Vice-Chancellor of Jamia Millia Islamia, Mazhar Asif, highlighted the significance of Hindi and Indian languages in freeing minds from colonial influences. At a workshop focusing on creating a ‘Learner’s Glossary of Social Sciences’ in Hindi, Asif underscored the necessity of breaking away from colonial ideologies. He urged a shift towards the Indian Knowledge System to counter the negative impact of a misguided sense of modernity.
Asif commended the translation efforts of political terms into Hindi and other Indian languages, offering his support to the workshop participants. The event, organized in collaboration with the Department of Political Science of Jamia Millia Islamia, concluded with a valedictory session on January 14. During the closing address, Asif emphasized the importance of contextualizing geography, history, and culture in translating technical terms into various languages.
Drawing on his expertise as a linguistics expert and professional translator, Asif advised the committee members to consider the challenges of accurate translation across different Indian languages. He praised the team of experts working on compiling a glossary of technical and scientific terms in Social Sciences translated into Hindi. The workshop’s welcome address was delivered by Professor Naved Jamal, highlighting the historical significance of promoting Hindi and national language spirit.
Professor D.S. Kothari’s contributions to scientific and technical terminology were also acknowledged during the workshop. Bulbul Dhar-James introduced the workshop’s theme, while Shahzad Ahmad Ansari provided insights into the Commission for Scientific and Technical Terminology. Dean of Social Sciences, Muslim Khan, and Saroj Kumar Das reiterated the importance of indigenous language development in their addresses to the audience.
