A letter to the haters of Hindi from South India (Author: Shyam Rudra Pathak)
49 views
Skip to first unread message
Suyash Suprabh (सुयश सुप्रभ)
Sep 15, 2015, 9:20:38 AM9/15/15
to hindian...@googlegroups.com
Dear haters of Hindi from South India,
Living in a Hindi speaking region, I do come across people, who want Hindi to be used as a National Language of India; and they will further interpret National Language as the language to be used in the entire country. I am saddened by their stand. I confront them arguing with them that Hindi is as much difficult for people living in certain parts of India, like Tamil Nadu and many parts of South India, as English is for them. However being a keen observer in this matter, for the last thirty five years or nearly so, a heartening thing for me is to see that such people are in absolute minority now, because most of the opponents of compulsory status of English in India now, support the idea of Indian Languages replacing English, rather than Hindi alone replacing English.
However I am equally saddened to see the stand of most of the Hindi haters from South India. If you hate Hindi primarily to oppose the imposition of Hindi on you, I am glad; because I am in favour of people being allowed to use their public language for receiving education and for getting opportunities for development like higher education and jobs. However I am disappointed to see that for most of you, your hatred for Hindi is not directed at creating developmental opportunities in the public language, but it is merely aimed at the continuance of English as the only formal language of India. Forget not, my brothers and sisters from South India!, that English is not at all the language of the common man in your provinces. Forget not that English is a language of the elites in India. Forget not that English is a language of deprivation for the common masses in India. Forget not that common people in India, from North, from South, from East and from West are deprived and are not able to utilize their inborn talents for their progress for want of their knowledge of English. If you disagree with me, please see the census figures, showing the number of people knowing English in your South Indian provinces.
Rather than merely pointing out your faults, I want to make the following concrete suggestions to you to turn your hatred for Hindi as effective and beneficial for you:
(i) Are you aware of the fact that Hindi is authorized for use in the High Courts of Rajasthan, UP, MP and Bihar ever since 1950, 1970, 1971 and 1972 respectively? Why is it so that not even in a single state any language other than Hindi is authorized for use in any of the High Courts in India ? Have the people from Hindi region ever opposed it? Have you ever fought against it? Have you ever asked the leaders sitting in the capital of the country, "Are the non-Hindi speaking states, colonies of the Hindi speaking people? If not so then why is Hindi authorized for use in four High Courts in India and any non-Hindi language is not authorized for use in any of the numerous High Courts, meant for the people residing in the various non-Hindi speaking regions of the country?" Please agitate against this discriminatory treatment towards you. Is it not a violation of your fundamental right to "Equality before Law" under Article 14 of the Indian Constitution? Is it not a further violation of your fundamental right to "Prohibition of discrimination on the ground of place of birth" under Article 15 of the Indian Constitution? This deprives your people of the easy availability of justice and of the opportunity to become judge and to practice as a lawyer through local languages in your High Courts. Apart from Tamil Nadu, none of the south Indian states have ever asked for it. And even in the case of Tamil Nadu, have the concerned MPs ever tried to stall the proceedings of the Parliament on this issue or have they ever walked out of the Parliament on this issue, which are common phenomena in the Parliament now a days on every other issue.
(ii) UPSC provides question papers in Hindi in the prestigious Civil Services Examination. The question papers in the IIT (Mains) and the IIT (Advanced) are provided in Hindi as well. The question papers in the all India premedical and predental test are provided in Hindi as well. The question papers in the entrance test for the AIIMS are provided in Hindi as well. Have you ever asked for equal opportunities in these all India competitive examinations for the students studying in your native languages? Have the people from Hindi belt ever opposed it?
If the European Union, having a population of nearly 50 crores, can work in 24 languages, giving equal status to all the languages, why can't India, having a population of 125 crores, conduct all India Examinations in all those (less than 22) languages in which the concerned syllabus is taught in any state of the country.
(iii) The government of Madhya Pradesh started a University where all subjects, including Mathematics, Science, Engineering, Medical, Management etc. are taught in Hindi. Can each of your South Indian state governments start one University each, where the students, studying in the concerned Indian Language can pursue further studies in any subject of their interest?
Needless to say that I shall agitate vigorously together with you on any of the above grounds, if you start any agitation on one or more of these issues.
At the end of this letter, written with full honesty and sincerity, I want to tell you that no matter how successful we are in taking self-rule, independence and democracy to the people from the point of view of the linguistic equality, we do need a link language in this country. Have you ever thought how Adi Shankaracharya from Kerala was able to travel and talk to the people in the entire country to spread his message of Advait Vedanta ? Did he use English or any other foreign language for that purpose? No, he used Sanskrit. Have you ever thought how saints and pilgrims from any part of India could move in the pilgrimages of the entire country in the ancient, medieval and modern India? Obviously India has had some form of the link language all the time. And no government order needs to be passed in this regard.
