Shah Wants Hindi To Be Language For Science, Tech, Judiciary

In his message, Modi said the growing global respect for Hindi was a matter of pride and inspiration for all Indians. He urged people to take a pledge to enrich all Indian languages and pass them on to future generations with pride. "Hindi is not just a medium of communication, but a living heritage of our identity and culture," he wrote in a post on X. Union home minister Amit Shah said Hindi should not remain just a spoken tongue but should also become a language of science, technology, the judiciary, and the police. He called for respect for all Indian languages and emphasized that there is no conflict between Hindi and other regional tongues.

Shah said Sanskrit had given India "the Ganga of knowledge," while Hindi had carried this knowledge into every home, reaching people through local languages. He highlighted the historical role of Indian languages in preserving culture, traditions, and resistance during colonial rule, saying they were vital in making the freedom movement a national endeavour.

Praising Modi's efforts, he said that under the Prime Minister's leadership, Indian languages have seen a "renaissance" over the past decade, with Hindi and regional languages gaining prominence on international platforms such as the UN, G-20, and SCO. Addressing the 5th Akhil Bharatiya Rajbhasha Sammelan in Gandhinagar, he urged parents to speak to children in their mother tongue, stressing that a child's intellectual capacity is diminished when forced to think in a language other than their mother tongue.

Hindi Diwas is celebrated every year on September 14 to mark the adoption of Hindi as an official language by the Constituent Assembly in 1949. Indian missions abroad observed the day with essay competitions, poetry recitals, and seminars. Foreign diplomats in India also took part, with some attempting Hindi tongue twisters. The French Embassy released a video of its envoys explaining why they were learning Hindi.

The language's global reach was highlighted by Russia's deputy minister of science and higher education, Konstantin Mogilevsky, who said more Russian students are eager to learn Hindi, noting its increasing use in India and relevance worldwide.

Several chief ministers also marked the occasion. West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee said her government respects all languages and listed initiatives for Hindi-speaking people, including recognition of Hindi as an official language in areas where it is spoken by at least 10 per cent of the population. She also cited recognition for Santali, Kurukh, Kudmali, Nepali, Urdu, Rajbanshi, Kamtapuri, Odia, Punjabi, Telugu, and Sadri.

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath called Hindi the "basis of our unity and the guardian of our identity," urging people to spread its use globally and make it a key language of the digital age. Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said Hindi had played a vital role in uniting the country and that its global prominence reflected India's growing strength. Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu also encouraged people to adopt Hindi more actively in daily life to strengthen national unity and integrity.