Gujarati-speaking Modi often wonders what would have happened had he not known Hindi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday wondered what would have happened to him had he not known a word of Hindi and continued speaking and interacting in his mother tongue Gujarati.

Addressing participants at the 10th World Hindi Conference being held here, Modi said, "Hindi is not my mother tongue, my mother tongue is Gujarati, but I often wonder what would have happened to me if I hadn't known Hindi."

He further went on to say that, "It is the responsibility of every generation to protect, and if possible, conserve their heritage, and introduce it to next generations."

He also used the event and the occasion to highlight and laud the work of archaeologists, who he said were performing yeoman service by deciphering writings found on stone.

"Whenever writing is found on stone, the archaeological department spends years on research to find out which language it is written in," said Modi.

Representatives from 40 countries are attending the 10th World Hindi Conference.

Prime Minister Modi described it as the 'Maha Kumbh' of Hindi.