Formation of linguistic states

 official language

The dispute over the official language became more intense as it took an anti-Hindi form. There is a trend of creating conflict between Hindi speaking and non-Hindi speaking areas in the country. The dispute is not about the national language issue. That is, after a while the idea that all Indians should adopt one language, that a national language is necessary for Indian national identity, was already rejected by the vast majority of the national leadership. India is a multilingual country. It should continue. The National Movement conducted its ideological political activities in various regional languages. National movement demands that all higher education, administration and court affairs should be done away with English as medium of mother tongue. Nehru clarified this view in 1937. Our great regional languages ​​are the rich heritage of the past ancient languages, each regional language is spoken by millions of people, each language is deeply intertwined with the life of the common people with culture and thoughts, the common people can develop educationally and culturally only through the medium of mother tongue. So it is inevitable that we should give the highest priority to regional languages ​​and carry out our activities through them.... So our educational policy should be public activities through all regional languages.

The national language problem was solved when the framers of our constitution accepted our major languages ​​as 'Indian languages' or the national languages ​​of India. But the official functions of the country cannot be conducted in all languages. Central government needs a common language to communicate with the state governments to conduct administrative affairs which language is it? Which should be the link language as the official language of India? For that, English and Hindi were discussed. The Constituent Assembly seriously debated which of these two should be chosen.

 But actually this choice was also made by the leadership of the national movement before independence. The leadership believed that English should not continue as an all-India medium in independent India. For example, while appreciating the value of English as a world language, Gandhiji made it clear that 'people's intelligence cannot be developed in a foreign language and culture cannot grow'. In the 1920s, Gandhi spoke highly of English as 'English is the language of international trade, the language of diplomacy, the language of literary treasure, the language that introduced Western ideas and culture'. But | Gandhiji argued that Adhi occupied an unnaturally artificial position in India because of our unequal relations with the English. Yet the English 'sucked up the power of race. Reluctance by the common people. alienated from the common people. The sooner educated Indians get out of the spell of foreign media, the better it will be for them and the people of India. In 1946, Gandhi wrote: "I admire the English language in its own right, but I am strongly opposed to it usurping a place where it does not belong. English is undoubtedly the world language today, so I give it a place as a second choice." Nehru expressed these views in 1937 in his essay on 'Language Problem' and in the Constituent Assembly debates.

Hindi or Hindustani played an important role during the national struggle, especially in the mass mobilization phase, when Hindi or Hindustani was sought for the status of a connecting language without being an official language. Since Hindi is the language spoken in most of the regions, Hindi is accepted even by the leaders of non-Hindi speaking regions. Lok Manyatilak Gandhiji, C. Rajagopalachari, Subhash Bose, Sardar Patel - some of the leaders who strengthened Hindi. Congress introduced Hindi or regional languages ​​in place of English in Congress conferences and political activities. In 1925, the Congress changed its rules as follows. "The business of the Congress shall as far as possible be conducted in Hindustani. English or any other regional language may be used when the speaker is unable to speak Hindustani or when necessary.   

To be conducted in languages. Hindustani may also be used." Reflecting the national _ consensus, the Nehru Report of 1928 concluded that Hindustani should be the common language of India. It also said that English should continue for some time. The Constitution of independent India also had to be implemented with the change of Hindi instead of Hindustani. Both issues were heavily debated in the Constituent Assembly. .Should English be replaced by Hindi or Hindustani?Within how long should this change take place?

Due to the politicization of the official language issue, the debates became very divisive. The issue of Hindi or Hindustani was soon resolved. Gandhi and Nehru - both supported Hindustani in Devanagari or Urdu script. Gandhi was prepared to accept Nehru's view even though the supporters of Hindi disagreed. But when the partition of the country was announced, the attitude of Hindi language lovers changed as the supporters of Pakistan campaigned that Urdu was the language of Muslims. Hindi fanatics labeled Urdu as a symbol of separatism. Deva demanded that Hindi in Nagara script be made the national language. This demand split the Congress party vertically. Nehru, Azad, fought for Hindustani but the Congress Legislative Party decided in favor of Hindi by 78-77 votes. Even die-hard Hindi fans have to come to a compromise. It was agreed to make Hindi the official language as the national language.

