People from various states should communicate in Hindi rather than English: Amit Shah

On Thursday, Home Minister Amit Shah advised that people from other states speak Hindi rather than English.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi has declared that Hindi will be the official language for administering the government, which will undoubtedly boost Hindi's importance. Now is the moment to make the Official Language an integral element of the country's unity. The Ministry of Home Affairs cited Shah as saying during the 37th meeting of the Parliamentary Official Language Committee, "When citizens of States who speak different languages communicate with each other, it should be in the language of India."

However, Shah emphasized that Hindi, not an indigenous language, should be recognized as an alternative to English. He also advised that Hindi be made more adaptable by allowing vocabulary from other languages to be used.

The Official Language Committee is chaired by Shah, with BJD's B Mahtab serving as vice-chair.

The Home Minister emphasized the importance of imparting basic Hindi knowledge to students up to Class IX, as well as paying more attention to Hindi teaching examinations.

Shah briefed members that 70% of the Cabinet's agenda is now prepared in Hindi, according to MHA. He claimed that 22,000 Hindi teachers had been hired in the Northeast's eight states and that nine tribal communities have converted their dialects' scripts.

According to MHA, all of these states have also decided to make Hindi compulsory in schools up to Class X.

The committee unanimously recommended submitting the 11th volume of the committee's report to the President, according to the ministry.

Shah has long advocated for more use of Hindi by officials and the youth, claiming that the language is the primary reason India's culture and value systems have survived.

He advocated for the idea of "One Nation, One Language" when he gave his first address on the language of Hindi Diwas in 2019. "India is a country of many languages," he had declared. Every language is significant in its own right. However, it is critical that the entire country speak the same language, as this will serve as the nation's global identity. Hindi is the most widely spoken language in the country, and it is the language that binds the entire country together."

Opposition parties reacted angrily to the announcement. While the CPI(M) branded it as an attack on India's essential diversity ideals, Congressman Rajeev Gowda reminded the BJP that Article 29 of the Constitution recognized many languages.

Since then, Shah has toned down his support for the language, emphasising that Hindi is not a competitor, but rather a compliment to various regional languages.