JANAKPURDHAM, July 23: The Nepali State has been urged to recognize the Hindi language as an official language of the government.
In a discussion on the Hindi language and its interrelations with the politics of Madhesh organized by Tribhuvan University, Central Department of Hindi, in Janakpurdham on Saturday, the people concerned said Hindi has been spoken in Madhesh for long and it is the lingua franca of the region. "Thus it needs to be endorsed as an official language of the government."
Federal Minister of State for Education, Science and Technology, Pramila Kumari Yadav, said the Hindi language had contributed to consolidating the ties between Nepal and India and it deserved to get the recognition of an official language. "The language serves as the lingua franca at the civic and political level in the Madhesh.”
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Lawmakers Rekha Yadav and Kiran Kumar Sah said Hindi served as the simple and widely used language for exchange of information and enhancement of the freedom of expression and opinion in the region. They said they would advocate in the House for accepting it as an official language.
Madesh Academy chair Rambharos Kapadi said Hindi has played a significant role in strengthening the ties at the people's level in Nepal and India and it is also a widely used language at the civic level in Madhesh, urging the government to pay the due respect to the language.
Chief of TU Central Department of Hindi, Dr Sangeeta Barma opined that the government should accord due priority to Hindi as it has made an incomparable contribution to the propagation of language and education as well as political reawakening in Nepal.
"We all are well-informed on the extraordinary contribution of the Hindi language and literature in bringing democratic awareness in Nepal. Hindi was the language of education and administration well until 1951. Even now Hindi has much influence and importance in trade, commerce, communication, entertainment and education," she said and called for providing recognition to its legal use in all levels and regions.
Hindi language campaigner Sudarshan Lal Karna, litterateur Poonam Jha, Prof Chandreshwor Prasad Yadav, Abha Sinha, among the speakers, urged one and all to take Hindi as the lingua franca of a large number of Nepalis and not merely as an Indian language.
Binod Kumar Bishwokarma, who is teaching faculty at the TU Central Department of Hindi said that although the Department has been running classes in Hindi by formally giving recognition to it, the Department is going to conduct discussion in all provinces in order to further boost understanding towards this language at the citizen's and political level.
(RSS)
