A project is now underway to post all that Prime Minister says, media releases and data online in 22 scheduled languages, to bridge the lingual gap and ensure a wider reach.
Each time prime minister Narendra Modi tweeted in an Indian language like Tamil on Pongal, Telugu on Bhogi or Assamese on Magh Bihu, he would have struck a chord somewhere in a remote corner of the country. Modi's passion for lingual connect will be amplified with his speeches, statements and captions going multi-lingual soon. Taking the dissemination of information beyond the realm of the mainstream media, the Prime Minister's Office is keen on ensuring it reaches everyone in their language and not just in English and Hindi, sources said.
A project is now underway to post all that Prime Minister says, media releases and data online in 22 scheduled languages, to bridge the lingual gap and ensure a wider reach. The decision was taken last month by the PMO, Information and broadcasting ministry and press information bureau (PIB). On July 23 and 24, PIB brass including Frank Noronha held a meeting with heads of the agency's eight regional centres. Sources said the project would necessitate augmenting the budget and manpower besides finding language experts.
The exercise, which would familiarise people in various parts of the country with the Prime Minister, is likely to begin with three languages. More languages will be added later, an official said. A decision is yet to be taken on whether the multilingual mode will be on the existing website or a new one will have to be created. The National Informatics Centre hosts all government websites. Modi had chosen to communicate directly with people using social media through his and the PMO's tweets, departing from the conventional path of reaching out through the mainstream media. He also broke off from the tradition of taking the media, barring the public broadcaster and news agencies, on his foreign tours.
Meanwhile, the BJP has also undertaken a plan to expand the reach of its inhouse publications by bringing them out in more languages to cover all states. At present there are 16 publications with a circulation of 24 lakh, but party president Amit Shah wants it to be increased three-fold within a year.
While the "Kamal Sandesh", a fortnightly with a circulation of 1.5 lakh, is published in English and Hindi, other publications in various languages are brought out under different names. Barring a few like Telangana, Jharkhand and north-eastern ones, the BJP has publications in most states.
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