President Ram Nath Kovind advocates learning of more languages

Advocating the concept of learning more languages, President Ram Nath Kovind Thursday said it reinforces national harmony and adds value to the country.

Unveiling a statue of Mahatma Gandhi at Dakshin Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha here, Kovind said Gandhi always urged North Indians to learn languages and scripts of the southern states.

"In the same spirit, he also set up the Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha (in Tamil Nadu).. It is a matter of immense happiness that this Prachar Sabha has completed hundred years working for the promotion of Hindi in our Southern States," he said.

Recalling that Gandhi had stayed at the Prachar Sabha here for 10 days in 1946, he said, by installing his statue, you (Dakshin Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha) have paid respects to the values of the Father of the Nation.

Noting that a language of a region can be very educative and help open a window to another culture, he said, "In Delhi, I have observed North Indian students in schools learning Tamil."