Bengaluru: Asserting that Hindi is not India’s national language, former Karnataka chief minister and senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Friday accused the ruling BJP of trying to unleash its agenda of “cultural terrorism” against non-Hindi speaking states.Taking offence to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s comment regarding the official language, the Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka assembly accused him of betraying the former’s home state Gujarat and mother-tongue Gujarati for Hindi, for his political agenda.Shah on Thursday said Hindi should be accepted as an alternative to English and not to local languages.Presiding over the 37th meeting of the Parliamentary Official Language Committee, Shah had said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has decided that the medium of running the government is the official language and this will definitely increase the importance of Hindi.“As a Kannadiga, I take strong offence to @HMOIndia @AmitShah’s comment on Official language &amp; medium of communication. Hindi is not our National Language &amp; we will never let it to be,” Siddaramaiah tweeted with the tagline “#IndiaAgainstHindiImposition” Stating that linguistic diversity is the essence of our country and we will respect each other’s sentiments, the former chief minister said pluralism is what has held our nation together and any attempt by the BJP to undo this will be met with strong opposition and retaliation. “Imposing Hindi is a sign of coercive federalism rather than cooperative federalism. Myopic view of BJP regarding our languages needs to be corrected and their opinions are derived from pseudo-nationalists like Savarkar,” Siddaramaiah added.Pointing out that 70 per cent of the agenda of the Cabinet is prepared in Hindi, Shah at the committee meeting had said the time has now come to make the official language Hindi an important part of the unity of the country.Me, however, had said Hindi should be accepted as an alternative to English and not to local languages. (Contd On P2)

 Asserting that Hindi is not India’s national language, former Karnataka chief minister and senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Friday accused the ruling BJP of trying to unleash its agenda of “cultural terrorism” against non-Hindi speaking states.

Hindi Is Not India's National Language, Will Never Let It Happen: Siddaramaiah

New Delhi: As a controversy erupted after Union Home Minister Amit Shah commented that Hindi should be accepted as an alternative language to English but not to local languages, the BJP, criticising the opposition parties, said that it is the right time to go for 'One Nation One Language'.Presiding over the 37th meeting of the Parliamentary Official Language Committee on April 7, Shah had said, "Hindi should be accepted as an alternative language to English but not to local languages."Former Member of Parliament from Kerala and BJP National Vice President A P Abdullakutty told IANS that with a little support from the central government, the country can go for 'One Nation One Language' like 'One Nation, One Tax' for communication purposes. Abdulla-kutty claimed that due to the increasing influence of Hindi cinema, social media, and new technology, the majority of the new generation in Tamil Nadu and Kerala are speaking better Hindi."Even in my family, the younger generation is speaking better Hindi than me. It is the new trend and I personally think it is the correct time. With a little support from the central government we can go for 'One Nation One Language' like 'One Nation One Tax' for communication," Abdullakutty said.He claimed that in the UAE and in some parts of America people are watching Hindi movies and they have a better understanding of the Hindi language."Today Hindi is not only an Indian language but also an international language. The Narendra Modi government is not against regional languages but is supporting regional languages and the New Education Policy (NEP) talks about it. Today NEET, CAT and other competitive exams are held in regional languages," Abdullakutty said. BJP national spokesperson and Assistant Professor (Law), Patna University, Guru Prakash Paswan, blamed the opposition parties for creating a rift in society over a non-issue. "To make them politically relevant, issueless opposition parties are trying to create a rift in society in the name of the region, language, caste and religion," Paswan told IANS.Paswan mentioned that in 1918 Mahatma Gandhi had said that Hindi represents the soul of this country and Amit Shah ji said that Hindi will grow but not at the cost of any regional language."The country is celebrating 'Hindi Pakhwada' (Hindi Fortnight) and 'Hindi Diwas' (Hindi Day) for ages. Hindi is our official language and we are not against any regional languages," Paswan added.Hitting out at the opposition leaders, especially from the South, Abdullakutty said, "Opposition parties and their leaders misunderstood Home Minister Shah's intention, his intention is correct. We are not against regional languages but we are following our national languages."—IANS

As a controversy erupted after Union Home Minister Amit Shah commented that Hindi should be accepted as an alternative language to English but not to local languages, the BJP, criticising the opposition parties, said that it is the right time to go for 'One Nation One Language'.

BJP Leaders Say Time Is Right For 'One Nation One Language'

