By Swastika Saha and Deepasri Bhattacharya
Executive summary of the speech by Mr Mrinal Kanti Das, former DGP, Manipur
The speech was delivered by Mr Mrinal Kanti Das by highlighting the importance of translation and overcoming language barriers in the country. While working in the Indian Police Services, he was posted to several difficult regions in the country where conditions were extremely hard, not only in terms of terrain but also languages. He mentions in his speech that India is a diverse country with a plethora of languages, religion, cultures and there are people both in India and abroad who are trying their best to maintain the unity in the nation.
He had been posted to North-East of India where he found nationalism in a very relevant form and also had been appointed for special duties in Jammu and Kashmir. He mentions that communication is a big challenge in these areas and the operational needs are very different than what is spoken. While being called to perform certain national duties in the context of nation-building, he has been misunderstood and misinterpreted on several occasions. He explains the obstacles in communication by taking the example of Tripura. It has international borders and is in the course of its historical development, it has craved to emerge as an independent nation. In spite of turbulent times and hardships, it later agreed to stay a part of India.
Mr Mrinal Das encountered linguistic problems while his duties in Tripura, which subsequently coaxed him to learn a new language. According to him, communication can be made effective only when both parties try to understand each other’s perspectives. This is where language plays an important role. He undertook his job with full preparation and training and played his role with utmost dedication and caution. He was successful in his mission and now Tripura has come over the ground and joined the movement of nation-building.
Mr Mrinal Das in his speech goes on emphasising the need for learning a language while stating it to be ever-changing. He points out that words in a language change their meaning and usage with time and place, in short, according to where it is being used and spoken. Thus efforts have been made to rationalise language and help in communication so that it leads to a more disciplined way of behaviour. Mr Mrinal Kanti sites some figures regarding the population profile of 2020. According to that by 2020, there will be nearly 400 million Indians who will be below the age of 35 which will result in bringing about a community structure laden with concepts such as generation gap and changing technological milieu.
There will be a progress and something needs to be done to attain a balance in that situation. Law enforcing bodies will play a key role in battling security-related problems, whether it is the distribution of a particular ‘Pataa’ like certain benefits which would be accrued to them either through the initiatives taken by the ministry of agriculture or any other ministry who’s help would prove effective. As an example, Mr Kanti mentions lots of deaths taking place in far-flung areas where arable land is not present. Nearly 329 million hectares of land area are available which are not yet populated not in terms of manpower but in terms of agricultural produce. If one would understand the language of that area then probably a developmental action could be taken to mitigate the situation. He says that there are certain sensitive and difficult areas in India where the Indian Flag would not fly. When asked, a local man said that they were independent earlier and they have become a part of India only recently. So he makes a comment that why should they not be allowed to hold their flag up beside the Indian flag. The security forces would bring down their flag as soon as they would put it up. Mr Kanti makes an effort to respect their belief and sentiment and brings forth this point at the highest forum so that these people can one realize by themselves and not try to mitigate the situation.
Thus language and communication play a crucial role in bridging cultural differences and ushering in a more tolerant and cooperative social structure.
