"Hindi is not thrust in JIPMER," says Lieutenant-Governor of Puducherry Tamilisai Soundararajan

Telangana Governor and Lieutenant-Governor of Puducherry, Tamilisai Soundararajan, reiterated that Hindi is not being pushed in JIPMER or in the Union Territory (UT). She further declared that it is not in Tamil culture to denounce other languages or be critical of those speaking in other languages.

No one is being forced to learn Hindi at the cost of one's mother tongue, she said and added that by learning more languages one would only upgrade their employment opportunities.

"But my concern is, we are not studying in our mother tongue completely," she said.

For instance, even in the Jawaharlal Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER) or in the entire Puducherry, Hindi is not being imposed, she said.

"I had already clarified that Hindi is not thrust in JIPMER. Tamil continues to be a language of communication," she told reporters on Sunday, May 15, when questioned about the controversial circular allegedly insisting that entries in service records be made in English and Hindi.

One should have love and affection towards one's mother tongue but there should not be any hatred or opposition to other languages which are the mother tongues of others, she said.

"It is not our culture to criticise the language of others or be critical of people of other languages," Soundararajan stated without giving a name to anyone in particular.

"Whether we learn other languages or not, we should respect them as we respect our mother tongue," she added.