MANGALURU: Union MoS for Railways and Jal Shakthi V Somanna has advised Railway officials working in Karnataka to try to learn Kannada for administrative convenience. Chairing a meeting with Railway officials and public representatives in Mangaluru, Somanna said when he was young, he had protested against the imposition of Hindi and was even jailed. “But now I have realised the importance of Hindi. Daily, I wake up at 6 am and learn to write alphabets in Hindi,” he said.
In another six months, Somanna said he would learn to write letters in Hindi and make a speech in the Parliament. He said learning Kannada is not difficult, so he asked the MLAs to provide material to Railway officials to learn the language. MP Brijesh Chowta highlighted the need for Railway officials working in Karnataka to learn Kannada to do away with the perception that outsiders are grabbing jobs. “There are many officers who know Kannada. Either they should be posted or the ones working here should learn Kannada,” he said.