The issue of timing of the transition from English to Hindi created a divide between Hindi and non-Hindi regions. The representatives of the Hindi regions want to declare Hindi as the official language immediately. But representatives of non-Hindi areas wanted to continue English for a long time, if not indefinitely. He asked for the status quo to continue until the future Parliament declares Hindi as the official language. Nehru was in favor of making Hindi the official language. He also favored the continuation of English as an additional official language. The shift from English to Hindi was slow and gradual

He wants to happen. He wanted to promote the use of English in the contemporary world. Hindi is the language spoken by the majority, if not the majority, of the people of India

It is a language understood by urban people from Bengal to Punjab as well as in Maharashtra and Gujarat, but as a literary language, the language of science and politics, Hindi is a less developed language than other languages, according to critics. The concern is that if Hindi is made the official language, people from non-Hindi regions, especially South India, will be left behind in government and government jobs in the fields of education and finance. Concern that the imposition of Hindi on non-Hindi areas would lead to Hindi ... political socio-cultural dominance,

The producers realized that as leaders of a multilingual country, one language should not be neglected or made to feel neglected. A compromise was reached. The constitution has made Hindi the official language of Devanagari script with international numerals. English continued to be the official language until 1965. Hindi will be introduced in a phased manner. After 1965, it became the full official language. However, even after 1965, Parliament still had the power to grant access to English for special purposes. The Constitution has put the responsibility of promoting the expansion of Hindi on the government. Empowered to appoint a Commission and a Joint Committee of Parliament to review its progress. The official language of the Union acts as the connecting language between the various states as well as between the Center and the states. State legislatures should decide the official language at the state level.

Even though the Congress is in power across the country, the implementation of linguistic aspects prescribed by the Constitution has become difficult. Although no one challenged the fact that Hindi was going to be the official language, the problem became more complicated over time.

The framers of the Constitution hoped that by 1965 Hindi's strengths would overcome Hindi's weaknesses and win the confidence of the people of non-Hindi regions. It was hoped that with the spread of education, Hindi would also spread, and resistance to Hindi would gradually weaken and disappear. But the very slow spread of education has had an adverse effect.

Moreover, the chances of success of Hindi as an official language have been spoiled by the proponents of Hindi. Rather than adopting a systematic slow-down approach to gain their acceptance from non-Hindi regions, Hindi fanatics tried to force through government action. Their fanaticism inspired the opposition movement. As Nehru said in Parliament in 1959, their attitude "irritated others as much as it irritated me".

Social sciences and science works were not published in Hindi. For example, in the 1950s academic journals were not published as literary journals. Instead of developing Hindi as a beneficial medium in higher education, press and other fields, the leaders were interested in making Hindi the full official language.

Hindi propagandists sought to develop a common standard of language that gained widespread acceptance or was spoken by people in Hindi regions and in many parts of the country. Instead of promoting the written colloquial language, in the name of preserving the sanctity of the language to keep away from foreign influences, newly created words, understood by the few, were introduced in place of words commonly understood by all. Non-Hindi speakers (or even Hindi speakers) find it difficult to learn to understand this new language. Jalindia Radio, which is supposed to play an important role in promoting Hindi, has Sanskritised Hindi news and has made listeners not listen to Hindi news. Vada in Hindi, Nehru, a writer, complained in 1958 that he himself could not understand his lectures which were translated into Hindi and broadcast. But the Hindi purists were undeterred. All efforts to simplify Hindi news were thwarted. This attitude has drawn many people into anti-Hindi ranks. But Nehru and other leaders were committed to making Hindi the official language.

Although the study of English is encouraged, English should not continue as the official language of India forever. It was found that in the interest of national unity as well as economic and political development, it is necessary to wait for the approval of the people of the Hindi regions not to impose a specific time limit for making Hindi the official language. Even non-Hindi are not ready to be softened. Over time their anti-Hindi increased.

During 1956-60 there were serious differences over the issue of official language. An appointed Official Language Commission submitted its report in 1956. By 1965, strict changes were made to introduce Hindi instead of English in various programs of the Central Government. The commission recommended that But two members of the commission from West Bengal and Tamil Nadu - Professor Sunitha Kumar Chatterjee and Subbaraman accused the members of the commission of being pro-Hindi. English should continue as the official language. Interestingly, before independence, Chatterjee was the executive of the Hindi Pracharini Sabha in Bengal. The Commission's report was reviewed by the Special Joint Committee of the Parliament. The President issued orders in April 1960 to implement the recommendations of the Joint Committee. He clarified that after 1965, Hindi will be the official language and English will continue to be the co-official language. After some time Hindi became the alternative medium for Union Public Commission examinations. But as of now Hindi is a qualifying subject. will be introduced. As per the directive of the President, the Central Government has taken many steps to promote Hindi. Central Hindi Directorate established. Publication of Hindi books and books translated into Hindi. Compulsory training in Hindi was given to central government employees. Translated large texts on law into Hindi and encouraged their use in courts.

