New Delhi, Dec 15: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh on Friday said the use of Hindi has increased in all government departments including scientific departments and institutions across the country in last over 9 years.
He emphasised that the efforts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in promoting Hindi all over the world have been an inspiration for all and have increased the popularity of Hindi internationally.
Dr Jitendra said this while chairing the 34th meeting of the Joint Hindi Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Earth Sciences, in New Delhi.
He highlighted that proper translation of scientific topics into Hindi and other regional languages was crucial to reach S&T to every house and the grassroots. For carrying out such translations experts in the subjects who are also experts in the respective languages need to be consulted and the education department will also need to be brought into the fold, he added.
The Union Minister underlined that in science there should be flexibility in the adaptation of a language for larger acceptance and contextualizing the translation rather than literal translation. “Each language has its own words depending on the region it is prevalent in, so we need to adapt those words rather than being rigid on finding a language equivalent term for such words,” he said.
Dr Singh directed the department officials to be regularly in touch with the members of the Hindi Consultative Committee for further promotion of Hindi in official use. Members of the committee gave their valuable suggestions on the use of Hindi.
In the meeting, non-official members of the committee, including Members of Parliament and Hindi scholars selected from across the country, along with representatives from the Department of Science and Technology, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Department of Biotechnology and Ministry of Earth Sciences and subordinate organisations participated.
The committee members reviewed the working status of Hindi in these departments and also gave their valuable suggestions to increase the use of Hindi in government offices.
Dr Jitendra also asked the members of the committee to suggest some good experts who can be engaged by the Science Ministries for quality translation of Science Journals, Magazines and other documents.
Pointing out that languages bind people and never break them away unless they are forcibly implemented, Dr Singh said, “All of us should relentlessly work both for the mother tongue and the official language Hindi and should make an endeavour to learn more languages.”
The Union Minister said a large number of youth from the region are working in the Tourism and Aviation sectors and the knowledge of Hindi has helped them secure jobs. “When the language is linked with jobs or vocations, it finds its own path of growth and development,” he remarked.
‘India fast emerging as protective healthcare leader’
Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh, who is also a Professor of Medicine and a renowned diabetologist, on Friday said the role of hospital administrators is critical as coordinators of medical management among different specialities and different streams of healthcare practice.
“India has moved from a sectoral and segmented approach to health service delivery to a comprehensive need-based healthcare service,” Dr Jitendra said while handing over the national-level Hospital Academy Excellence Awards to some of the country’s distinguished doctors specialising in hospital administration.
The minister said, “The age of working in silos is over and conscious effort needs to be made to integrate different organs of the government including ministries and departments with various associations, institutes of higher and specialized learning and the Industry, particularly in the healthcare sector.”
He said India is fast emerging as a protective healthcare leader, particularly after the world has started citing the country’s model of COVID management and the vaccine success story under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“India is now seen as a role model in Crisis Management and Preventive Healthcare after the successful handling of the pandemic,” he said.
Dr Singh said that New India will become AtmaNirbhar in healthcare only by integrating various sciences and domains of medicine, going beyond Allopathy and synergising oriental alternatives like AYUSH, Yoga, etc.
The Science & Technology Minister said India is working on the world’s first vaccines against four zoonotic diseases.
“Besides Covid, we have four more vaccines in a trial stage, which is being excitedly watched by the world, one is related to Anthrax, another to Brucellosis, one to Swine Fever and one to Leptospirosis,” he said.
Under PM Modi, India has also emerged as the world’s most cost-effective healthcare destination, with the latest technology tools deployed, across healthcare delivery, Dr Singh said, adding that more than 10 lakh medical visas were issued to foreigners between 2019 and 2022 and the country is fast emerging as the Medical Tourism Hub of the world, despite the pandemic.
Dwelling on Vision@2047, Dr Jitendra Singh said, “It is expected that India becomes one of the top markets in medical devices grabbing 14-15% of the trade. India has almost 600 globally and nationally accredited hospitals that cost-effectively provide world-class treatment.”
Dr Jitendra pointed out that at present there are over 4,000 Healthtech Startups in India. He said India is among the top five countries in the world manufacturing life-saving high-risk medical devices but the cost of our devices is about one-third of those manufactured by the other four countries.
Asserting for promotion of the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model for healthcare services, the union minister said, “This is the need of the hour especially to put an end to the urban-rural dichotomy in healthcare services for which many unimaginable initiatives have been taken by this government.”
