KATHMANDU: Vice-President Nanda Bahadur Pun has stressed resolving issues by forging national consensus on some of the ongoing disputes in the country.
At the Mother Language National Poetry Festival-2022 organized by Nepal Academy and UNSECO on the occasion of International Mother Language Day on Monday, VP Pun said so.
On the occasion, stating that language is a unique identity of every community and nation, he asserted that no country could develop and prosper without language since all historical works should be properly documented through the medium of language. Pun said, “Nepal is home to more than a hundred ethnic communities and is rich in language, art and culture, among others. It is difficult to develop a country without developing language.”
Stating that around 40 percent of languages were on the brink of extinction, VP Pun underscored the need to preserve our languages, art, culture and unique traditions. Expressing his concern over the Nepali language and other mother languages being on the verge of extinction due to excessive use of the English language, he viewed “It is good to learn any languages but it is not good to forget one’s unique language, art and culture.”
Similarly, Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Prem Bahadur Ale opined that we could not imagine any material related to history without languages and called for the preservation of languages. “Language determines one’s original identity. Thus, the need of the hour is to preserve the languages that are on the verge of extinction.”
He also said the ministry was fully committed towards the preservation and conservation of languages, arts and cultures of Nepal. The national census in 2011 had enlisted 123 languages in Nepal. The Language Commission later added new six languages in 2019.
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