Indians, particularly, Tamils can secure a place and dominate the fields of software, medicine, space science and trade, and this is because of their English language skills, said Durai Vaiko, headquarters secretary, MDMK.
Addressing a meeting to commemorate the memory of linguistic martyrs, he said Tamils had become the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of 30% of the 100 top corporate companies. “Of course, while they possess the necessary skills and talent and work hard, their English language skills also play a major role,” he said.
Mr. Durai also pointed out that countries, such as China and Japan, which vehemently opposed British colonialism were encouraging their youth to learn English because they had realised that it was important to gain an edge in the global trade.
“But our Home Minister Amit Shah seeks to create a country without English. His recommendations seek to replace English with Hindi. It will not augur well for the future of the students and youth in Tamil Nadu and undermine the development achieved by the State,” he said.
Mr. Durai said though the National Education Policy favoured the mother tongue as a medium of instruction from Class I to V, and it was a welcome step, the Centre was using it as a ruse to introduce Hindi indirectly.
“The students can learn one more language other than their mother tongue. In the era of globalisation, what is wrong with encouraging a student to learn a foreign language? The choice should be left to the students and their parents and not to the RSS or the Sangh Parivar,” he said.
Referring to the allegations that the linguistic war against Hindi was waged by the Dravidian movement to gain political mileage, Mr. Durai said the Dravidian parties were not against any particular language. “You should keep in mind that the Hindi Prachar Sabha has been functioning in Tamil Nadu for the last 100 years. We are not against any language but only its imposition. The language war was waged to secure a good future for the students of Tamil Nadu,” he explained.
Seeking to substantiate his view that English placed Tamils in an advantageous position, he said while Tamil youth could migrate to many countries and were shining in their chosen profession, “youth from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh were coming to Tamil Nadu to eke out a livelihood as daily wagers.”
“We cannot afford to forget the sacrifice of the linguistic martyrs. The Tamil society should realise and understand their role,” Mr. Durai said.
