Standing before a packed stadium in Houston, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked his audience a rhetorical question: how are things in India? Before the 50,000 Indian-Americans who gathered to greet him on his US tour last week, he answered in Hindi: “All is well” – then repeated the answer in Punjabi, Gujarati, Bengali and four other languages.
The point he was making was more significant than the message, but just in case it passed people by, Mr Modi later made it explicit. “Our various languages are an important identity of our liberal and democratic society,” he said. “For centuries, our nation has been moving forward with dozens of languages and hundreds of dialects.”
It felt like firefighting: an exertion to battle the heat that Mr Modi’s government has been facing this month after Amit Shah, his home minister, suggested it was “extremely necessary” for Hindi to project India’s identity in the world.
“Today, if any one language can do the job of holding the country together with the thread of unity, it is indeed the most widely spoken, Hindi,” Mr Shah tweeted a fortnight ago.
His remarks have ignited a blaze of controversy and echoes previous clashes over moves to impose Hindi upon a nation with thousands of languages and dialects. And it has raised the fear that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will try to do so again.
With remarkable wisdom, BR Ambedkar and his fellow architects of India’s constitution avoided designating a national language when they drew up the document in 1949. Instead, they named two official languages in which the federal government could conduct its business: English and Hindi. India’s states, they added, could determine their own official languages.
In a country where 43 per cent of people use Hindi as their mother tongue, this was a reasonable compromise.
Yet even as provinces were being formed along linguistic lines, this arrangement nearly unravelled in the mid-1960s. The Indian government moved to discard English altogether as an official language. Among the implications of this was that civil service examinations would be conducted in Hindi.
This set off violent protests. In Tamil Nadu and other parts of south India, where the languages belong to a different linguistic family altogether, riots ensued. The government backed down, not only retaining English but conducting public service examinations in regional languages as well.
There have been other protests since then, although none quite as violent. Most recently, in 2014, the newly elected BJP administration instructed federal government employees to use Hindi preferentially over English on their social media accounts – an instruction that was rolled back after Tamil Nadu complained.
As a result of this opposition, India has largely maintained its linguistic diversity, even as its neighbours have struggled with theirs. An undivided Pakistan's attempt to impose Urdu upon its Bengali-speaking eastern half played a role in the formation of Bangladesh in 1971. In Sri Lanka, a civil war raged from 1983 to 2009 after the minority Tamils saw that the majority Sinhalese people and their culture, including their language, were being accorded preferential treatment.
But Mr Modi’s BJP, with its large parliamentary majority and its role in governing 18 out of 29 Indian states directly or in coalition, could conceivably upset this fine balance.
Ideologically, the spread of Hindi aligns neatly with the BJP’s interests. Its version of Hindu nationalism is rooted deeply in the culture of the north Indian Hindi-speaking heartland. The south and the east have traditionally proven less susceptible to the party’s religious rhetoric but recent electoral results in these regions show a turn is under way.
The BJP government also rules India with the strongest federal hand seen in decades. In its revocation of Jammu and Kashmir's statehood and in its plans to formulate a pan-Indian National Register of Citizens, modelled on its project in Assam, we see clear ambitions to define a narrow, rigid idea of Indian identity – one that poses risks for minorities of every stripe.
Further, as India's economy continues to be challenged under Mr Modi's watch, there is more incentive for the BJP to do what it does so well: misdirect the public by talking up cultural values and nationalism in a bid to distract voters from real issues.
Its intentions are clear. Last year Mr Modi’s then finance minister Arun Jaitley broke with tradition and presented sections of his budget in Hindi. Until then, budgets had been presented only in English – a language understood, admittedly, by a smaller section of the populace but still one that belongs to all Indians.
Even in regional airports, which are administered by the federal government, announcements are made in Hindi before being made in the local language. Federal agencies such as the telecom giant BSNL rarely field English speakers to respond to customers. Only an uproar convinced the federal highways authority to stop replacing English with Hindi in highway markers in Tamil Nadu.
If the BJP decides to press ahead with its effort to make Hindi the country’s pre-eminent language, it might feel encouraged by change on the ground of a more organic kind.
Half a century after the anti-Hindi riots, India is a visibly different country. Domestic mobility and migration have increased. In Bengaluru – a city whose auto rickshaw drivers spoke almost nothing but Kannada three decades ago – Hindi now works as a lingua franca in many situations. With the explosion of cable TV and social media, the reach of Bollywood has expanded.