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday made a strong pitch for use of local languages in courts, contending that it will increase the confidence of common citizens in the justice system and they will feel more connected to it. He also appealed to chief ministers and chief justices of high courts to give priority to cases related to undertrial prisoners languishing in jails and release them, as per law, based on human sensitivities, and asserted that judicial reform is not merely a policy matter. Human sensitivities are involved and they should be kept in the centre of all deliberations, Modi said. In every district there is a committee headed by the district judge, so that these cases can be reviewed and wherever possible, such prisoners may be released on bail, the prime minister said. "I would appeal to all CMs and CJs of high courts to give priority to these matters on the basis of humanitarian sensibility and the law," he said. Addressing the inaugural session of the joint conference of chief ministers and chief justices of high courts, being held after a gap of six years, the prime minister said a group is looking into making legislations in two formats -- one in typical legal language and the other in simple language which can be understood by ordinary people. He said it is in practice in various countries and both the formats are considered as legally acceptable.On the issue of court proceedings, Modi said, "We need to encourage local languages in courts. This will not only increase the confidence of common citizens in the justice system but they will feel more connected to it." Before the prime minister spoke, Chief Justice of India N V Ramana said there was a need for the legal system to introduce local languages in courts. Referring to the CJI's remarks, Modi said newspapers have got a positive headline. The prime minister also appealed to chief ministers to repeal outdated laws to make delivery of justice easier. "In 2015, we identified about 1,800 laws which had become irrelevant. Out of these, 1,450 such laws of the Centre were abolished. But, only 75 such laws have been abolished by the states," he said. Prime Minister Modi said as India celebrates the 75th anniversary of Independence, focus should be on creation of a judicial system where justice is easily available, is quick and for everyone. "In our country, while the role of the judiciary is that of the guardian of the Constitution, the legislature represents the aspirations of citizens. I believe that the confluence of these two will prepare the roadmap for an effective and time-bound judicial system in the country," he said. Modi said that 75 years of Independence have continuously clarified the roles and responsibilities of both the judiciary and the executive. Wherever it is necessary, this relation has evolved continuously to give direction to the country, he said. The prime minister emphasised that the government is working hard to reduce delay in justice delivery and efforts are on for increasing judicial strength and improving judicial infrastructure. He said information communication technology has been deployed for case management and efforts to fill vacancies at various levels of the judiciary are underway. Modi reiterated his vision of use of technology in governance in the context of judicial work. The government considers the possibilities of technology in the judicial system as an essential part of the Digital India mission, he said.He appealed to chief ministers and chief justices of high courts to take this forward. The e-courts project is being implemented in mission mode, Modi said.He also gave example of success of digital transactions as they are becoming common in small towns and even in villages. Out of all the digital transactions that took place in the world last year, 40 per cent took place in India, he said. The prime minister said nowadays, subjects such as blockchains, electronic discovery, cybersecurity, robotics, artificial intelligence and bioethics are being taught in law universities in many countries. "It is our responsibility that in our country also legal education should be according to these international standards," he said.Modi said mediation is also an important tool for settlement of pending cases in courts especially at the local level. There is a thousands of years old tradition of settlement of disputes through mediation in our society, he said. Mutual consent and mutual participation, in their own way, are a distinct human concept of justice, Modi said. With this thinking, the prime minster said, the government has introduced the Mediation Bill in Parliament as an umbrella legislation. "With our rich legal expertise, we can become a global leader in the field of solution by mediation. We can present a model to the whole world," Modi felt.—PTI&nbsp;&nbsp;

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday made a strong pitch for use of local languages in courts, contending that it will increase the confidence of common citizens in the justice system and they will feel more connected to it. He also appealed to chief ministers and chief justices of high courts to give priority to cases related to undertrial prisoners languishing in jails and release them, as per law, based on human sensitivities, and asserted that judicial reform is not merely a policy matter.

Modi, CJI Bat For Local Languages In Courts

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday made a strong pitch for use of local languages in courts, contending that it will increase the confidence of common citizens in the justice system and they will feel more connected to it. He also appealed to chief ministers and chief justices of high courts to give priority to cases related to undertrial prisoners languishing in jails and release them, as per law, based on human sensitivities, and asserted that judicial reform is not merely a policy matter.


 

Tanimaa Sultan Singh* All humans feel the primary need for emotional love. It affects our self-worth and sense of security and significance. The ability to feel love in a relationship-platonic or non-platonic is central to its health.&nbsp;&nbsp;Dr. Gary Chapman, author of the Five&nbsp;Love Languages series, in his book “The Five Love Languages:&nbsp;The Secret to Love that Lasts” (1992) discusses how humans, based on their psychological makeup and early childhood experiences with their primary caregivers, understand love in 5 ‘languages.’ They are:&nbsp;1. Words of Affirmation:&nbsp;This person primarily wants to be told that they are cared for.&nbsp;This can be accomplished through encouraging words that build and motivate, verbal compliments, and supportive statements that show appreciation and respect. “I'm proud of you”, “you are so special to me”, “I appreciate you”, “Thank you for...” and so on. Further, a compassionate and kind tone when communicating can make a positive difference.&nbsp;&nbsp;2. Quality Time:&nbsp;This person primarily feels loved through undivided attention. To carry this out, one can create a sense of togetherness by spending dedicated time together. Putting down the phone, turning off the TV, and giving your partner uninterrupted attention through active listening, meaningful eye contact, and empathy when conversing&nbsp;can help.&nbsp;3. Receiving Gifts: A gift is a visual symbol of love. It represents the sentiment that my partner was thinking&nbsp;about me. It doesn't need to be expensive. Gifts come in all sizes and shapes and can be purchased, made or found. An expensive watch or a flower from the garden can be equally cherished. It is about the thought and effort behind the object, reminding them that they are loved.&nbsp;&nbsp;4. Acts of Service: This person primarily feels loved through practical actions. The act can be performed with or without one asking for&nbsp;it and can contribute to helping&nbsp;one’s partner and making them feel appreciated. It can include washing the dishes,&nbsp;organizing a special&nbsp;night-out,&nbsp;dealing with the annoying&nbsp;bank manager yourself or simply asking “What can I do to help?”&nbsp;5. Physical Touch: This person primarily wants the physical expression of love. Physical presence and contact release&nbsp;the “love hormone,” Oxytocin, among&nbsp;others in the brain. Hugs, a massage, pats on the head and shoulder, holding hands, caresses, kisses, cuddles and sexual intercourse are some ways of expressing physical love. Note, that physical touch may or may not include sexual touching. &nbsp;&nbsp;In most relationships, both partners have a different primary love language. We may speak our primary love language but our partner may&nbsp;not understand. Similarly, their expression of love gets lost in translation.&nbsp;You can use this lens to identify your partner's love language, as well as your own. A simple trick is to understand that most people express love the way they want to be loved. In addition, we can communicate our love language to our partner and make requests (not demands!) of how we want to be loved. &nbsp;What if their love language does not come naturally to you? Simply put, Practice.&nbsp;If love is a language, with different dialects then one simply needs to put in the time, effort and discipline to attain fluency. Love is a choice. And that choice is yours. *MA Clinical Psychology <img src="https://mail.google.com/mail/u/1?ui=2&amp;ik=4911f429f9&amp;attid=0.1.2&amp;permmsgid=msg-f:1732139784094888831&amp;th=1809cbf4d44c337f&amp;view=fimg&amp;fur=ip&amp;sz=s0-l75-ft&amp;attbid=ANGjdJ-emgiH3rtQfzqVc_iN9PYt3avDrf5Jn5OjsHVlb_Ikm0CmaAvl6BquVdU_nO0zw-na5hIrYL8AgRss2mUGqOJJOuN2XAg2Eygxh-Z0xmsQ08Qnrzu3QjihBVQ&amp;disp=emb">

All humans feel the primary need for emotional love. It affects our self-worth and sense of security and significance. The ability to feel love in a relationship-platonic or non-platonic is central to its health.

