Bisheshwar Mishra / New Delhi
Rajya Sabha today passed the Central Sanskrit Universities Bill, 2019 aimed at the extension of Central University status to three Sanskrit universities in the country. The bill was passed by voice vote in the Upper House.
Replying to the discussion, Human Resource Minister, Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank said, Sanskrit literature is the biggest treasure and legacy of India having a unique identity itself. He said, many countries across the world are doing research on Sanskrit and it is being taught in many universities. The Minister said India has given the knowledge to the entire world.
The passing of the bill was preceded by a lively discussion and some interesting observations made by members of both the opposition and treasury benches.
Speaking in Sanskrit in support of the bill Congress’s Jairam Ramesh however said sarcastically that government was spending Rs 640 crore on Sanskrit which was spoken by barely 15,000 people at the cost all other national languages like Tamil, Telugu, Malyalam, Kannada , Oriya, which was spoken by millions of people. He said Sanskrit had remained the legacy of the elite in the country and that in the past unfortunately it was used as an instrument of caste oppression. He urged the government to ensure that it becomes people’s language.
BJP’s Subramanian Swamy made a sharp remark that “those people who say that Sanskrit is a dead language are themselves intellectually dead.” He said that NASA was using Sanskrit language to be used by robots as the language of artificial intelligence. To confirm this information he said one only needs to type Sanskrit and NASA in Google. He also spoke about a school in London where Sanskrit was being taught compulsorily because it helped sharpen the brains of students. “This is something that Congress men should learn. Your brain will improve if your learn Sanskrit Shlokas,” Swami said. He also said that 40% of words in Tamil and Sanskrit were common.
Congress P L Punia said only three Universities were being made Central Universities. He pointed out that Central Universities had a lot of issues pertaining to reservations in the teaching staff.
AIADMK’s A Navneethakrishnan said he supported the Bill. He also wanted HRD Minister to visit the Tamil university in Thanjavur Keezhadi and Adichanallur.
P.L. Punia (Congress) says only three Universities are being made as central universities. He says central universities have a lot of issues as regards reservation, teaching staff etc.
A. Navaneethakrishnan (AIADMK) says he supports the Bill. He also wants HRD Minister to visit the Tamil university in Thanjavur, Keezhadi and Adichanallur.
L. Hanumanthaiah (Congress) speaks about the Kannada language and that autonomy has not been granted. In many universities, in the Sanskrit department, there are two students and twenty professors.
Dr. Subramanian Swamy (BJP) supports the Bill. He reads out Article 343 of the Constitution. He says those who say Sanskrit is a dead language are themselves intellectually dead. He cites a paper by NASA that Sanskrit is the best language for artificial intelligence. Other Members interrupt his speech but are asked not to by the Chair. He also speaks about a school in London where Sanskrit is being taught compulsorily. This is something that Congress men should learn, he says. Your brain will improve if you learn Sanskrit shlokas
Initiating the discussion, Jairam Ramesh of Congress said, Sanskrit has always been a privilege of few as only fifteen thousand people speak it across the country. He demanded that the government should allocate more funds for promoting other classical languages which are spoken widely across the country. Mr. Ramesh demanded that these institutions must be named after noted Sanskrit scholars like Panini and Amarsimha.
Sukhendu Shekar Roy of Trinamool Congress said, many languages find its genesis from Sanskrit. He said this has become an endangered language as a negligible number of people only use this language. Ram Gopal Yadav of Samajwadi Party suggested renaming the student council as the student union.