But to conflate these voluntary shifts with a readiness for the imposition of Hindi would be a mistake.
The anger that greeted Mr Shah’s statement showed that linguistic identity is still fiercely protected and remains a provocative issue. Even with its political dominance, the BJP will find it difficult to force Hindi on other parts of the nation without meeting widespread agitation.
What is far more likely is that the government will attempt to smuggle Hindi in through the back door, switching it for English or making its use non-negotiable in an increasing number of situations. For anyone who prizes India’s linguistic diversity, this is the campaign they must watch out for.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
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Scoreline:
Barcelona 2
Suarez 85', Messi 86'
Atletico Madrid 0
Red card: Diego Costa 28' (Atletico)
UAE squad
Humaira Tasneem (c), Chamani Senevirathne (vc), Subha Srinivasan, NIsha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Esha Oza, Ishani Senevirathne, Heena Hotchandani, Keveesha Kumari, Judith Cleetus, Chavi Bhatt, Namita D’Souza.
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
50-man Royal Rumble - names entered so far include Braun Strowman, Daniel Bryan, Kurt Angle, Big Show, Kane, Chris Jericho, The New Day and Elias
Universal Championship Brock Lesnar (champion) v Roman Reigns in a steel cage match
WWE World Heavyweight ChampionshipAJ Styles (champion) v Shinsuke Nakamura
Intercontinental Championship Seth Rollins (champion) v The Miz v Finn Balor v Samoa Joe
United States Championship Jeff Hardy (champion) v Jinder Mahal
SmackDown Tag Team Championship The Bludgeon Brothers (champions) v The Usos
Raw Tag Team Championship (currently vacant) Cesaro and Sheamus v Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt
Casket match The Undertaker v Chris Jericho
Singles match John Cena v Triple H
Cruiserweight Championship Cedric Alexander v tba
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
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BlacKkKlansman
Director: Spike Lee
Starring: John David Washington; Adam Driver
Five stars
The specS: 2018 Toyota Camry
Price: base / as tested: Dh91,000 / Dh114,000
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 298hp @ 6,600rpm
Torque: 356Nm @ 4,700rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km
McLaren GT specs
Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 620bhp
Torque: 630Nm
Price: Dh875,000
On sale: now
UFC%20FIGHT%20NIGHT%3A%20SAUDI%20ARABIA%20RESULTS
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The five pillars of Islam
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
More coverage from the Future Forum
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
How to play the stock market recovery in 2021?
If you are looking to build your long-term wealth in 2021 and beyond, the stock market is still the best place to do it as equities powered on despite the pandemic.
Investing in individual stocks is not for everyone and most private investors should stick to mutual funds and ETFs, but there are some thrilling opportunities for those who understand the risks.
Peter Garnry, head of equity strategy at Saxo Bank, says the 20 best-performing US and European stocks have delivered an average return year-to-date of 148 per cent, measured in local currency terms.
Online marketplace Etsy was the best performer with a return of 330.6 per cent, followed by communications software company Sinch (315.4 per cent), online supermarket HelloFresh (232.8 per cent) and fuel cells specialist NEL (191.7 per cent).
Mr Garnry says digital companies benefited from the lockdown, while green energy firms flew as efforts to combat climate change were ramped up, helped in part by the European Union’s green deal.
Electric car company Tesla would be on the list if it had been part of the S&P 500 Index, but it only joined on December 21. “Tesla has become one of the most valuable companies in the world this year as demand for electric vehicles has grown dramatically,” Mr Garnry says.
By contrast, the 20 worst-performing European stocks fell 54 per cent on average, with European banks hit by the economic fallout from the pandemic, while cruise liners and airline stocks suffered due to travel restrictions.
As demand for energy fell, the oil and gas industry had a tough year, too.
Mr Garnry says the biggest story this year was the “absolute crunch” in so-called value stocks, companies that trade at low valuations compared to their earnings and growth potential.
He says they are “heavily tilted towards financials, miners, energy, utilities and industrials, which have all been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic”. “The last year saw these cheap stocks become cheaper and expensive stocks have become more expensive.”
This has triggered excited talk about the “great value rotation” but Mr Garnry remains sceptical. “We need to see a breakout of interest rates combined with higher inflation before we join the crowd.”