What Is Your Love Language? 

Chennai : The Tamil Nadu Official language, Tamil culture, and Archeology ministry have decided to conduct Tamil folk and classical arts at parks, beaches, and museums across the state.In a statement on Friday, the department said that it has earmarked an amount of Rs 1 crore for the project.Besides, a major folk art festival will be organised at Coimbatore, Tiruchy, Madurai, and Tirunelveli at a cost of Rs 6 crore. While this will be in the line with the grand folk festival that was held in Chennai recently, the date and time is yet to be finalised.Also, Rs 50 lakh has been granted for Pongal Vizha, a cultural festival on heritage folk arts to be held in Chennai and ten other districts of the state.An amount of Rs 6 crore is earmarked for modernising teaching and improving pedagogy at music schools in the state-run by the government. Ten cave temples of the Pandya period will be protected and maintained by the state government.The Danish fort at Tharanganmadi will also be restored at a cost of Rs 65 lakh. The fort was damaged during recent rains, the statement said. The iconic heritage building of the Government Music College, Chennai, 'Brodie Castle' will be renovated at Rs 2.80 crore—IANS

The Tamil Nadu Official language, Tamil culture, and Archeology ministry have decided to conduct Tamil folk and classical arts at parks, beaches, and museums across the state.

TN govt to promote folk, classical arts at parks, beaches

New Delhi (The Hawk): Taking a cue from the Prime Minister, all of us should unhesitantly speak and work in Hindi. Shri Ram Chandra Prasad Singh, Union Minister for Steel, said in Gangtok on Friday. Presiding over the Steel Ministry’s Hindi Salahakar Samiti Meeting held in the Sikkim Capital on Friday, Shri Singh praised the State’s and its people for emerging as the first State in India which has achieved the highest per capita income and cent- percent organic farming. Pointing out that languages bind people, never break them away unless they are forcibly implemented, all of us should relentlessly work both for mother tongue and the Official Language Hindi, the Minister said.Shri Faggan Singh Kulaste, MoS Steel, also addressed this meeting. He assured the participating members of the advisory committee that the Ministry and all its PSUs will work to implement their valued suggestions on usage of Hindi. Steel Minister Shri Singh, on this occasion handed over Raj Bhasha Nishtha Samman to representatives of various PSUs. He and MoS&nbsp;Shri Kulaste, also released special editions of house magazines published in Hindi by the PSUs of the Steel Ministry.Earlier, Shri Sanjay Singh, Secretary in the Steel Ministry said, this is the best time when the Ministry can ensure cent-percent implementation of Hindi in all our set-ups.CMDs and MDs or top officials of all the eight PSUs of the Steel Ministry, non-Government members of the Ministry’s Hindi Advisory Committee attended the Meeting. This was the second review meeting of the Committee this year. The first one was held in Madurai in March, 2022.

Taking a cue from the Prime Minister, all of us should unhesitantly speak and work in Hindi. Shri Ram Chandra Prasad Singh, Union Minister for Steel, said in Gangtok on Friday.

Ministry of Steel hosts the Meeting of Hindi Salahkar Samiti at Gangtok

New Delhi: South star Kichcha Sudeep has said he had no intention to spark a debate with his comments on Hindi as he praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for calling Indian languages the soul of 'Bharatiyata'. Last month, Sudeep was involved in a Twitter exchange with Bollywood star Ajay Devgn over his remarks that Hindi is ''no more our national language'' which later snowballed into a larger debate about Hindi imposition vs preserving India's linguistic diversity. On Friday, during his virtual address to BJP office-bearers, PM Modi said the party considers all Indian languages worthy of reverence, a statement that overwhelmed Sudeep. ''I didn't mean to start any riot or any kind of debate. It just so happened without an agenda. It was an opinion I voiced. It was an honour and a privilege to see the certain lines come out of the Prime Minister's mouth,'' Sudeep told NDTV in an interview. ''When he himself makes a statement... Everybody who looks upon their language with regard and respect, it's an overwhelming thing to see him speak this way,'' he added.The 48-year-old actor said PM Modi's statement was a ''warm welcome towards all languages''. ''I am not just representing only Kannada, I'm talking about... everybody's mother tongue has been respected today with those few statements from the Prime Minister and that is where I was coming from that day. We don't look at Narendra Modi as just a politician, we look at him as a leader as well,'' Sudeep said. In his virtual address, the prime minister said it is the BJP that has linked India's cultural and linguistic diversity with national pride. ''Giving priority to local languages in the National Education Policy manifests our commitment to all regional languages. The BJP considers Indian languages the soul of Bharatiyata and the link to a better future for the country,'' PM Modi said. ''I want to mention this especially because attempts have been made in the recent past to create new controversies on the basis of language. We have to constantly alert the people of the country about this,'' he added. In the interview, Sudeep said his remarks about Hindi, which led to a sharp reaction from Devgn on Twitter, were not directed towards any language or anybody particular. ''I come from a film fraternity and we don't feel nice only when South films are called pan-India. It's got nothing to do with Hindi per se. It is our country and we are trying to reach out to everybody as cinemas have opened to all languages and every viewer and every state wants to see a film as long as it is good,'' he added.Sudeep said when ''certain segments'' were called pan-India, it didn't go ''well with me''. ''It had nothing to do with ego or any kind of emotions. It's just the fact that pan-India, whether it is coming from south or from Hindi industry, as long as you're dubbing your films in other languages, it should be called pan-India,'' the actor said. Sudeep, who is popular for starring in South films like ''Sparsha'', ''Huchcha'', ''Nandhi'', ''Veera Madakari'', ''Eega'' and ''Pailwaan'', is also known for his performances in Hindi movies like ''Phoonk'', ''Rann'' and ''Dabangg 3''. He is currently awaiting the release of 3D mystery thriller ''Vikrant Rona''. Directed by Anup Bhandari, the movie will be released in six languages -- Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Hindi and English.—PTI

South star Kichcha Sudeep has said he had no intention to spark a debate with his comments on Hindi as he praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for calling Indian languages the soul of 'Bharatiyata'.

