Learning in mother tongue helps build a vibrant society: President

BHUBANESWAR: Learning in mother tongue will help develop creative thinking and analytical skills among children of all age groups and provide equal opportunities to students in both urban and rural areas, said the President of India Droupadi Murmu.

Releasing 20 engineering books of All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) in Odia language, a glossary of 50,000 technical terms in Odia language and e-Kumbh (Knowledge Unleashed in Multiple Bharatiya Languages) portal of Ministry of Education in Bhubaneswar on Friday, she said introduction of learning in regional and local languages would go a long way towards building a well-educated, aware and vibrant society.

Lauding the ministry and AICTE for the three projects, which are in alignment with the National Education Policy (NEP)-2020, she said the policy gives equal importance to all Indian languages and the three projects will open the doors for technical education for all.

It has been observed that many students face difficulty in understanding technical education in English. That is why under the National Education Policy-2020, the government has taken steps to provide technical education in the regional languages.

"Research has shown that intellectual development of children learning in their mother tongue is much more compared to those learning in other languages. In fact, a student entering the school for the first time feels much more comfortable if interacted with in his/her mother tongue. As a result, the process of schooling becomes easier for the child," she said.

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Stating that culture and mother tongue are inter-connected, the President said that while learning in mother tongue, a child naturally becomes aware about his or her culture and heritage.

Education is a tool for empowerment, the President said and added that as a society, we have to ensure that each and every child in our country has access to education at every level.

"We have to do our best to make education available to all without any discrimination. Language should be an enabling factor not a hindrance for educating the students," said Murmu.

Speaking about Odia as an ancient language, she said it has a rich and distinct literary tradition and vocabulary. It has also received the classical language distinction. Almost all other Indian languages have more or less the same potential.

"The NEP gives equal importance to all Indian languages and this has ushered in a new era in the field of Indian languages," the President said and called for popularisation of Indian Vedas and Upanishads, which are a storehouse of knowledge, across the world.

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"Learn as many languages as you can but pay importance to your mother tongue,” she suggested to everyone.

Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik welcomed the ministry and AICTE initiative in translating engineering books in Odia and said the state government is also taking steps for promotion of Odia language and literature.

"Recently, Odia language has been added as a medium of examination for Odisha Civil Services to enable students to appear the exam in their mother tongue. Besides, my government has instituted special scholarships for students at both school and college levels for outstanding performance in Odia language. This will go a long way in popularising the language," Naveen said.

Prior to the launch, Union Minister for Education Dharmendra Pradhan said the NEP is aimed at meeting the manpower needs of the 21st century. Stating that NEP mandates learning in Indian languages, he said that there has always been an argument that to develop, learning in English is a must.

"However, economically developed countries like China, Germany, and Japan are never dependent on English. Instead, they give utmost importance to their local languages," the Union Minister said.

Citing the example of monuments of national importance like Konark Sun Temple, Lingaraj temple, Pradhan said the creators of these temples were not from IITs or NITs and did not know English.

"This goes on to prove that to learn and grow, knowing your mother tongue is important," he said.

Explaining the three projects of his ministry, Pradhan said AICTE has already translated engineering books in 10 languages including Odia and work on Malyalam and Urdu is underway. "All these books will be available on the e-Kumbh portal," he said.