this year to promote use of mother tongues.
The Ministry of Education is celebrating it as ‘Matrubhasha Diwas’ with the objective of sensitising people on the need for greater use of mother tongues and other Indian languages for development and progress of the nation.
The State government’s Mo School initiative chairperson, Susmita Bagchi, was the chief guest of the occasion. The event was presided over by IIT-Bhubaneswar director RV Raja Kumar.
“India is a land of rich linguistic diversity. Multilingualism in our nation extends back to several millennia. This linguistic diversity is an asset which we have inherited and it is a resource for each one of us.
Bhasha or language is not just a means for communication; it has expressions of emotions, heritage and culture of the land attached to it.
Languages are the most powerful instruments of preserving and developing our cultural heritage.
However, the mother tongues of this country are various expressions of a single soul and each one of us should be proud of this fact,” Raja Kumar said.
National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 has given importance to mother tongues since it encourages professional courses in mother languages to reduce the gap within, he said.
“Having realised this, we too at IIT-Bhubaneswar are thinking of some inclusions and coming up with course in the local language. I would like to urge the students to carry along the merits of their mother tongue too.
As a result, the seed that is sown today will bear very nutritious fruits for our history, culture, heritage and nation one day,” opined the IIT director.
“From time immemorial, all the languages not only coexisted together but also supplemented and enriched each other. Hence, the very culture of this land is inclusive. Limitless is the word that best describes the true meaning of ‘Language’.
While learning the local language is very much desirable for outsiders, being parochial about your mother tongue may not be desirable at all. Knowing your mother tongue is very essential as it help in framing of culture.
They give shape to our thoughts and it conveys what our soul feels. It is my proud privilege to say that we are a nation blessed with many mother tongues,” Bagchi said.
PNN