Didn't mean to start any riot, debate: Kichcha Sudeep on language row

Patna: A village panchayat in Bihar's Saran district has externed five youths for 11 months in connection with using abusive language against a particular caste. Upon finding the youth guilty, the Panchayat members paraded them in the village holding shoes on the head and also ordered them to stay "Tadipaar" (externed) for 11 months from the village. The incident took place on Tuesday in Mithepur Panchayat under Garkha police station which has the dominance of a particular caste and the Panchayat members also belong to it. The youths were accused of abusing the caste after they came live on faceboook a few days ago. On Tuesday, the offended villagers nabbed the five and convened a panchayat meeting. As per the order of the Panchayat, the youths were held guilty and paraded in the village. When contacted, the SHO of Garkha police station RS Rawat said: "We have sent police to the village to record the statements of the youths' families. We have also registered an FIR on the basis of a video going viral on the social media. The investigation is currently underway."—IANS

A village panchayat in Bihar's Saran district has externed five youths for 11 months in connection with using abusive language against a particular caste. 

5 youths externed from Bihar village

Hanoi: Adding yet another leaf to the defence ties between New Delhi and Hanoi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday handed over a USD 1 million to Vietnam's Air Force Officers Training School for the establishment of a language and IT laboratory. "Today, I am pleased to handover a gift of 1 million Dollars for establishment of a language and IT laboratory in the School. I am confident that the laboratory shall substantially contribute to raising language and IT skills for Vietnam Air Defence and Air Force personnel," tweeted Singh.He reached Air Force Officers Training School at Nha Trang in Vietnam today which imparts English and pre-flying training to Vietnamese pilots. "I am pleased to visit Air Force Officers Training School today. I am deeply impressed with achievements of the School and its valuable contribution to training pilots of Vietnam People's Air Defence and Air Force," said Singh. He also said that prior to leaving for training in India, these Vietnamese pilots are selected and trained at this school. Indian army personnel have also been deputed to the school since 2018. "I am glad to note that prior to leaving for training in India, these Vietnamese pilots are selected and trained at this School. A two-member Indian Army Force Training Team (IAFTT) has been deputed to School since 2018 to impart English and pre-flying training to these pilots, preparing them to better absorb training to be imparted in India," said the Defence Minister. Highlighting the growing cooperation between the two countries, he said, "I am also pleased to note our growing cooperation with the Air Force Officers Training School and Vietnam's Air Defence and Air Force. We have provided basic flying training to 10 Vietnamese pilots in our Air Force Academy in India. Earlier on Thursday, Singh handed over 12 high-speed guard boats for Vietnam Border Guard at Hong Ha Shipyard made under USD 100 million lines of credit by the Indian government. India and Vietnam on Wednesday signed a "Joint Vision Statement" for Defence Partnership towards the year 2030 to enhance the scope and scale of defence cooperation between the countries. This key vision statement was signed after the Defence Minister's meeting with his Vietnamese counterpart General Phan Van Giang.Wide-ranging discussions on effective and practical initiatives to further expand bilateral defence engagements and regional and global issues were also held between the two sides. The two Ministers also exchanged views on regional and global issues of shared interest. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was also signed on Mutual Logistics Support to help enhance engagements between the defence forces of the two countries. Rajnath Singh also met the Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc, during which he described Vietnam as a key partner in the Indo-Pacific vision. He appraised the Vietnamese president on initiatives to further strengthen the bilateral Defence relations between India and Vietnam.—ANI

Adding yet another leaf to the defence ties between New Delhi and Hanoi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday handed over a USD 1 million to Vietnam's Air Force Officers Training School for the establishment of a language and IT laboratory.

Rajnath hand overs USD 1 million to Vietnam for language, IT training

Chennai: The International Association of Tamil Research (IATR) on Saturday announced it will organise the 11th World Tamil Research Conference in Sharjah in July 2023. In a statement, the IATR said the meeting also called International Conference Seminar on Tamil Studies will focus on the challenges faced by the Tamil language in the internet age.The conference will conduct deliberations on music, drama, sculpture, linguistics, comparative Indian languages and literature studies, literature, psychology, journalism, and social media. The meeting will have participation of leading Tamil scholars, writers, social activists, artists, musicians, historians, psychologists, and Tamil media persons. Lincoln University of Business Management, Sharjah, is associating with the IATR for the conference. The statement said that academics and research scholars can send their abstracts in either Tamil or English before September 30.—IANS

The International Association of Tamil Research (IATR) on Saturday announced it will organise the 11th World Tamil Research Conference in Sharjah in July 2023. In a statement, the IATR said the meeting also called International Conference Seminar on Tamil Studies will focus on the challenges faced by the Tamil language in the internet age.

11th World Tamil Research Conference in Sharjah next yr

New York: In a significant initiative, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has adopted an India-sponsored resolution on multilingualism that mentions the Hindi language for the first time.The resolution passed on Friday encourages the UN to continue disseminating important communications and messages in official as well as in non-official languages, including in Hindi language."This year, for the first time, the resolution has a mention of Hindi language. ...The resolution also mentions Bangla and Urdu for the first time. We welcome these additions," India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador TS Tirumurti.Tirumurti said multilingualism is recognized as a core value of the UN and expressed gratitude to the Secretary-General for prioritizing multilingualism."India has been partnering with the UN Department of Global Communications (DGC) since 2018 by providing an extra-budgetary contribution to mainstream and consolidate news and multimedia content in the Hindi language," he said.As part of these efforts, 'Hindi @ UN' project was launched in 2018 with an objective to enhance the public outreach of the United Nations in the Hindi language, and to spread greater awareness about global issues among millions of Hindi-speaking populations around the world. "In this context, I would like to recall UNSC resolution 13(1) adopted In its first session on 1 Feb. 1946, which stated that the United Nations cannot achieve its purposes unless the people of the world are fully informed of its aims and activities," the Indian envoy said.He further stated it is imperative that multilingualism at the United Nations in a true sense is embraced and India will support the UN in achieving this objective. Multilingualism is an essential factor in harmonious communication among peoples and an enabler of multilateral diplomacy. It ensures effective participation of all in the Organization's work, as well as greater transparency and efficiencies and better outcomes."Multilingualism is recognized by the General Assembly as a core value of the Organization. As such, all United Nations Secretariat entities are expected to contribute actively and demonstrate their commitment to this joint endeavor. Multilingualism mandates also call for the mainstreaming of multilingualism throughout the Secretariat," according to UN.Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish are the six official languages of the United Nations; English and French being the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat.&nbsp;—ANI

 In a significant initiative, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has adopted an India-sponsored resolution on multilingualism that mentions the Hindi language for the first time.