These actions fueled suspicion among groups in non-Hindi areas. For example a famous linguist. In a dissenting letter to the Official Language Commission report by Hindi propaganda promoter Prof. Sunit Kumar Chatter.

 The Commission made it clear that Hindi speaking people would get benefits for a long time. Also in March 1958, Hindi Pracharini Sabha, former president of South India, C. Rajagopalachari made it clear to 'Hindi' campaigners that English is the same foreign language as Hindi. On the other hand, famous Hindi language lovers Purushottamas Tandon and Ser Gobind Das accused the Joint Parliamentary Committee of favoring English. Many Hindi leaders like Nehru, Education Minister Maulana Abul Kalam आजादिनिज़ी दुय्बटरू Insisted on strictly implementing the deadline for change in Hindi as prescribed in the constitution. In 1957, Dr. Lohia's Samyukta Socialist Party, Jana Sangh, started a dynamic movement to replace English as the official language, which continued for two years. One of the widely used agitation methods by Lohia's followers was to tear down signboards in shops and other places.

Recognizing the danger posed by the official language problem on the administrative affairs, the Congress leadership took care of the problems in non-Hindi regions and dealt with the problem carefully. Tried to reconcile. Nehru made it clear many times that the official language should not be forcibly canceled in any region of the country, keeping in mind the aspirations of the non-Hindi people, the time frame for the transition to Hindi would be decided. Nehru's Praja Socialist Party (PSP) and Communist Party of India (CPI) leaders supported this issue. PSP Hindi criticized terrorism. "In a multi-linguistic country like India, expressed concern that it could cause serious damage to national unity.

Nehru made an important announcement in the Parliament on August 7, 1959. Gave specific assurances to reduce the anxiety of non-Hindi people. English will be the alternate language as long as " Singing is done by non-Hindi people. If you want to learn Hindi, then learn it and tell the people of South India. This assurance was reiterated by the Nehru Parliament on September 4, 1959.

In response to Nehru's assurances, the India Act was made the official language in 1963, albeit with some confusion due to the China War. After 1965, Nehru announced the goal of the law to remove the provision imposed by the constitution on the use of English. But due to non-expression of the guarantees in the law with clear phrases, the benefit was not fully realized. The use of English language can be continued along with Hindi in law. Non-Hindi groups criticized the wording of the Act. They did not consider it as a legal guarantee. इंका विशेष विश्वरण विशेषणी विशेषताएं The reason was not Nehru's disbelief. With increasing pressure from Hindi leaders as well, Nehru was worried about the future of the assurance. Concern increased with Nehru's death in June 1964. In addition, various ministries have issued circulars to take steps to convert Hindi into official language in the coming year. For example, orders were issued by the Central Government to send replies to the states in Hindi. It has also been mentioned that English translation will also be added for non-Hindi states.

Nehru's successor as prime minister, Lal Bahadur Shastri, was less sensitive to the views of non-Hindi groups. Instead of allaying the fear of Hindi becoming the sole official language, it was announced that the proposal to make Hindi an alternative medium in the Public Service Commission examinations is under consideration. That is, non-Hindi speakers would have been able to compete in all-India jobs through English medium, but Hindi speakers would have a positive advantage because of their mother tongue.

As a protest, many non-Hindi leaders changed their stand on the official language issue. To make Hindi the official language in place of English.

Started demanding to postpone the last date. Some leaders went further. For example Dravida Munnetra Kajagan, c. Rajagopalachari demanded to amend the constitution and make English the official language.

