Modern education in India is increasingly reliant on conveying technical concepts to students, study participants, resource persons, and holders of traditional knowledge in their mother tongues, to facilitate teaching and research. However, in science, there are many technical terms that, while essential to their respective subjects, may be hard to grasp for non-native English speakers, and may present difficulties in translation into Indian languages.
In this context, KISS-DU held a ‘Workshop for Preparation of Multilingual Glossaries of Subject Specific Technical Terms in Indian Languages’ from 19th to 21st October 2022. The three-day workshop, sponsored by Bharatiya Bhasha Samiti, Ministry of Education, Government of India, was organized by the Centre for Indigenous Languages and Narratives, and the Centre for Indigenous Sciences and Technology, in collaboration with the School of Comparative Tribal Languages and Literatures, School of Comparative Indic Studies and Tribal Sciences, School of Indigenous Knowledge, Science and Technology, KISS-DU.
Welcoming the participants, Professor Deepak Kumar Behera, Vice Chancellor highlighted the innovative practices already in place at KISS-DU, including the Mother-Tongue-Based Multilingual Education program, the Professors of Practice, and the Council of Innovation. He thanked the Bharatiya Bhasha Samiti for their laudable efforts in promoting Indian languages.
Professor Awadesh Kumar Mishra, Chief Coordinator, Bharatiya Bhasha Samiti expressed happiness at KISS-DU’s initiatives to promote tribal languages, and spoke on the challenges faced by educators in conveying concepts to Indian students, 90% of whom relied heavily on their non-English mother tongue as the main medium of study and transactions.
Dr. Kanhu Charan Mahali, Director-General & Chairperson, Tribal Advisory Council, KISS-DU delivered a remarkable speech in four languages – Santali, Odia, Hindi, and English. He emphasized the necessity of regional languages in various aspects of education and said that the workshop would significantly help Santali and Ho students in understanding basic science better.
Dr. Prashanta Kumar Routray, Registrar spoke on the importance of diverse tribal languages and local dialects. He informed the dignitaries about different steps taken by KISS-DU to encourage innovative educational systems addressing the need of indigenous students, instead of stereotyped processes. The retention rate of KISS and KISS-DU is the best in the country due to its innovative policies, he added.
Speaking virtually, Dr. Chandan Srivastav, Academic Coordinator, Bharatiya Bhasha Samiti, appreciated the herculean efforts of the Founder, KISS & KIIT, Prof. Achyuta Samanta, and hailed him as a visionary beyond compare. He informed the audience of the roles and efforts of the Bharatiya Bhasha Samiti in increasing the employability of, and opportunities for, Indian language users and its goal of promoting the use and enrichment of Indian languages.
Dr. Rasmita Tripathy, Dean, School of Comparative Tribal Languages and Literatures proposed the vote of thanks. The workshop was coordinated by Dr. Sushree Sangita Mohanty and Dr. Priyoneel Basu, KISS-DU.
