In a move aimed at helping non-Kannadiga residents in Karnataka learn the state's widely spoken language, Kannada and Culture Minister CT Ravi started a campaign to post spoken Kannada lessons on social media starting Tuesday.
He said that as part of the campaign, spoken Kannada lessons will be posted every day on social media. "My team will be posting spoken Kannada lessons every day to help non-Kannadigas learn and use our beautiful language. I request you all to promote the initiative among your friends and help me reach more and more non-Kannadiga brothers and sisters living in Karnataka," CT Ravi posted on social media.
Namaskara all,
— C T Ravi ಸಿ ಟಿ ರವಿ (@CTRavi_BJP) June 16, 2020
I've taken up the task to teaching Kannada to all non-Kannadigas residing in Karnataka. They are in Karnataka and they are our people, so it's our responsibility to teach them our language. I'll need you'll help in this task. ಕಲಿಕನ್ನಡ | #KALIKANNADA pic.twitter.com/4BoxgzBrXh
The first lesson included 21 commonly spoken English sentences and their Kannada translations. This included conversational sentences like 'Who are you?' (Neevu Yaaru) and 'Is she a doctor?' (Avaru daaktara?).
Lesson 001#ಕಲಿಕನ್ನಡ | #KaliKannada
— C T Ravi ಸಿ ಟಿ ರವಿ (@CTRavi_BJP) June 16, 2020
RT with your friends, let's reach more & more non-Kannadiga brothers and sisters living in Karnataka. pic.twitter.com/XBaShLlWGs
CT Ravi is also the state's Tourism Minister and he has previously said that a lack of pride in Kannada is one of the reasons for its waning relevance in the state.
His statements come months after Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa urged migrants in Karnataka to retain their roots and also learn Kannada.
Kannada is the most widely spoken (66%) language in Karnataka, but the states s also home to several other languages. According to the 2011 census, Urdu is spoken by 10.54 % of the population while Telugu (7.03%), Tamil (3.57%), Marathi (3.6%), Tulu (3.0%), Hindi (2.56%), Konkani (1.46%), Malayalam (1.33%) and Kodava Takk (0.3%) are also spoken in the state.