By Abhilash

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, which administers the Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS), recently revised the MPLADS guidelines and released the draft guidelines for feedback from stakeholders. But the draft guidelines have drawn flak from various quarters for prioritising the Hindi language over the regional languages.

Chapter 3, Section 3.23 of the draft guidelines notes: “As soon as a work under the MPLADS is completed, it should be put to public use. For greater public awareness, a plaque (stone/ metal) carrying the inscription ‘Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme Work’ in regional language as well as in Hindi and English, indicating the cost involved, the commencement, completion and inauguration date, and the name of the Member of Parliament sponsoring the project, should be permanently erected at the project site and placed at eye level for better visibility.”

Speaking to The Probe, Salem Dharanidharan, DMK spokesperson and Executive Coordinator of Dravidian Professionals Forum, says the obsession over Hindi must stop. “Why should non-Hindi speaking states have the signage written in the Hindi language? In Tamilnadu, we use Tamil and English on our plaques. According to the norm, any one language, either Hindi or English, is used but making it mandatory to use Hindi is not right. The central government is trying to slowly impose Hindi in all centrally sponsored schemes. We will not accept this.”

Many non-Hindi-speaking MPs have revolted against the draft guidelines released on October 25. But this is not the first time Hindi language imposition has drawn a wedge between many Hindi and non-Hindi-speaking people. A few weeks ago, several political parties opposed the recommendation of a Parliamentary committee that the medium of instruction in technical and non-technical higher educational institutes such as IITs should be Hindi.

“This is against the principle of cooperative federalism. The core ideology of the BJP is also one language, one religion and one culture. The BJP is actually trying to slowly impose its party’s ideology on the people of this country.

Read the full story https://theprobe.in/will-not-accept-hindi-imposition-says-political-leaders-from-non-hindi-speaking-states/