Always remember that past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. Last year’s winners often turn out to be this year’s losers, and vice-versa.
Trolls World Tour
Directed by: Walt Dohrn, David Smith
Starring: Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake
Rating: 4 stars
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
The five new places of worship
Church of South Indian Parish
St Andrew's Church Mussaffah branch
St Andrew's Church Al Ain branch
St John's Baptist Church, Ruwais
Church of the Virgin Mary and St Paul the Apostle, Ruwais
UAE SQUAD FOR ASIAN JIU-JITSU CHAMPIONSHIP
Men’s squad: Faisal Al Ketbi, Omar Al Fadhli, Zayed Al Kathiri, Thiab Al Nuaimi, Khaled Al Shehhi, Mohamed Ali Al Suwaidi, Farraj Khaled Al Awlaqi, Muhammad Al Ameri, Mahdi Al Awlaqi, Saeed Al Qubaisi, Abdullah Al Qubaisi and Hazaa Farhan
Women's squad: Hamda Al Shekheili, Shouq Al Dhanhani, Balqis Abdullah, Sharifa Al Namani, Asma Al Hosani, Maitha Sultan, Bashayer Al Matrooshi, Maha Al Hanaei, Shamma Al Kalbani, Haya Al Jahuri, Mahra Mahfouz, Marwa Al Hosani, Tasneem Al Jahoori and Maryam Al Amri
The Scale for Clinical Actionability of Molecular Targets
How it works
A $10 hand-powered LED light and battery bank
Device is operated by hand cranking it at any time during the day or night
The charge is stored inside a battery
The ratio is that for every minute you crank, it provides 10 minutes light on the brightest mode
A full hand wound charge is of 16.5minutes
This gives 1.1 hours of light on high mode or 2.5 hours of light on low mode
When more light is needed, it can be recharged by winding again
The larger version costs between $18-20 and generates more than 15 hours of light with a 45-minute charge
No limit on how many times you can charge
The biog
Year of birth: 1988
Place of birth: Baghdad
Education: PhD student and co-researcher at Greifswald University, Germany
Hobbies: Ping Pong, swimming, reading
MO
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Scoreline
UAE 2-1 Saudi Arabia
UAE Mabkhout 21’, Khalil 59’
Saudi Al Abed (pen) 20’
Man of the match Ahmed Khalil (UAE)
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Indoor Cricket World Cup Dubai 2017
Venue Insportz, Dubai; Admission Free
Day 1 fixtures (Saturday)
Men 1.45pm, Malaysia v Australia (Court 1); Singapore v India (Court 2); UAE v New Zealand (Court 3); South Africa v Sri Lanka (Court 4)
Women Noon, New Zealand v South Africa (Court 3); England v UAE (Court 4); 5.15pm, Australia v UAE (Court 3); England v New Zealand (Court 4)
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
How to improve Arabic reading in early years
One 45-minute class per week in Standard Arabic is not sufficient
The goal should be for grade 1 and 2 students to become fluent readers
Subjects like technology, social studies, science can be taught in later grades
Grade 1 curricula should include oral instruction in Standard Arabic
First graders must regularly practice individual letters and combinations
Time should be slotted in class to read longer passages in early grades
Improve the appearance of textbooks
Revision of curriculum should be undertaken as per research findings
Conjugations of most common verb forms should be taught
Systematic learning of Standard Arabic grammar
The specs
Engine: 2.9-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 540hp at 6,500rpm
Torque: 600Nm at 2,500rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Kerb weight: 1580kg
Price: From Dh750k
On sale: via special order
Western Region Asia Cup T20 Qualifier
Sun Feb 23 – Thu Feb 27, Al Amerat, Oman
The two finalists advance to the Asia qualifier in Malaysia in August
Group A
Bahrain, Maldives, Oman, Qatar
Group B
UAE, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia
UAE group fixtures
Sunday Feb 23, 9.30am, v Iran
Monday Feb 25, 1pm, v Kuwait
Tuesday Feb 26, 9.30am, v Saudi
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza, Rohan Mustafa, Alishan Sharafu, Ansh Tandon, Vriitya Aravind, Junaid Siddique, Waheed Ahmed, Karthik Meiyappan, Basil Hameed, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Ayaz, Zahoor Khan, Chirag Suri, Sultan Ahmed
