Author: Manoj Nair
Publication: Mid-Day
Date: November 4, 2003
URL: http://ww1.mid-day.com/news/city/2003/november/67869.htm
Long considered a dying language,
Sanskrit is making a comeback in colleges.
At Mumbai University, the number
of students registered for courses at the University's Sanskrit department
has gone up from 175 to 260, a rise of nearly 50 per cent in the last four
years.
The response has surprised Dr G
P Mahulikar, head of the University's Sanskrit department.
"I am amazed to see the kind of
response from students. When I did my MA in 1975, there were around 10
students in the post- graduate class. Now, the number of students is 30,"
Mahulikar said.
The number of students doing the
basic certificate course at the university has grown from 73 to 101, its
full capacity, in the last four years. A new post-graduate diploma in comparative
mythology has attracted 25 students this year.
If the new interest spans the range
from short-term diploma courses to post-graduate studies, the enthusiasm
for the language also encompasses various age groups and professions.
Dr Kalplata Mahajan (56) is a general
practitioner doing a diploma course. She said her love for the language
prompted her to join the classes. "I learnt Sanskrit in school but could
not pursue it as I took up medicine in college," she said.
Rajashri Barve, a Kathak dancer
from Malad, graduated with a gold medal in Sanskrit from Ruia College and
is now doing post-graduate studies in the subject. She said learning the
language will help her in her future plans of taking up research in ancient
Indian epics. "Since the language is also becoming popular in schools,
there is a demand for Sanskrit teachers. That is another reason more students
are learning the language," said Barve.
Prasad Akolkar, an Ayurveda practioner,
is doing the one-year diploma in comparative mythology. "Learning Sanskrit
at an advanced level will help understanding ancient Ayurveda," said this
Dadar resident who has started a web site promoting Sanskrit.
The new interest in the language
is not restricted to the University of Mumbai alone. The Somaiya Trust
is setting up a deemed university for Sanskrit called the K J Somaiya Kendriya
Sanskrit Vidyapeeth, at its Vidyavihar campus. The university will be governed
by Central government rules, said S K Somaiya of the Somaiya Trust.
"Though we applied for permission
to set up the university in 1973, the sanction has just come. We plans
to have special programmes for teaching the language, including training
of Sanskrit teachers," said Somaiya.
However, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan,
one of the biggest organisations promoting Sanskrit, has a different story
to tell.
The number of children enrolled
for the Bhavan's basic certificate in Sanskrit from all over India has
fallen from 50,000 to 30,000 in the last five years.
A N Chaturvedi of the Bhavan said
he was not happy with the numbers, but other Bhavan officials said the
fall was due to Bhavan's slackened promotion for the language. "It is not
indicative of the falling interest in the language," said an official.
Career scope
School teachers, college and university
lecturers, readers at university, research scholars, newsreaders for Doordarshan
Why more interest
Sanskrit is becoming popular as
an optional language in schools. So there is a big demand for Sanskrit
teachers.
It is increasingly being offered
as a subject at the Civil Services examination since it has potential to
be high scoring.
There is a new interest in studies
of ancient Indian epics. Since most of this literature is in Sanskrit,
it is imperative to know the language.
