Navjot Singh Sidhu with other dignitaries during the event in Chandigarh Sunday. Express photo by Jasbir Malhi)
“Punjabis must join hands in restoring the lost glory of Punjabi language which is a symbol of pride and identity for all of us,” said Punjab Tourism and Cultural Affairs Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu in a panchayat held at the Punjab Kala Bhawan Sunday.
“I am in favour of a people’s movement to restore the language as without it, we will not have an identity. So, every Punjabi must join hands for the honour of our mother tongue,” Sidhu added.
The event was organised under the aegis of the Punjab Kala Parishad to get Punjabi its “rightful” place in the Chandigarh Administration. Sidhu further said Chandigarh was the capital of Punjab and discrimination with the Punjabi language should not be tolerated.
“Future generations, under the influence of western cartoons, is deviating from their mother tongue. So, it is important for us to have cartoon characters in Punjabi,” he added.
Sidhu will make a circuit in the Tourism and Cultural Department connecting the ancestral homes of the prominent writers of Punjabi such as Bhai Vir Singh, Dhani Ram Chatrik, Nanak Singh, Gurbaksh Singh Preetlari, Shiv Kumar Batalvi, Amrita Pritam, and Balwant Gargi.
He also announced that the local government department will issue orders to give top priority to the Punjabi language on the signboard in all the cities and correspondence will be made mandatory in Punjabi.