UNGA Adopts Resolution On Multilingualism, Mentions Hindi Language For First Time

Lhasa: China has intensified appropriation of Ti bet's intangible cultural heritage on one hand while trying to Sinicize Tibetan language, culture, education and heritage.Tibet Rights Collective (TRC) reported that attempts to appropriate some aspects of Tibetan culture while destroying others are to be seen as China's attempts to present to the world its narrative while hiding the gross human rights abuses happening in Tibet.Chinese social media handles are replete with posts that glorify elements of Tibet's culture and heritage which have reportedly been "inscribed on the list of national intangible cultural heritage in China".The technique to make Tibetan incense, Junpa village's Cowhide Boat Dance and Pusum's carving art are being showcased as China's Intangible Cultural Heritage, showing how China is trying to appropriate those elements of Tibetan culture that it needs, while silently destroying Buddha statues, imposing Mandarin on Tibetan children and is aiming to cut Tibetans off their ancient traditions. "Junpa village is famous for cowhide boat dance, the unique dance was chosen for the list of National Intangible&nbsp;&nbsp;Cultural Heritage of China in 2008. Quxu County, Lhasa City, Tibet of China", reads one of the several such tweets from the social media handle @BarkhorLhasa.Tweets regarding Puduiba Xuan Dance, an ancient Tibetan art form for self-entertainment and Tibetan kite making could be seen in the profile, whose Twitter bio says, "Welcome to China's Tibet".A Twitter profile, @tibet_online which identifies itself as "A reliable platform to show Tibet" also tweets about the legend of Lhoba ancestors of Tibet, "one of the smallest among China's 56 ethnic groups in terms of the population". Such Twitter profiles, which are created to spread misinformation about Tibet are trying to portray that China is trying to preserve and celebrate Tibetan cultural heritage whereas, on the ground, China is trying to Sinicize Tibetan language, culture, education and heritage, reported TRC. Chinese state-affiliated news media outlets are also pushing out content related to the protection of intangible heritage; reports talk about the launch of region-wide surveys, digitalization of intangible cultural heritage resources, workshops, and formation of Tibet Thangka Association and cultural work conferences. This consciously overlooks the Chinese attempts to appropriate Tibetan culture and destroy Tibetan identity. With the coming of Xi Jinping, the repression in Tibet has become more intensive and China is putting efforts to do every bit to restrain Tibetans from exercising their rights.Chinese authorities have switched Tibetan language schools to Chinese. Chinese colonial schools are imparting propaganda lessons to children who are separated from their parents.The demolitions, which began in late October 2021, resulted in the destruction of three enormous Buddha statues, a row of 45 prayer wheels and a monastic school in the county between October and December 2021, reported TRC.&nbsp;—ANI

China has intensified appropriation of Ti bet's intangible cultural heritage on one hand while trying to Sinicize Tibetan language, culture, education and heritage.

China Promotes Tibet's Intangible Cultural Heritage Amid Intensified Sinicization Process

New Delhi: Meta, formerly known as Facebook, on Tuesday announced that it is adding four new languages to its fact-checking programme in India.The programme will now include Kashmiri, Bhojpuri, Odia and Nepali, in addition to the existing 11 Indian languages, the company said in a statement.In addition, it has also partnered with NewsMeter, a fact checker primarily focused on the southern states in the country.The partnership will help connect people to accurate and verified information and enhance Meta's fact-checking capabilities in regional Indian languages including Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, and Tamil, the company said.Globally, Meta works with more than 80 fact-checking partners that review and rate content in over 60 languages.&nbsp;All of its fact-checking partners have been certified through the independent, non-partisan International Fact-Checking Network.With the new partnership, Meta will have 11 fact-checking partners in India, making it the country with the most number of third party fact checking partners globally."We are committed to combating the spread of misinformation and have built the largest global fact-checking network," said Manish Chopra, Director, and Head of Partnerships, India at Meta, in the statement."The partnership with NewsMeter is an important step in enabling us to curb misinformation in regional Indian languages across Facebook and Instagram," he added.Each time a fact-checker rates a piece of content as false, altered or partly false, Meta reduces its distribution so that fewer people see it.It also notifies people who try to share the content, or who previously shared it that the information was rated by a fact-checker.&nbsp;Further, a warning label is also added to the content with links to the fact-checker's article to provide more information about the claim.To help tackle the issue of misinformation online, Meta has also partnered with the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) to fund a fact-checking news fellowship programme designed exclusively for Indian news organisations.—IANS

Meta, formerly known as Facebook, on Tuesday announced that it is adding four new languages to its fact-checking programme in India.

