Sanskrit be taught in Sanskrit alone: says govt-appointed

Sanskrit should be taught in Sanskrit alone and not in any other language, while collaborative research on treatises written in the ancient language and modern sciences should be encouraged, a panel constituted by HRD ministry has suggested.
The committee, chaired by former Chief Election Commissioner N Gopalaswami, which submitted its report to the ministry today, has made five major recommendations on the promotion of the ancient Indian language.
Among the key recommendations are that the medium of teaching Sanskrit should be Sanskrit and not any other language like English.
Speaking to PTI, Gopalaswami said the recommendation has been made as English or other languages when taught are also the medium of instruction, which is not the case with Sanskrit and often another language is used to teach it.

Another key suggestion of the panel is that students should be given the choice to learn the language as per a three-language formula, which is implemented in several schools. As per this formula, many schools provide the option to learn English, their mother tongue and a third language of their choice.
Gopalswami said it has also been suggested that the treasure contained in Sanskrit manuals on various subjects like Ayurveda, science of construction or other areas should be made online.

Another important suggestion is that textbooks on various subjects like mathematics or science should also be available in Sanskrit so the students desirous of studying them in that language can do so.

The panel has recommended encouraging collaborative research involving the huge database of knowledge contained in Sanskrit manuals and modern knowledge.
The Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister had last year constituted the committee headed by Gopalaswami, currently the Chancellor of Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeetha, Tirupati to assess and review the present schemes for development of Sanskrit and Veda Vidya.