The state of the state language

Month of Language Movement begins. Prothom Alo Illustration
Month of Language Movement begins. Prothom Alo Illustration

It’s February, the month we commemorate the language movement, the month when people laid down their lives in 1952 for the sake of Bangla. The entire month is spent to recalling the contribution of the martyrs. A month-long book fair is held at Bangla Academy, a national poetry festival is held, all sorts of publications are brought out and programmes are held in the capital city as well as all over the country.

The newspapers are replete with writings on the language movement and related topics. The television channels have all sorts of special programmes. And there are a few persons who delve a little deeper than these outward displays, to ponder over the present state of Bangla and the future of the language. They discuss these in the mainstream media, the social media, at meetings and seminars and in their personal interactions.

We refer to February as the ‘language month’ and so it is only natural that the focus will be on language. We come face to face with certain glaring questions. We have established Bangla as our state language, what is the state of that language now? Commitments are often made at a national level to establish Bangla in every sphere of life, but how far has this been implemented? What is the attitude of the state and the society, particularly the younger generation, towards the language? How is Bangla evaluated among students, educated professionals, in offices, in business and industry, in the service sector, by social-cultural organisations, by the overall civil society?

The answers to these questions reflect a dismal state of affairs. Our language has been neglected. This is often said in relation to our prioritising English over Bangla. Bangla holds little relevance to the educated youth as skill in Bangladesh does not promote their job opportunities. English does. The importance of English in international communications, business and commerce, is a reality faced not just in Bangladesh, but the world over. But that does not mean French, German, Russian, Chinese, Japanese and other languages have lost relevance, respect, love and care in the respective countries. So why is Bangladesh losing that respect and care?

It is the responsibility of the national policymakers to look into such matters. The importance of a language lies in its usage. It must be determined as to why no tangible initiatives were ever taken to ensure the use of Bangla in every sphere of national life. Plans and initiatives to this end were taken immediately after independence, but why did these initiatives never proceed very far? Why is Bangla not being used fully in the Supreme Court? The use of Bangla must be promoted more than that of English in offices and other sectors.

There is hardly relevance for the Bangla language media to publish and air advertisements in English. The advertisements should be made, published and aired in Bangla. The government may consider regulations in this regard. Signboards for shops and other business set-ups should be in Bangla, sales receipts too. Qualitative education in Bangla must be given particular emphasis from the primary level of education to the universities. What better month could there be to start such initiatives that February, the language month?