 Meta's fact-checking programme will now include more Indian languages (Ld)

The probe so far has revealed no transparency was maintained by the agency which took the exam, as CCTVs of the hall were turned off during the exam held in September last year, said Inspector Bhavesh Rathod of the Mehsana police's Special Operations Group (SOG), who is leading the probe.In March this year, US border authorities had arrested six youths from Gujarat during a failed attempt to get them unauthorised entry into the country from Canada."These six Indian nationals from Gujarat, in the 19-21 age group, were apprehended from a sinking boat in the Saint Regis river in Akwesasne, US, close to the Canadian border. Four are from Mehsana, and two are from Gandhinagar and Patan," said Rathod."When they were produced before a court in the US, they failed to answer in English the questions asked by the judge. The court had to take the help of a Hindi translator. The court was baffled as these students had scored 6.5 to 7 bands in IELTS, an English proficiency test," Rathod said.Later, citing a news report on the incident, the criminal fraud investigation unit of the US Consulate General in Mumbai sent a mail to Mehsana police to conduct an inquiry to find out how these four students from Mehsana received very high scores and which agency or agents were involved, Rathod informed.The IELTS is an international standardised test of English language proficiency for non-native English language speakers, with a good score being necessary for admission in good colleges in several countries."Even brilliant students need to work hard to get 5 or 6 bands in the IELTS. These four students, residents of different villages of Mehsana, managed to score between 6.5 and 7, and yet could not communicate in English," Rathod said.Primary probe has revealed the four students, identified as Dhruv Patel, Neel Patel, Urvish Patel and Savan Patel, appeared for the IELTS exam at a centre in south Gujarat's Navsari town on September 25, 2021, and went to Canada on student visa on March 19, nearly two weeks before they were caught at the US-Canada border. "The manager of the banquet hall in Navsari, which was hired for the exam, said the exam supervisors had turned off CCTV cameras before the exam. This proves there was no transparency and something was definitely suspicious. The agency which was authorised to conduct the exam is based in Ahmedabad," said Rathod.Owners of the agency, located in Sabarmati area of Ahmedabad, have been directed to appear before Mehsana SOG within 48 hours with related documents as part of the probe.—PTI

On the request of American authorities, police in Mehsana district in Gujarat have launched a probe to unearth an alleged racket in which ineligible students are getting help to acquire high International English Language Testing System (IELTS) score to obtain admission in colleges in Canada so that they can be then smuggled into the United States, an official said on Monday.

IELTS-scorer Guj youth fail to speak English in US court, probe on

New Delhi (The Hawk): Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science &amp; Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh today formally released "Vigyan Jattara", the Dogri language version of widely read, national monthly Science magazine published by the Ministry of Science &amp; Technology, Government of India, at Brigadier Rajinder Singh Auditorium in the University of Jammu. He also announced that the Kashmiri language version of the same magazine will be launched soon.<img src="https://static.pib.gov.in/WriteReadData/userfiles/image/image001HEF4.jpg">&nbsp;Speaking on the occasion, Dr Jitendra Singh said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly favours use of vernacular languages for promoting science communication and also to provide a level playing field to every aspiring youth to compete in science without facing any disadvantage on account of ignorance of English or Hindi languages. He pointed out that of late, there are many youth in different streams who have topped in the All India competitions after doing their graduation in their mother tongue and cited the example of one of the five toppers in IAS/Civil Service Exam few years ago who had done his entire education up to BA in Telugu medium.Vice Chancellor of University of Jammu, Prof Umesh Rai, Vice Chancellor of Central University, Jammu Prof Sanjeev Jain and Prof Lalit Mangotra, former HoD, Physics, University of Jammu and famour Dogri writer also spoke on the occasion and appreciated Dr Jitendra Singh’s efforts for overall development of Jammu as education hub of North India. They also lauded the initiative to promote science education in Dogri language, apart from other vernaculars.The Minister said, in a technology driven world of knowledge and progress we owe it to the youth of this country to provide them with appropriate curriculum, literature and options to study Science in the language of their choice and be able to compete with the students of English or Hindi medium.He said, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s strong conviction in this regard is borne out by the fact that after the historic decision of 5th August, 2019, Jammu and Kashmir became the only UT/State in the country to have five official languages i.e. English, Hindi, Urdu, Dogri and Kashmiri.<img src="https://static.pib.gov.in/WriteReadData/userfiles/image/image002G7Z6.jpg">&nbsp;While it is an established fact, said Dr Jitendra Singh, that language has no correlation with excellence in Science and countries like Russia, Japan and China have risen to be the first line leaders in scientific progress without the knowledge of English language, the contradiction in India is that for nearly two centuries we followed Lord Macaulay's policy of education as a result of which all the important textbooks and literature in science is available and read mostly in English language. In this regard, he solicited the help of science-knowing Dogri scholars to help translate the English language science textbooks into Dogri language without compromising the essence and meaning of expression.Dr Jitendra Singh said, in the next 25 years of Amrit Kaal when India rises to the world pedestal, this will be primarily on the strength of our scientific prowess and capacity of our StartUps who will be essentially technology driven. It is therefore equally important to focus on the scientific capacity- building of StartUps and youth in the age group of 30s who have another 25 active years to contribute till the year 2047 and whose scientific potential can be utilised to the maximum extent, regardless of which language they speak or read, he said.Dr Jitendra Singh said, PM Modi's special thrust on promotion of Science and Technology is fully visible in revolutionary decisions like unlocking of Space Sector for private players, joint ventures in Atomic Energy initiatives and ably amplified in 75,000 Startups with 100 Unicorns in a very short span of time.The Minister said, promoting Science communication and education in Indian languages is one of the key focuses of the present government and the efforts are on to make available science textbooks in vernacular languages to the students, He said, a group of resource persons has been tasked in this mission.Dr Jitendra Singh thanked the Post Graduate Department of Dogri language in Central University of Kashmir and sought continuous support for effective translation of the science magazine in Dogri language.The Minister said, when the most advanced countries like Russia, Japan, Germany and China can have the best of science literature and projects in their mother tongues, India has also taken the lead to communicate modern science and technology in all the Indian languages. He said, our learning becomes deeper when we study in our mother tongue.It may be recalled that in December, 2021, Dr Jitendra Singh released Science monthly magazine in Hindi, Urdu and English at CSIR, New Delhi.

