Punjabi lovers for language promotion

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, February 21

Punjabi language lovers in the city showed respect for their mother-tongue on the occasion of International Mother Language Day. They opined that there was a need to promote the language.

Many educational institutes observed the day on their campuses. A conference to promote moral education and Punjabi was held at Baba Aya Singh Riarki College, Tughalwala, near Batala. The conference was held under the chairmanship of Ajaib Singh Chattha, chairman of World Punjabi Development Conference. Experts from different fields participated in the event and emphasised on the importance of regional languages in the cultural development of the country.

They mentioned that all developed countries of Europe had been using regional languages in their education system, so every citizen should contribute to the development of his/her mother-tongue and other local languages as well.

Speaking at an event at Guru Nanak Dev University (GNDU), Dr Bhupinder Singh Khehra, former Dean, Languages, Punjabi University, Patiala, said, “Structure of Punjabi language has changed with the development of technology at the international level. New words are adopted from international languages by replacing old words. These changes are not dangerous to the language rather they are positive.”

Dr CG Shankar, eminent scholar from Madurai University, in his lecture, said, “Work to promote mother-tongue should not be stopped. We should learn other languages but never forget our mother-tongue.”

However, many feel that that nothing sufficient has been done to promote the language. Ramesh Yadav, president, Folklore Research Academy, said, “There is a need to promote Punjabi language. Schools, especially private ones, should promote the language. The government offices should start taking adequate steps in this direction.”