MARGAO
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday said vacancies for Konkani translators in Parliament, both in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, hardly had any takers.
He further lamented that some regional political parties in South India still do not accept Hindi as the national language despite the efforts made by the central government to promote the use of the language.
Speaking at a programme organised by the Gomantak Rashtrabhasha Vidyapeeth at the Ravindra Bhavan, Margao on Thursday, the Chief Minister said since the Konkani language is in the Eight Schedule of the Constitution, the recruitment process was set in motion to recruit Konkani translators in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
“I have been told that hardly two candidates had applied for the post of translators. I have requested them to once again insert an advertisement inviting prospective candidates for Konkani translators in Parliament”, he added.
Saying that Hindi was not a dominant language in Goa at the time of Liberation, the Chief Minister said that Hindi and other languages made their presence in the state after people from the neighbouring states such as Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala came settled in the state.
Expressing happiness that students are now taking Hindi subject at the graduation level and even for PhD, he said that regional languages should grow alongside Hindi, adding that people should learn Hindi as a national language as a medium of communication.
