Imphal: Manipur observed the International Mother Language Day, Sunday in a simple function held in the Gandhi Memorial Hall, Imphal with Education Minister as chief guest. The function was organized by the Directorate of Language, Planning & Implementation, Manipur.
Speaking at the occasion as chief guest, Education Minister S Rajen Singh said that it is the duty of every citizen to preserve and protect our mother language. He said that every community has its own dialects or language and wish to preserve and protect it. The observance of Mother Language Day is a manifestation of preserving our own language, he added.
Stating that language is also the identity of a community, Minister Rajen said the Manipuri language has been included in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution because of “all those who struggled for the cause of our mother language”. We have introduced a curriculum of the Manipuri language and the script from lower to higher studies. The Manipuri Official Language Act, 1979 has been amended. With the new amendment after ten years the existing Bengali Mayek will be replaced by Meitei/Meetei Mayek, he added.
Minister also emphasized the need to prioritise the mother language over other languages. S Rajen stressing the need to preserve age-old traditions of the state, took note of the changes during the last few decades but insisted that “changing our indigenous traditions is not desirable”..
Commissioner Education(S), T Ranjit Singh, IAS, Vice-Chancellor, Manipur Cultural University,. P. Gunindro, Director, Language, Planning & Implementation, Manipur, Th. Chitra Devi, IAS also attended the occasion as president and guests of honour respectively.
