Crucial to propagate, conserve Hindi in its pure form: Swaraj
What's the story
It's crucial to protect, propagate, and conserve Hindi in its pure form as language and culture are interconnected, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said at the 11th World Hindi Conference which began in Mauritius's capital Port Louis yesterday by paying tribute to Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
The three-day conference is aimed at expanding the reach of the Hindi language at a global level.
Here's more.
Hindi language
Vajpayee established Hindi language at international level, says Swaraj
In her opening statement, Swaraj said with this convention, Hindi representatives from across the globe are paying tributes to Vajpayee, who was an exponent of Hindi and established the language at the international level by addressing the United Nations for the first time in Hindi.
Vajpayee died in New Delhi on Thursday at the age of 93 after a prolonged illness.
Protecting language
India has taken responsibility to protect Hindi in other countries
Emphasizing on the protection of India's culture and Hindi, Swaraj said India has taken the responsibility to protect the language in other countries.
She said the BJP-led government is making efforts to make Hindi one of the official languages of the UN.
A Hindi weekly news bulletin from the platform of UN has started broadcast as part of a pilot project, she said.
Language
A UN Twitter account in Hindi
"The Hindi weekly news bulletin could be converted into a daily bulletin. For that, the world body will oversee the response of listeners and rate accordingly for two years. If the response will be good, then it will be converted into a daily news bulletin," Swaraj said.
Swaraj said a UN Twitter account in Hindi has also been started.
Concerns
Several countries raised concerns regarding protection of Hindi language: Swaraj
"India has made it clear that it is ready to bear all expenses to make Hindi one of the official languages of the United Nations, but its rules for acquiring such a status prevents the country from doing so," Swaraj said.
The External Affairs Minister said that several countries have raised concerns regarding the protection and promotion of Hindi language.
Information
World Hindi Conference is organized every three years
The World Hindi Conference is organized every three years. This year the symbol of the world Hindi conference is "a peacock and a dodo". Dodo symbolizes the gradual obsolescence of Hindi and the Indian peacock will come to save the dodo.