Author: Shyam Rudra Pathak
Living in a Hindi speaking region, I do come across people, who want Hindi to be used as a National Language of India; and they will further interpret National Language as the language to be used in the entire country. I am saddened by their stand. I confront them arguing with them that Hindi is as much difficult for people living in certain parts of India, like Tamil Nadu and many parts of South India, as English is for them. However being a keen observer in this matter, for the last thirty five years or nearly so, a heartening thing for me is to see that such people are in absolute minority now, because most of the opponents of compulsory status of English in India now, support the idea of Indian Languages replacing English, rather than Hindi alone replacing English.
However I am equally saddened to see the stand of most of the Hindi haters from South India. If you hate Hindi primarily to oppose the imposition of Hindi on you, I am glad; because I am in favour of people being allowed to use their public language for receiving education and for getting opportunities for development like higher education and jobs. However I am disappointed to see that for most of you, your hatred for Hindi is not directed at creating developmental opportunities in the public language, but it is merely aimed at the continuance of English as the only formal language of India. Forget not, my brothers and sisters from South India!, that English is not at all the language of the common man in your provinces. Forget not that English is a language of the elites in India. Forget not that English is a language of deprivation for the common masses in India. Forget not that common people in India, from North, from South, from East and from West are deprived and are not able to utilize their inborn talents for their progress for want of their knowledge of English. If you disagree with me, please see the census figures, showing the number of people knowing English in your South Indian provinces.
Rather than merely pointing out your faults, I want to make the following concrete suggestions to you to turn your hatred for Hindi as effective and beneficial for you:
(i) Are you aware of the fact that Hindi is authorized for use in the High Courts of Rajasthan, UP, MP and Bihar ever since 1950, 1970, 1971 and 1972 respectively? Why is it so that not even in a single state any language other than Hindi is authorized for use in any of the High Courts in India ? Have the people from Hindi region ever opposed it? Have you ever fought against it? Have you ever asked the leaders sitting in the capital of the country, "Are the non-Hindi speaking states, colonies of the Hindi speaking people? If not so then why is Hindi authorized for use in four High Courts in India and any non-Hindi language is not authorized for use in any of the numerous High Courts, meant for the people residing in the various non-Hindi speaking regions of the country?" Please agitate against this discriminatory treatment towards you. Is it not a violation of your fundamental right to "Equality before Law" under Article 14 of the Indian Constitution? Is it not a further violation of your fundamental right to "Prohibition of discrimination on the ground of place of birth" under Article 15 of the Indian Constitution? This deprives your people of the easy availability of justice and of the opportunity to become judge and to practice as a lawyer through local languages in your High Courts. Apart from Tamil Nadu, none of the south Indian states have ever asked for it. And even in the case of Tamil Nadu, have the concerned MPs ever tried to stall the proceedings of the Parliament on this issue or have they ever walked out of the Parliament on this issue, which are common phenomena in the Parliament now a days on every other issue.
(ii) UPSC provides question papers in Hindi in the prestigious Civil Services Examination. The question papers in the IIT (Mains) and the IIT (Advanced) are provided in Hindi as well. The question papers in the all India premedical and predental test are provided in Hindi as well. The question papers in the entrance test for the AIIMS are provided in Hindi as well. Have you ever asked for equal opportunities in these all India competitive examinations for the students studying in your native languages? Have the people from Hindi belt ever opposed it?
If the European Union, having a population of nearly 50 crores, can work in 24 languages, giving equal status to all the languages, why can't India, having a population of 125 crores, conduct all India Examinations in all those (less than 22) languages in which the concerned syllabus is taught in any state of the country.
(iii) The government of Madhya Pradesh started a University where all subjects, including Mathematics, Science, Engineering, Medical, Management etc. are taught in Hindi. Can each of your South Indian state governments start one University each, where the students, studying in the concerned Indian Language can pursue further studies in any subject of their interest?
Needless to say that I shall agitate vigorously together with you on any of the above grounds, if you start any agitation on one or more of these issues.
At the end of this letter, written with full honesty and sincerity, I want to tell you that no matter how successful we are in taking self-rule, independence and democracy to the people from the point of view of the linguistic equality, we do need a link language in this country. Have you ever thought how Adi Shankaracharya from Kerala was able to travel and talk to the people in the entire country to spread his message of Advait Vedanta ? Did he use English or any other foreign language for that purpose? No, he used Sanskrit. Have you ever thought how saints and pilgrims from any part of India could move in the pilgrimages of the entire country in the ancient, medieval and modern India? Obviously India has had some form of the link language all the time. And no government order needs to be passed in this regard.
Author: Shyam Rudra Pathak
इस पत्र को अनुवादक संघ के ब्लॉग पर साझा किया गया है।
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages