Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], February 27 : Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Friday clarified that the government is committed to ensuring that Marathi becomes not only a language of culture but also a language of economy and employment.
In a special program titled 'Jave Vinodka Gaon' organised in the Legislative Assembly on the occasion of Marathi Language Gaurav Day, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde mentioned concrete policy steps for the preservation of Marathi, such as creating an encyclopedia, organising literary conferences and increasing the use of Marathi in government affairs.
The program was attended by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar, Legislative Council Chairman Ram Shinde, Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar, Deputy Chairman of the Legislative Council Neelam Gorhe, as well as Anna Bansode, Chandrakant Patil, Uday Samant, Ashutosh Kale and many ministers, MLAs and public representatives. The program was coordinated by Kedar Shinde, Hrishikesh Joshi, Prabhu Desai, Dhanashree Damle and their team.
Deputy Chief Minister Shinde said that the Marathi language is a sacred stream carrying thousands of years of cultural tradition. Citing the lines "We are lucky, Marathi speaks to us", he saluted the poet Kusumagraj and gratefully greeted the saints, poets, writers, scholars, teachers and researchers. He stated that Marathi is the identity that flows through the veins of Maharashtra.
Shinde thanked the central government, recalling that the state government has consistently pursued making Marathi a classical language. He said that a crown of respect has been placed on the crown of Marathi and that emphasis on education and study in the mother tongue is the need of the hour.
He clarified that the government is trying to ensure that Marathi is used effectively in all sectors as a business language. He said that efforts are being made at the policy level to translate excellent literary works in Marathi into other languages, increase the use of Marathi in administration and make it a language of income generation. He appealed to everyone to contribute to creating an ocean of success through small efforts, and to create an ocean of Marathi.
In the age of technology, Marathi has assimilated changes in line with the times, and various forms of Marathi are also visible on social media. Stating that the diversity of dialects is the strength of Marathi, he mentioned dialects like Khandeshi, Malvani, Konkani, Varhadi, etc. He appealed to increase the fame of Marathi by making effective use of available resources.
He said that the government is updating the entries in the encyclopedia, creating a children's encyclopedia, a Kumar encyclopedia, an Olympic encyclopedia, and providing a platform for Marathi at the global level through the World Marathi Literature Conference. He also mentioned that the work of bringing Marathi brothers from all over the world is being done through this conference.
Shinde said that the tradition of Marathi humour was highlighted through the program 'Java Vinodka Gaava' organised in the run-up to the Legislative Assembly session, and mentioned the humorous styles of Acharya Atre and P. L. Deshpande. He said that the Marathi man who finds humour even in times of crisis is his identity.
Making an emotional exclamation, "Marathi in my blood, Marathi in my breath," Deputy Chief Minister Shinde expressed his resolve to carry forward the heritage of my Marathi with more vigour on Marathi Language Gaurav Day. Appealing to everyone to make united efforts to keep the flag of Marathi flying across the oceans, he wished the attendees a happy Marathi Language Gaurav Day.