Coimbatore, June 27: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, in a fitting finale to the historic World Tamil Semmozhi Conference, today said the government would set up a Rs 100 crore fund for the development of Tamil language, and that priority in jobs would be given to those who study in Tamil medium. Necessary legislation would be set up on the jobs issue.
Delivering the valedictory address of the conference, Karunanidhi made a string of announcements for the development of Tamil, the language and culture, and said he had no qualms in announcing that the resolutions of the conference would be implemented since he was confident that Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee would provide necessary funds from the Centre.
The Chief Minister said the Centre should provide sufficient funds for greater research and development of Tamil language. The allocation should at least be on a par with Sanskrit.
While reiterating that Indian languages, including Tamil, should be declared as official languages, Karunanidhi said Tamil should be declared an official language first if there was a delay in the process since it had already achieved classical language (Semmozhi) status.
The Centre should also enable Tamil to be a language of use in the Madras High Court as per the unanimous resolution of the Tamil Nadu Assembly adopted in 2006, Karunanidhi said, adding that the resolution was sent to the Centre with the recommendations of the Governor and the Chief Justice of the High Court.
Karunanidhi urged the Centre to insist upon the Sri Lankan government to ensure that appropriate steps are taken to settle, once for all, the myriad problems faced by the island Tamils. He said lakhs and lakhs of Tamils who had come to Coimbatore to attend the conference were anguished that there was no political solution yet to their problems. He pointed out that many of the Lankan Tamils were still in refugee camps waiting to be rehabilitated while even those who had been shifted had not been provided sufficient safety. This situation prevailed though the Sri Lankan government had assured the Centre of implementing a rehabilitation package and a political solution at the earliest. The Sri Lankan Tamils should be rendered capable of affirming their linguistic and racial identity, Karunanidhi added.
Karunanidhi said he had already written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that the proposed Indian National Institute of Epigraphy, proposed by the Centre, should be located in Chennai. He pointed out that of the one lakh epigraphical representations identified so far including all languages, over 60,000 were in Tamil.
A detailed plan should be chalked out and work undertaken for Ocean Archaeology Research for Kumari continent and Poompuhar sunk in the ocean.
Karunanidhi said the World Tholkappiyar Classical Tamil Sangam, which will include international scholars and function from Madurai, will undertake and execute the following tasks:
a) take efforts to conduct world classical Tamil conferences at regular, periodic intervals;
b) establish a permanent exhibition for displaying the Dravidian language, art, culture, and lifestyle;
c) establish and administer an archive that will contain all aspects of the Tamil language;
d) bring together the scattered centres of Tamil research and unite them into one organised whole;
e) to honour Tamil savants and those who selflessly devote themselves to the cause of Tamil and utilise their services for the growth of Tamil;
f) to prepare and maintain a record of the biographical data of all Tamil scholars in the world;
g) to establish contact with Tamil organisations around the world.
|