International Mother Language Day

21^st February (Bangla:একুশে ফেব্রুয়ারী | Ekushe February) was declared as the International Mother Language Day (Bangla:আন্তর্জাতিক মাতৃভাষা দিবস | Antorjatik Matribhasha Dibos)  by the UNESCO on 17^th November,1999 to uphold the significance of Mother Language in the life of an individual and to promote unity in diversity- respect all languages alike.

2012 International Mother Language Day theme: “Mother tongue instruction and inclusive education”. It emphasizes on imparting basic education to children in their mother languages for better understanding. It further shows the importance of mother tongue and multilingual education to reduce discrimination.

"The mother language, in which the first words are uttered and individual thought expressed, is the foundation for the history and culture of each individual. Moreover, it has been proven that children learn the best when they are instructed in their mother language during their first years at school" UNESCO says.

Significance of 21^st February:

The date, 21^st February was chosen as the International Mother Language Day to commemorate the martyrs who sacrificed their lives to uphold the dignity of their Mother Language Bangla on this very day in 1952. This was one of the rare instances in world history where people fearlessly gave up their lives for the sake of their mother language.

Background of 21^st February, 1952 in brief:

The Partition of British India in August 1947 led to the formation of two independent states: The Union of India and the Dominion of Pakistan. The Dominion of Pakistan consisted of two far-flung territories i.e. East Pakistan (Now Bangladesh) & West Pakistan (Now Pakistan). East and West Pakistan were separated by 1600 Kilometers (approx: 1000 Miles) of Indian Territory but the key factor that made the separation even more prominent is Language and Culture.

Protest Rally on 21/2/1952,Dhaka

The Mother language of the all the people of the then East Pakistan was Bengali (almost 99% Bengali speakers). The Bengalis were deeply attached to their language. On 27^th January, 1952 the oppressive rulers of West Pakistan declared that “Urdu and Urdu alone would be the state language of Pakistan”. This hurt the sentiments of the Bengali people, the people demanded the recognition of Bangla also as the state language of Pakistan but all their pleas fell on deaf ears of arrogant West Pakistani rulers. There were widespread protest across the then East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), people from all walks of life united to defend Bangla. The West Pakistani Government tried to curb the protests by force. On   21^st February, 1952   in Dhaka the police opened fire on unarmed peaceful protesters, killing several of them. 

This laid the foundation for Bengali Language Movement, Since then 21^st February has been annually observed as Mother Language Day or Language Martyrs Day in the then East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) as well as in West Bengal state of India and in other nations with sizable Bengali speaking Population. 

Shaheed Minar at Dhaka.

The Shaheed Minar (Martyr Monument) was built in Dhaka, to commemorate the Bengali language martyrs. Several permanent replicas of the Shaheed Minar of Bangladesh have been built in different nations across the world to commemorate the martyrs of Bengali language movement and it has become the symbol of International Mother Language Day.

Replicas of the Shaheed Minar in other Nations:

• Altab Ali Park in East London, UK.
• Ashfield Park, Sydney, Australia.
• Ikebukuro Park, Tokyo, Japan.
• Planned for Toronto.

Why should we celebrate?

This is the day that emphasizes the importance of our mother language and reminds us that mother language is the only language that is dearest to our heart, the language of our thoughts and emotions and the language that represents an individual to the core. It reminds us that every individual should have the right to speak their mother tongue and we should pass it on to our next generation no-matter where we live.

Speaking ones mother language freely is the fundamental right of every individual. Apart from knowing the mother language it is always beneficial to learn other languages i.e. being bilingual or multilingual. Bilingualism and multilingualism has its own benefits as it empowers the person to easily connect with people of different linguistic and cultural background.

If you are among the ones who feel ashamed to speak your mother language fearing that you would be looked down upon or be discriminated or mocked upon; then, this is the day to celebrate your identity- be Proud of your Mother Language! If you speak your mother language with confidence, you are bound to gain respect.

Observance:

21^st February is a public holiday in Bangladesh where as its observed globally but its not a public holiday elsewhere.

The observance of this day is significant among the Bengali community all across the world especially in the Bengal region (Bangladesh and West Bengal). Cultural Programs, Book Fairs and various other events are organized on this day.

Rally demanding recognition of

Pashto Language in Pakistan.

Ironically International Mother Language is also observed in present day Pakistan. The  demands of the Punjabi, Balochi, Pashto and Sindhi people to declare Punjabi, Balochi, Pashto and Sindhi languages as the national Languages of Pakistan are totally unheard and they are deprived from their fundamental right to use their respective mother languages for official, educational and business purposes. 

A language without official recognition is destined to die in the course of time. Thus, for a language to flourish and develop substantially it is necessary that the language is officially recognized and is used in day-to-day life.


