Hindi Divas Celebrations 2018

Adm Desk Sep 11, 2018

Hindi Divas observed on September 14th of every year is a notable date on the Indian calendar. This day is set aside to recognize the importance of Hindi as one of the two official languages of India; the other being English. While Hindi is often glorified on the occasion of Hindi Divas; in many states within the country where Hindi isn’t a prominent language the commemoration of this day is subdued and relegated to central government offices. This is justified on both sides; as Hindi is celebrated in states where Hindi is spoken by a majority and largely acknowledged and respected in states wherein the language isn’t spoken widely. One way or the other; there is no debate pertaining to the importance of Hindi as a language that serves as a common thread binding all Indians.

The Importance of Hindi

The observance of Hindi Divas stems from the importance of Hindi as a language that is spoken all over the country in varying degrees of perfection. It is easy to see why the Central Government of India would set aside Hindi Divas as notable day on the Indian calendar. The Central Government of India has an active presence all over the country and official communications are carried out in Hindi and English. As such; the government recognizes Hindi as an effective linguistic platform from which to communicate with the diverse groups of people it governs. Additionally; public servants heavily rely on Hindi to serve the citizens of India as central government workers may not always have the advantage of serving on home turf and communicating in their state languages with co-workers and the general public. The recognition that Hindi gets from the observance of Hindi Divas is thus well-deserved and the observance of Hindi Divas is a practical extension of the widespread use of Hindi as an official language spoken all over the country.

History of Hindi Divas

According to Wikipedia; “Hindi Divas is celebrated on 14 September because on this day in 1949, the Constituent Assembly of India had adopted Hindi written in Devanagari script as the official language of the Republic of India. But this didn't come as easily as it sounds. To this end, several stalwarts rallied and lobbied pan-India in favour of Hindi, most notable person Beohar Rajendra Simha along with Hazari Prasad Dwivedi, Kaka Kalelkar, Maithili Sharan Gupt and Seth Govind Das who even debated in Parliament on this issue. As such, on the 50th birthday of Beohar Rajendra Simha on 14 September 1949, the efforts came to fruition following adoption of Hindi as the official language. This decision was ratified by the Constitution of India that came into effect on 26 January 1950. Under the Article 343 of the Indian Constitution, Hindi written in Devanagari script was adopted as the official language. In all, there are 22 Scheduled languages of India, of which, two are officially used at Union government of India level: Hindi and English.”