File Photo: Prime Minister Narendra Modi (Associated Press)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate a three-day international Hindi conference in Bhopal on September 10 aimed at popularising the language globally, with delegates from at least 27 countries besides scholars from across India expected to participate.
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan will address the gathering on the concluding day of the conclave which will have a total of 28 sessions on a range of subjects relating to Hindi.
Search engine giant Google and iPhone maker Apple will be among a number of technology companies which will participate in the exhibition at the event where they will highlight their efforts to popularise Hindi.
The conference, whose theme is "Hindi jagat: Vistar evam Sambhavanai" (World of Hindi: Expansion and Scope), is being organised by the External Affairs Ministry in cooperation with Madhya Pradesh government.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, briefing reporters about the three-day conference, said 1,270 delegates from 27 countries have registered for the conference while 450 people have been invited as guests besides 250 noted personalities.
Asked whether Amitabh Bachchan will be paid any fee for participation, Swaraj said he has been invited in the category of noted personalities and he will be provided with accommodation, travel cost and transportation.
Ms Swaraj said Mr Bachchan has been an inspiration for promotion of Hindi through movies and he will speak on the subject "Aao Achhi Hindi bolein (Let's speak good Hindi)".
Asked whether Government was making efforts for recognition of Hindi as one the official languages in the United Nations, Ms Swaraj said 129 votes in favour of it will be required in the General Assembly and hoped that once India gets permanent membership in an expanded UN Security Council, it will be able to get the language included in the list.
The themes for discussion at the conference include growth of Hindi in foreign countries, its expansion in non-Hindi speaking and southern states, Hindi in administration and science, scientific literature in Hindi, role of Hindi-Urdu ties in expansion of the language and purity of Hindi in journalism.
20 Indians and another 20 personalities from abroad will be honoured at the conference.
Ms Swaraj said all the Chief Ministers have been invited for the three-day conference and she has started personally inviting them.
"Today I called up Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumarji.... There is no politics in Hindi," she said replying to a question.