Dr Jitendra Singh today formally released "Vigyan Jattara", the Dogri language version of widely read, national monthly Science magazine published by the Ministry of Science & Technology, Government of India, at Brigadier Rajinder Singh Auditorium in the University of Jammu

Dr Jitendra releases Dogri version of national monthly Science magazine "Vigyan Jattara” in Jammu University

Kolkata: As protests on the issue of corruption are on the rise in West Bengal and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee being targeted in many cases, top leaders of Trinamool Congress have started losing control over the use of words against the protesters in public forums.&nbsp;
The use of abuses is no more restricted to those elements habitual of such verbal invectives, the highly- educated and genteel leaders have also started using threatening language.
Take for example Trinamool Congress’s articulate and knowledgeable Lok Sabha member from Dum Dum constituency, Saugata Roy, who was a retired professor of physics from a reputed college in Kolkata before his retirement a few years back.
Till the other day, Roy, who had been extremely critical of the use of unparliamentary words or abuses by some of his own party colleagues, on Sunday, threatened the opposition and the protesters. “Trinamool Congress has a clear mandate till 2026 and we will be in power till that time. If the opposition feels that they can say or do anything in the name of protest, we will spill their skins and make shoes out of it. Be ready for that day,” said Roy from a public rally in the Kamarhati area under his constituency on Sunday morning.
Similarly, Trinamool Congress’s Lok Sabha member, Kalyan Banerjee, also a senior counsel of the Calcutta High Court, resorted to hurling of similar intimidating abuses from a public rally at Chinsurah in Hooghly district late Saturday evening. “If Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee are maligned, the opposition parties will be beaten up. When she came to power in West Bengal in 2011, Mamata Banerjee said that she wanted a change and not revenge. But now I think that observation was wrong. But the manner in which CPI-M, Congress and BJP are resorting to maligning politics, revenge is the only remedy now,” Banerjee said.
On Sunday morning, Trinamool Congress maverick and non-conformist legislator from Kamarhati constituency, Madan Mitra advised his followers to practice stick combats and set up special centers for training on this count. “I, as the MLA of Kamarhati, promise to supply those sticks,” Mitra said.
CPI-M central committee member and the former leader of Left Parties in West Bengal Assembly, Sujan Chakraborty said that such words were unfortunate from an educated leader from Saugata Roy. “Actually, Trinamool Congress leadership are truly scared now since the protests are being organised by not just the opposition parties but also by the self- motivated public in general,” he said.
BJP’s national vice-president and the party MP, Dilip Ghosh said that such intimidating comments from the ruling party leaders are irritating the common people more and they are getting organised against such corruption and hooliganism. “The people will give them a fitting reply at the right time,” he said.
—IANS

As protests on the issue of corruption are on the rise in West Bengal and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee being targeted in many cases, top leaders of Trinamool Congress have started losing control over the use of words against the protesters in public forums. 

 As protests over corruption grow in Bengal, more Trinamool leaders use threatening language

Mumbai: For actress Sunny Leone, it was an uphill task to work in the Vishnu Manchu-starrer film 'Ginna'. In addition to the language being unfamiliar to her, she essays a deaf and mute woman in the film. The actress put in a lot of hard work to lend authenticity to her part in the film and not make it look like a caricaturist depiction of disabilities on screen.
The empathic portrayal of the character was of prime importance for Sunny. She trained in sign languages for a few weeks with an acting coach, before the film's shoot began.
Revealing her process, Sunny said, "My coach and I sat and storyboarded the character's graph. Along with the director and writer, we tried to understand the backstory. Then the real challenge of bringing a true-to-reality portrayal on screen. My coach helped me by providing several reading materials and videos for my understanding."
It not only helped her crack the psyche of the character better but also gave her a peek into the minds of people who don't have the luxury of voice and words."
She further mentioned, "Rehearsal was key. So before every important scene, I rehearsed for an hour. Expressing through eyes was a key facet of nailing the character. I also learnt sign language which was important to fleshing out the character further. I would also like to thank Venkat Kona without which the same would not be possible".
On the work front, the actress just completed the shoot of 'Splitsvilla' in Goa last week.&nbsp;
—IANS

For actress Sunny Leone, it was an uphill task to work in the Vishnu Manchu-starrer film 'Ginna'. In addition to the language being unfamiliar to her, she essays a deaf and mute woman in the film. The actress put in a lot of hard work to lend authenticity to her part in the film and not make it look like a caricaturist depiction of disabilities on screen.

 Sunny Leone learnt sign language for Vishnu Manchu-starrer 'Ginna'

Lucknow (The Hawk): The Samajwadi Party (SP) social media account has been reported for inciting animosity between various racial and ethnic groupings.
Manish Pandey, a journalist, filed the FIR.
While tweeting the journalist's post, which had nothing to do with the SP, the social media account allegedly used offensive language and even wrote threatening threats for him.
According to Pandey's FIR, the SP Media Cell tweeted an offensive, divisive, and politically motivated message about the Gorakhnath Mutt from its Twitter account. On November 20, Pandey responded by pleading with them to refrain from saying anything offensive about the Gorakhnath Mutt because it is a place of worship for millions of Hindus.
"I advised them in my letter to refrain from politicising the Gorakhnath Mutt and confine their activities to 5 Kalidas Marg, the home of the CM and the headquarters of the BJP. I soon began receiving derogatory and improper comments, the journalist claimed in the FIR.
Pandey claimed that while he originally disregarded the remarks, on Tuesday they became offensive. "UP ke do anmol ratan, inki muskurahat dekh kar kaiyon ke kaleje me dhuan nikalne lagta hai," I tweeted (There are two stars of UP whose smile may cause heartburn to many).
He claimed in the FIR that the SP Media Cell responded by making derogatory posts about me, and that their remarks embarrassed him.
According to Pandey, individuals responsible for his harsh tweets should be held accountable.
"When things were calm in UP, the SP's Twitter account was stoking racial tension and hatred among the populace. To advance their political careers, they post similar messages. Therefore, police action is required in response to their behaviour, as doing so will stop them from criticising Guru Gorakhnath Mutt and degrading social harmony, he stated.
According to DCP Central Zone Aparna Rajat Kaushik, a case was filed under the 66 IT Act, 153A (promoting animosity between groups based on religion), 295A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to incite religious feelings), and 505 (publishing or disseminating statements, rumours, or reports with the intent to incite).
(Inputs from Agencies)

The Samajwadi Party (SP) social media account has been reported for inciting animosity between various racial and ethnic groupings. Manish Pandey, a journalist, filed the FIR.

