TIRUCHY: The Tiruchy corporation has been trying to popularise the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs’ (MoHUA) recently-announced theme song competition for its ‘Reduce, Reuse, Recycle’ (RRR) initiative to improve the cleanliness of cities. But residents are not enthused, as the MoHUA has mentioned that entries in regional language be accompanied by a Hindi translation.
The website (https://innovateindia.mygov.in/rrr-theme-song-contest/) says,” The composition should primarily be in Hindi. However, you may even express yourself in English or any regional language, but it should be accompanied by a Hindi translation/dubbed version.”
Suresh Kumar, a college student, said, “It is a good initiative, but I don’t understand why we have to submit a version in Hindi. It is also difficult to translate a theme song to Hindi. If the jury members cannot assess a work submitted in regional language, they should seek the help of translators.”
The three best entries would be given a cash prize of Rs 51,000 each and the winning entry will be used as the theme song. Several residents are of the opinion that the MoHUA is coming up with initiatives without consulting all stakeholders.
“This is a kind of Hindi imposition on non-Hindi speakers. We want the MoHUA to consult all stakeholders before coming up with such competitions. In my view, local bodies are trying to participate in these competitions to ensure sufficient points for the cleanliness survey,” said R Krishnaswamy, a resident.
Since only MoHUA has the right to amend or cancel the competition, senior officials of the local body said they would raise the matter with the ministry. Entries for this competition can be made till June 18.