Mumbai, Sep 13 (IANS) Union Home Minister Amit Shah will address the inaugural session of Hindi Diwas 2026 and the sixth All India Official Language Conference in Mumbai on Monday, an official said.
Inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision, the event will highlight the vibrant relationship of Hindi with Maharashtra’s rich linguistic, cultural, and literary traditions, the official said in a statement.
On this occasion, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Sunetra Pawar, several Members of Parliament, distinguished guests from various fields, scholars, litterateurs, educationists, and senior officials from various departments and Ministries of the Central government will also be present.
The Department of Official Language of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has been organising All India Official Language Conferences every year since 2021.
This journey, which began from Varanasi, has reached Navi Mumbai in Maharashtra this year, passing through Surat, Pune, New Delhi and Gandhinagar.
During the inaugural session of the two-day programme, the ‘Rajbhasha Gaurav’ and ‘Rajbhasha Kirti’ Awards for the year 2025–26 will be presented by the Union Home Minister, the statement said.
The institutions and individuals who have undertaken outstanding work and made noteworthy contributions in the field of Official Language will be honoured with these awards, it added.
Several important books and publications will also be launched during the inaugural session and other sessions. These include a special commemorative issue of the Department of Official Language’s journal ‘Rajbhasha Bharati’, centred on the National Song ‘Vande Mataram’; ‘Bharatiya Gyan Tantra: Srot aur Swaroop’; ‘Shiv Anadi Hain, Anant Hain’; and ‘Andheron Se Ujalon Tak’, a compilation of writings by prison inmates.
A special attraction of this year’s conference will be a special discussion session centred on the National Song ‘Vande Mataram’.
Joydeep Chattopadhyay will also have a special presence at the programme. He is a fifth-generation descendant of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, the author of ‘Vande Mataram’.
A special session will also be organised at the Conference on the role of Town Official Language Implementation Committees (TOLICs/NARAKAS).
NARAKAS is a strong and empowered unit that takes forward the implementation of Official Language Hindi at the grassroots level.
A special exhibition is also being organised at the conference venue, in which stalls will be put up by various institutions, organisations, banks and ministries, the statement said.
–IANS
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