FIR against the social media handle of the Samajwadi Party

California: According to a recent study by UCLA psychologists, realism and context are important when using virtual reality to teach language.
The research is published in the journal npj Science of Learning.
"The context in which we learn things can help us remember them better," said Jesse Rissman, the paper's corresponding author and a UCLA associate professor of psychology. "We wanted to know if learning foreign languages in virtual reality environments could improve recall, especially when there was the potential for two sets of words to interfere with each other."
Researchers asked 48 English-speaking participants to try to learn 80 words in two phonetically similar African languages, Swahili and Chinyanja, as they navigated virtual reality settings.
Wearing VR headsets, participants explored one of two environments -- a fantasy fairyland or a science fiction landscape -- where they could click to learn the Swahili or Chinyanja names for the objects they encountered. Some participants learned both languages in the same VR environment; others learned one language in each environment.
Participants navigated through the virtual worlds four times over the course of two days, saying the translations aloud each time. One week later, the researchers followed up with a pop quiz to see how well the participants remembered what they had learned.
The results were striking: Subjects who had learned each language in its own unique context mixed up fewer words and were able to recall 92 per cent of the words they had learned. In contrast, participants who had learned both sets of words in the same VR context were more likely to confuse terms between the two languages and retained only 76% of the words.
The study is particularly timely because so many K-12 schools, colleges and universities moved to develop online learning platforms during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Apps like Zoom provide a rather bland context for learning," Rissman said. "As VR technology becomes more ubiquitous and affordable, remote learners could be instantly teleported into unique and richly featured contexts for each class."
The experiment was designed by Rissman and Joey Ka-Yee Essoe, the study's first author who was a UCLA doctoral student at the time.
Rissman said a key predictor of the subjects' ability to retain what they had learned was how immersed in the VR world they felt. The less a participant felt like a subject in a psychology experiment -- and the more "at one" they felt with their avatar -- the more the virtual contexts were able to positively affect their learning.
"The more a person's brain was able to reconstruct the unique activity pattern associated with the learning context, the better able they were to recall the foreign words they had learned there," Rissman said.
Psychologists have long understood that people tend to recall things more readily if they can remember something about the surrounding context in which they learned it -- the so-called "context crutch" phenomenon. But when information is tied to contextual cues, people can have trouble recalling it later in the absence of those cues.
For example, students might learn Spanish in the same kind of classroom where they learn other subjects. When that happens, their Spanish vocabulary can be tied to the same contextual cues that are tied to other material they've been taught, like the Pythagorean theorem or a Shakespeare play. Not only does that similar context make it easier to mix up or forget what they have learned, but it also can make it harder to remember any of the information outside of a classroom setting.
"A key takeaway is that if you learn the same thing in same environment, you'll learn it really fast," said Essoe, who is now a postdoctoral scholar at Johns Hopkins University. "But even though you learn fast, you might have trouble with recall. What we were able to harness in this research takes advantage of both learning fast and improving recall in new environment."
To understand the brain mechanisms that support context-dependent learning, the researchers recruited a separate group of participants and scanned their brains with functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI. As the subjects attempted to recall foreign words while in the scanner, their brain activity indicated that they were thinking about the context in which they had learned each word.
That finding suggests that virtual reality can enhance learning if it is convincingly produced and if different languages or scholastic subjects are taught in highly distinctive environments.
Rissman said although the study only assessed how people learned a foreign language, the results indicate that VR could be useful for teaching other subjects as well. Similar approaches could also be used for mental and behavioral health therapies and to help patients adhere to doctors' instructions after medical visits: Patients might be able to remember such guidance better if they're in their own homes while chatting online with their doctors, for example. —ANI

According to a recent study by UCLA psychologists, realism and context are important when using virtual reality to teach language.

Study Finds Virtual Reality Used To Teach Language, Context

New Delhi (The Hawk): The higher education system will undergo a nationwide transformation, particularly in undergraduate programmes where language will no longer be an obstacle. These programmes include BA, B.Com, and B.Sc.
Students will be able to receive their diplomas in their native tongue.
The course books will soon be accessible in a variety of languages, including Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Tamil, and Telugu.
In response to a request from the Union Ministry of Education, the University Grants Commission (UGC) is working with publishers to translate textbooks into a number of Indian languages.
Some of the prominent publications taking part in the process include Pearson India, Narosa Publishers, Viva Books, S. Chand Publishers, Vikas Publishing, New Age Publishers, Mahavir Publications, Universities Press, and Taxmann Publications.
The high-level meeting was also attended by representatives from Elsevier, Orient Blackswan, and Oxford University Press.
The UGC recently discussed the publication of undergraduate English textbooks in Indian languages with representatives of Wiley India, Springer Nature, Taylor &amp; Francis, Cambridge University Press India, Cengage India, and McGraw Hill, India.
The most popular textbooks for UG programmes in higher education institutions across the nation are being translated into the 12 Indian languages by UGC as part of NEP 2020.
According to UGC Chairman Professor M. Jagadesh Kumar, the Commission would serve as a central organisation to assist publishers in finding textbooks, translation resources, and editing specialists so that the books may be made accessible in the digital format.
He continued by saying that the Commission will move forward in two ways, identifying and translating popular textbooks for the programmes while also encouraging Indian authors to develop textbooks for non-technical areas in Indian languages.
The Commission hopes to get multiple books translated within six to twelve months, for which it has formed an apex committee to build a road map and work towards the goal, according to Kumar, who was all praise for the publishers who participated in the mission.
The translation of current textbooks will be the main focus, according to Kumar, and it will eventually be expanded to postgraduate programmes.
(Inputs from Agencies)

The higher education system will undergo a nationwide transformation, particularly in undergraduate programmes where language will no longer be an obstacle. These programmes include BA, B.Com, and B.Sc.

The Hawk

Tag : Language

Hindi Is Not India's National Language, Will Never Let It Happen: Siddaramaiah

Sunil Aswal

Tag : Language

Hindi Is Not India's National Language, Will Never Let It Happen: Siddaramaiah

Sunil Aswal

More about Language