Peace and coexistence is possible only by respecting the enormous linguistic and cultural diversity and encouraging multilingualism.

Kalighat: A life lesson learnt!

It was 2^nd February 2010; I was in Kolkata with my friends Albin & Naveen, I was the only Bengali guy- my friends were from Pune (Maharashtra) and didn’t know Bangla. All of us new to the city, ventured out to see different places of attraction. We took a lovely tram ride from Dharmotōla (Esplanade) to the Beautiful Nakhoda Masjid (নাখোদা মসজিদ). Nakhoda Masjid, the biggest Masjid of Kolkata and was built in 1926. I loved the onion shaped dome and the architecture of the Masjid. The thing I didn’t like is the congestion in the area, shops are attached to beautiful red stone walls of the Masjid, and this surely bites into the beauty of the structure.

Kalighat Temple, Kolkata | কালীঘাট মন্দির, কোলকাতা

Then we moved towards our next destination, the famous Kalighat Mandir (কালীঘাট মন্দির). We were little tired by now and the time was approaching 4pm. We were walking towards the temple glancing at the stalls selling pottery, shankha- pola, shankh etc.  As we neared the entrance of Kalighat, a pundit rushed to us and informed that temple would be closed for darshan soon, and we saw the long queue darshan. We decided to come back the next day; we made up our mind and were moving ahead towards Mother Teresa’s Home for Sick and the Dying Destitutes (Nirmal Hriday) which is a part of the Kalighat Building. Suddenly this Pundit called us back and said,” Amar sathe cholun, ami apnader darshan korie debo 5 minute-e.” (Come along with me, I’l take u to the temple directly for darshan.) We ignored him, but he was determined! And continuously kept insisting us.. so finally we decided to go with him & this was ‘The Biggest Mistake’!

We moved along with him, he took us to a place where we kept our shoes- then he insisted that we should buy some Prasad from his friends shop- we did so. Then he took us through some not-so-clean ways, we passed through the darshan queue, crossed everything in a minute and then entered the main temple through a passage where another man was standing and each of us had to pay Rs.10. We thought “Eh that was CHEAP!”. Then finally he rushed us though the “darshan area” of the main temple, we felt like a Merry-go-round and after this darshan, we thought we would pay him at most Rs.300 for three of us. But wait we were not over yet! Now we on the flip side of the temple. He told us to sit, and he got another pundit who was supposed to perform the puja. I refused, I  told,”Amra Pujo Korate chai Na” , we had sensed some thing is surely fishy! But he was adamant.

Now we three were sitting in the temple, the pundit told us- he’l perform puja individually for us. So first he took my friend  Naveen, he kept his hand on Naveen’s head and chanted some mantra (with 4G speed!), then he gave him a one rupee coin dipped in sindoor – as a sign of good luck! Then finally, asked him for Dakshina by saying “Ja Icche tai deen” –U can give whatever u want.  Naveen took out a Rs. 50 but the greedy pundit was not satisfied with it and demanded more; Naveen was worried, firstly he didn’t understand Bangla and secondly, he was unaware of the fact that people of different religions visit Kalighat, so he  handed over a Rs. 500 note to the Pundit!

Then, Naveen came and sat next to me and the pundit took Albin for puja. Naveen  told me about the incident.. I was totally taken aback by this kind of cheating at a Holy place like Kalighat! The Same thing happened with Albin too.. and he ended up paying Rs.300 as Dakshina. Now it was my turn, he took me near the pillar of the temple, asked my name and birth date and chanted some mantras and asked for dakshina, I handed him a Rs.10 note; He was furious but didn’t express it- maintaining a smile on his face, he told Rs. 10 is too less.. I thought “Oh! Yeah boi, I know Rs.10 is too less for you, you might be making thousands in a day by cheating in the name Goddess Kali! “. Finally I gave him the same 10 rupees note.

Now came the first pundit, and asked for his share dakshina we didn’t have much money left wit us we offered him 100 Rupees but he refused by saying, “ This is too less, I have saved your time etc…” But, We said, “Newar hoile naw- nahole Chere Daw!” (Take it or leave it!). Finally, we came out of temple premises, took our shoes and left for home.

We’ve learnt a very important lesson from this episode. Never take shortcuts at Holy places or Places of Worship! If you have come for Darshan or Offering Prayer don’t ever try to jump the queue by unfair means; this will only land you in trouble. The sheer existence of these Fraud Pundits at Holy places shows that there are quite a lot of people who intend to take shortcuts at Holy Places! Concluding with the statement, “Remember, you’re always being watched by the Divine power! So make sure that you do not fall into traps of the Shaitan and always be true to yourself!”