1965: On January 26, the non-Hindi areas, especially Tamil Nadu started anti-Hindi agitation. January 17 on d.y.k. The party organized an anti-Hindi meeting in Madras State on January 26 and asked to observe the day of mourning. In all India jobs, the students affected by the problem of lagging far behind the Hindi heartland worked actively in managing the public opinion in their own way. Wide publicity was given to the slogan 'Hindi Never-English Ever'. There was also a demand for constitutional amendment. The students' agitation turned into a state-wide unrest. The Congress leadership of the central and state governments failed to anticipate the intensity of the movement, instead of holding talks with the students, tried to suppress the movement. In the first weeks of February, widespread clashes, violence led to the destruction of high-altitude railways and other central government properties. Anti-Hindi sentiments spread widely. Four students along with many youths committed suicide against the official language policy. C.Subramanyam, Alageshanlu resigned from the Union Ministerial Category. The agitation continued for almost two months. More than 60 people died in police firing. The only central leader who was angry with the agitators was Smt. Indira Gandhi. Then she was Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting. She went to Madras when the movement was intense. Traveled in areas where there is a lot of noise. Expressed sympathy for the agitators. Thus, after Nehru, the first North Indian leader Mrs. Indira Gandhi got the trust of the Tamil people who were mired in misery, and the people of South Indi

Janasangh, S.S. P parties tried to organize anti-English agitation in Hindi areas. But public support did not get that  Not received  Due to the agitation, the central government, the Madras government and the Congress party - had to change their attitudes. South India decided to bow to public opinion. The agitators decided to change policy and accept the main demands. The Congress Working Committee announced some measures. It was based on central law. The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 pushed back the passage of this Act, which led to the end of the Hindi movement. The law was to quell discontent.

After Bahadur Shastri died in January 1966, Indira Gandhi became the Prime Minister. As she had already won the confidence of the people of South India, people expected a sincere effort to resolve the long-standing problem. Other positive factors include the softening of the Jan Sangh's anti-English intensity, the YSP's adoption of the basic elements of the 1965 agreement. Acceptance.

Indira Gandhi proposed the Official Language Act Amendment Bill of 1963 on 27 November, despite financial problems and a weak Congress in Parliament in the 1967 elections. The Lok Sabha passed the bill on 16 December 1967 by a vote of 205-41. The Act gave unambiguous legal protection to the assurances given by Nehru in September 1959. The Act allows for the use of English as a co-language along with Hindi for official activities at the Center and communications between the non-Hindi states as long as the non-Hindi states so desire. Bilingual policy is adopted indefinitely. Parliament also passed a policy resolution to conduct Public Service Commission examinations not only in Hindi and English but also in all regional languages. But it is stipulated that the candidates should have additional knowledge in Hindi or English. States should implement trilingual policy. Accordingly, schools in non-Hindi states should teach mother tongue Hindi, English or any other national language. A South Indian language should be taught as far as possible in non-Hindi areas in Hindi regions.  Another important step taken by the Government of India on the language issue was in July 1967. Following the recommendations of the 1966 Education Commission Report, the government announced that Indian languages ​​would eventually become the medium of instruction in all subjects at the university level. It is left to the universities to decide the time frame for the change.

After many twists and turns, many small and big discussions, concerns and compromises, a widely accepted solution to the problem of complex official language and connected languages ​​was found. Since 1967 the issue has gradually disappeared from the Indian political arena. The Indian political system has proved incapable of resolving a contentious issue in a democratically nation-building manner. A negotiated compromise has found a widely accepted solution to a problem that has divided people in terms of tensions and can harm national unity.

In the end, DMK came to power with the language issue playing an important role to calm the political climate in Tamil Nadu helped

No political problem can be solved forever. Problem solving is a continuous process in a complex country like India. But it is noteworthy that in non-Hindi areas, Hindi is growing rapidly through education, commerce, tourism, motion pictures, radio and television. Although English is dominant, the use of Hindi as the official language is increasing. At the same time, English as a second language spread rapidly, including in Hindi-speaking areas. No matter how bad the teachers' facilities are, the mushrooming of private English medium schools across the country from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, the level of spoken and written English has fallen. But the number of people who know English has increased many times. English and Hindi may develop as two connected languages. Through media through education through empowerment activities   Regional languages ​​are expanding The growth of Hindi and English regional languages ​​is evidenced by the news papers published in those languages. Actually English cannot be said to survive in India forever. But English is the second language in universities as the language of mutual expression among the intellectuals of the country and as the language of the library. develops. So far Hindi has failed to fulfill all three roles. The ideal of making Hindi the unifying language of the country remained the same. But the attitude adopted by the zealous Hindi propagandists towards Hindi also meant that Hindi became the lingua franca of the country Pushed back.