Dictionary unit at KSP to be revived

Professor G Venkatasubbaiah’s wish of reviving the Kannada dictionary compiling unit at the Kannada Sahitya Parishad (KSP) will take wing soon.Chief minister Jagadish Shettar assured him on Friday that the government would give financial assistance to the unit.

Venkatasubbaiah, known as the Father of Modern Kannada Dictionary, has been asking the government to revive the unit by appointing a few lexicographers.

Speaking at a ceremony felicitating Venkatasubbaiah, Shettar said the government was willing to give financial aid to revive the unit.
“I have already directed the department of Kannada and culture to reopen the unit at the Kannada Sahitya Parishath. Our government is ready to give financial assistance necessary to carry out its activities,” he said.

Venkatabubbaiah said that if the unit was functioning, at least 6-7 volumes of dictionaries could be brought out every year. 

The unit had not been functioning for more than 20 years. Its revival was necessary in a globalised world as dictionaries would help  in connecting different languages, he said.

 “Bi-lingual and tri-lingual dictionaries need to be brought out which will bridge the gap between different languages and connect them,” he said, adding that the KSP would have to hire about 10 to 15 young language experts to start compiling dictionaries.