No political patronage to state language: Punjabi Jagriti Manch

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, February 19

The Punjab Jagriti Manch, an organisation that has been crusading for the Punjabi language, today blamed the Shiromani Akali Dal for its failure get the language the due respect in the state.

Before organising a procession in the city on February 21 on the occasion of International Mother Language Day, in collaboration with Sarbat Da Bhala Trust, Punjab Jagriti Manch general secretary Satnam Manak said the Punjabi language was yet to get the place it deserves in the state and that among other political parties, the Congress and the SAD were also responsible for it. The state was formed on November 1, 1966, on the basis of Punjabi language, however, the language has not been implemented in legal, administrative and educational sectors, he said.

In a joint press conference in which SP Singh Oberoi of Sarbat Da Bhala Trust also addressed the media, Manak said, “Despite the presence of law, private schools are still restricting students to speak Punjabi in school. Students are being fined for speaking Punjabi during school hours. This is the kind of ‘respect’ the language is getting in Punjab,” he rued.

Speaking about the procession on February 21, he said nearly 60 students from government and private schools and faculty members and 45 non-government and religious organisations would be participating in the event. The procession will start from Lyallpur Khalsa School and will culminate at Desh Bhagat Yadgar Hall.