By Indrawattie Natram

INDIA High Commissioner to Guyana, Dr. K. J. Srinivasa, on Sunday, told a large gathering of Essequibians that the first step in staying connected to India is to learn the language of their ancestors, Hindi.

He was at the time delivering the feature address at the Guyana Hindi Prachar Sabha, World Hindi Day Celebrations held at the Cotton Field Secondary School.

According to the diplomat, Hindi is one of the first languages spoken in India and it is being taught in many countries across the globe, including Nepal, Fiji, Trinidad and neighbouring Suriname.

World Hindi Day is officially celebrated on January 10 and the high commissioner thanked the Guyana Prachar Sabha for organising the event outside of Georgetown. The High Commission of India, he said, is honoured to reach out to an outlying region to celebrate this significant day.

The high commissioner was also heartened by the performances of the young talented local artists in Essequibo and for a moment thought he was in his homeland, India.

He said teachers as well as resources will be dispatched to the different regions to help propagate the Hindi language as well as the Indian culture.

“Hindi helps you learn other languages, from Hindi other languages derived. Today, we still used some of the Hindi words that are part of English such as karma, jungle, chutney, among others,” Dr. Srinivasa said.

The India high commissioner also read a message in Hindi that was written by India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Damodardas Modi, to celebrate the day.

He was happy to learn that the descendants of Indians who set foot on these shores more than 180 years ago, still preserve the rich Indian culture of their forefathers and presented books and certificates to organisations and participants of the World Hindi Day celebrations.
The programme began with the symbolic lighting of two diyas, followed by garlanding of the India high commissioner. Founder of the Guyana Parchar Sabha, Beni Singh, said he was happy to host such event in Region Two.

The programme was chaired by former First Lady, Varshnie Singh, and featured performances from the Swarswattie Dance Academy, the Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre and local cultural groups.