Nemade attacks 'English medium' again

Renowned Marathi writer Bhalchandra Nemade on Saturday once again lashed out at the growing trend of adopting English as the medium of instruction in schools.

Nemade was speaking after he and Hindi writer Gynanranjan received 'Akashdeep Sanman' awards instituted by media house Amar Ujala at the hands of lyricist and filmmaker Gulzar here.

The Marathi writer, a recipient of the Jnanpith Award, said several of his books have been translated to Hindi, adding that there are lots of similarities in the literature of the two languages.

The writer of "Kosla", an acclaimed novel, further said that it is shameful that even schools for tribal children are embracing English as the medium of instruction.

"Developing countries don't impart education in English. Knowledge is gained only through our own language," he said.

Nemade, who is known for his "nativist" views, has spoken out against the use of English as the medium of instruction earlier too.

He also said, in a lighter vein, that the "Mumbai dialect" of Hindi should be made the national language, as there is "no scope for making mistakes" while speaking it.

Gulzar described Gynanranjan as an excellent writer.

"Meeting and interacting with Nemade was an achievement for me," he added.

The Akashdeep Sanman award comprises a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh.

Apart from Nemade and Gynanranjan, writers Gyan Chaturvedi, Gagan Gill, Suneeta Buddhiraja, Ambar Pandey and Utapal Banerjee received awards in various categories.