New Delhi: CLEAR takes the struggle of Language Rights, to change India’s Language Policy

Bellevision Media Network

New Delhi, 27 Feb 2016: Campaign for Language Equality and Rights (CLEAR) headed by Senthil Nathan, with a view to change India’s Language Policy held a gathering of representatives of Indian languages here on International Mother Language Day – February 21.

 

The representatives of 40 Indian languages addressed a media conference and released the ‘Delhi Demands for Language Rights’ here on Sunday February 21, and also held a candle-light vigil at Jantar Mantar here on same day at 5.00pm, to initiate the campaign to change India’s Language Policy.

 

 

The major demands are – to declare all languages included in the VIII Schedule of Indian Constitution (including Konkani), as Official Languages of union government, to include all languages recommended by the Mahapatra Committee in the VIII Schedule of the Constitution, urging both the union and state governments to protect and preserve tribal and lesser languages threatened with extinction, to fight against the imposition of one language over the others, undertaken by the union government, especially Hindi, to allow each language the right to choose their own script/scripts for literature in their language.

 

The Delhi Demands were endorsed by Anand G – Karnataka (Kannada), Deepak Pawar – Maharashtra (Marathi), Ganesh Chetan – Karnataka (Kannada), Garga Chatterjee – West Bengal (Bengali), Joga Singh Virk ( Punjab (Punjabi), Komakkambedu Himakiran Anugula - Tamil Nadu (Tamil, Telugu), Mani M Manivannan – Tamil Nadu (Tamil), P Pavithran – Kerala (Malayalam), Priyank K S – Karnataka (Kannada), Ravishankar Ayyakkannu – Tamil Nadu (Tamil), Saket Shreebushan Sahu – Odisha (Kosali), S Senthilnathan (Aazhi Senthilnathan – Tamil Nadu (Tamil), Thamizneriyan – Tamil Nadu (Tamil), Vasant Shetty – Karnataka (Kannada), Eric Ozario – Karnataka (Konkani), Vivek V – Karnataka (Kannada), Umakanthan P – Karnataka (Kannada, Tamil). 

 

Meanwhile, given the atmosphere of intolerance and imposition that one lives in India today and especially in view of the fight for equal rights for all sripts of Konkani that activists are fighting against the Kendra Sahitya Academi, in the courts of law, this campaign for Language Rights has a great significance for the future of Konkani.