The Hindu : Karnataka / Mangalore News : Bishop favours use of technology to protect Konkani

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, May 27, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka - Mangalore

Bishop favours use of technology to protect Konkani

By Our Staff Correspondent

(Left to right) The President of the Konkani Sahitya Academy, Alexander F. D'Souza; N. Yogish Bhat, MLA; the Bishop of Mangalore Diocese, Aloysius Paul D'Souza; and the Mayor, K. Diwakar; with `Konkani Utsav', a souvenir brought out to mark the dec ennial celebrations of the academy, in Mangalore on Wednesday.

MANGALORE, MAY 26. The decennial celebrations of the Konkani Sahitya Academy got underway here today with a call from the Bishop of Mangalore Diocese, Aloysius Paul D'Souza, to all Konkani-speaking people to uphold the dignity of the language. The two-day celebrations will conclude at the Town Hall here on Thursday.

Presiding over the inaugural function, Dr. D'Souza said over 40 lakh people, who spoke Konkani, were scattered across the west coast from Kochi to Mumbai.

However, English was slowly gaining ground among them, he added.

Terming this an "ironic development," he called upon parents to ensure that their children learnt Konkani before any other language.

Recognising the efforts made by the State Government and the Centre in promoting Konkani, the Bishop said it was now up to the Konkani-speaking people to take up the cause of the language. It was only through their sincere efforts that the language could be protected, he added.

Dr. D'Souza said such an effort was necessary as Konkani was a dialect with no script of its own.

Such languages often tend to disappear faster than those that had their own script, he added.

"Konkani has to be kept alive only through the spoken word," he noted and said every one in the community had to work in this direction.

He also advocated the use of technology to protect Konkani. Lauding the academy for taking the lead in releasing seven books, he opined that this would go a long way in promoting the language.

Participating as the chief guest, N. Yogish Bhat, MLA, said academies acted as a catalyst for the growth of any language. Konkani needed constant encouragement from society as well as the Government.

Noting that the grant provided by the Government to the academy was inadequate, Mr. Bhat promised that he would take up the issue with the authorities concerned.

The Government should explore the possibilities of locating all academies in the city at a common place, he said and added that the Rangamandira would be suited for the purpose.

The Mayor, K. Diwakar, described Konkani as a language that fostered communal amity as it was perhaps the only one to be spoken by people of three major faiths.

The President of the academy, Alexander F. D'Souza, welcomed the gathering. Dugappa Kajekar, Registrar of the academy, presented a report on the academy and its activities.

Konkani Utsav, a souvenir, was released to mark the occasion. Winners of an essay contest in Konkani were honoured on the occasion.

Raghavendra Rao proposed a vote of thanks.

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