National Seminar on Strengthening Multilingual Education Spotlights the Future of Inclusive Learning in India
The seminar opened with a compelling address by Dr. Dhir Jhingran, Founder and Executive Director of LLF. Reflecting on LLF's decade-long work in the foundational learning space, he said, 'The most important aspect of a multilingual approach is mindset about children's first languages or local languages. We must support development of a mindset that welcomes and respects children's home languages and supports their active use in classrooms. That is the bottom line - an attitude that recognises these languages not as inferior, but as valuable and worthy of inclusion in education.' Shri Sanjay Kumar, IAS, Secretary, Department of School Education & Literacy, Ministry of Education, delivered the keynote address. Emphasising the urgency of mainstreaming MLE, he stated, 'Language gives us identity. It's not just a means of communication—it shapes how we think, feel, and connect. If a child learns one language well, they can learn any language well. That's the strength of multilingualism that our education policy must embrace.' The Guest of Honour, Ms. Prachi Pandey, Joint Secretary (Institutions and Training), Ministry of Education, reinforced the significance of language equity 'India's linguistic diversity is a living symbol of our pluralism. When all languages are treated as equal in the classroom, we nurture not just stronger learning outcomes, but a more inclusive and cohesive society.' The seminar featured a Special Address by Dr. Saadhna Panday, Chief of Education, UNICEF India, who highlighted the need for system-level change 'With all the effort around multilingualism, we compromise quality if it is not well-resourced. Now we have the evidence of what works, we have great commitment from the government, and we've built the momentum with NIPUN 1.0. India has done fantastically with NEP, with NCF, with NIPUN Bharat—really emphasizing the child's home language as the medium of instruction. We need to align these fantastic policies with existing evidence and scale what works.' The Gallery Walk of the MLE Material Exhibition, inaugurated by the Chief Guest and Guest of Honour, offered a vibrant showcase of multilingual teaching-learning resources developed by state governments and education partners. A key highlight was the display of innovative materials created through LLF's ongoing collaborations with states such as Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, and Rajasthan—demonstrating contextually rich, inclusive tools designed to support foundational learning in diverse linguistic settings.
The technical sessions spotlighted powerful examples of Multilingual Education (MLE) in action, including the Neev – Multilingual Education Programme in Chhattisgarh and initiatives by NCERT and UNICEF. These sessions are transforming early grade classrooms into more inclusive and effective learning spaces.
The seminar concluded with a collective reflection on the way forward, reaffirming a strong commitment to equity-led foundational learning. LLF's vision—'A Strong Foundation, Stronger Future'—was a recurring theme, with calls for stronger policy alignment and increased support from states to scale multilingual education across the country.
About Language and Learning Foundation Language and Learning Foundation (LLF) is a system-focused and impact-driven organisation working at scale towards improving the Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) outcomes of children in government primary schools in India.
Foundational skills such as reading with comprehension, writing independently, and doing simple subtraction are gateway skills that must be acquired and mastered for all future learning in schools. The World Bank has estimated more than half the children in India at late primary age cannot read and understand grade-appropriate short sentences, also defined as learning poverty.
Similar findings have been reported by the National Achievement Survey (NAS) and the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER). At LLF, we believe that large-scale transformation in the teaching and learning process is required to address this crisis. With the focus on learning at the bottom of the pyramid, LLF works in educationally marginalized areas where children come from families with low literacy levels, deprived social groups, and where home languages are different from school languages.
(Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PNN and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.).
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NDTV
3 hours ago
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Time of India
7 hours ago
- Time of India
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As far as state wise figures are concerned, Jammu and Kashmir had suffered the highest number of 69, closely followed by Haryana 58, Punjab 45 and tiny Himachal Pradesh had suffered 41 casualties in Kargil war. The states of Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir constitute 2.09%, 2.9%, 0.56% and 1.04% respectively of the total population of the country. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like The World's Most Stunning Blue Flag Beaches Ranked: Top 25 List! Click Here Undo These figures of state wise casualties of soldiers in the Kargil war were placed before the Lok Sabha on July 27, 2000. As per the official data, the highest number of 147 casualties of soldiers were from Uttar Pradesh, 69 from Jammu and Kashmir, 54 from Rajasthan and 17 were from Bihar. Even 21 soldiers, who were native of Nepal, had also lost their lives in this war. Casualties from the region in Kargil war State Total Casualties Population (%) Haryana 58 2.09 Punjab 45 2.29 Himachal Pradesh 41 0.56 Jammu & Kashmir 69 1.04 Total 213 5.98 Data Source: Parliament digital library Prominent Kargil heroes from the region Vikram Batra, Param Vir Chakra (posthumously): Known as hero of the Kargil war, Capt Batra of 13 JAK Rifles had captured two strategically important peaks---Peak-5140 and Peak-4875 and was awarded country's highest gallantry award---PVC (posthumously). He is also famous for his slogan "Yeh Dil Mange More" and for the name "Shershah" given by his unit. He was from Palampur in Himachal Pradesh. Subedar Sanjay Kumar, Param Vir Chakra: Posted with 13-JAK Rifles, he volunteered to be the leading scout of the attacking column tasked to capture the Flat Top of Point 4875 in the Mushkoh Valley on July 4 1999. During the attack when enemy automatic fire from one of the sangars posed stiff opposition and stalled the column, Sanjay Kumar (then a Rifleman) realizing the gravity of the situation and with utter disregard to his personal safety, charged the enemy In the ensuing hand-to-hand combat, he killed three of the intruders and was himself seriously injured. Taken totally by surprise, the enemy left behind one Universal Machine Gun and started running. He picked up the gun and killed the fleeing enemy. He is from Himachal Pradesh. Colonel Balwan Singh, Maha Vir Chakra (MVC): Posted as Lieutenant with 18-Grenadiers during kargil war, Balwan Singh and his team were tasked to assault Tiger Hill Top on the night of July 3, 4, 1999. The team led and exhorted by him moved for over twelve hours under Intense Artillery Shelling by the enemy to reach the designated location. This outflanking manoeuvre took the enemy totally by surprise as his team used Cliff Assault mountaineering equipment to reach the Tiger Hill Top, by stealth. He was awarded the country's second highest—MVC for his unparalleled courage. He is from Haryana. His son has recently joined the army. Captain Amol Kalia, Vir Chakra (Posthumously): On June 8, 1999, Captain Amol Kalia along with his men were tasked to capture an enemy post at Point 5203 in the Batlik-Yaldor Sector at a height of 17,000 feet. Leading from the front, Captain Kalia selected the least likely approach, which was tough and difficult. He assaulted the enemy position with a handful of men and managed to capture the height against heavy volume of enemy artillery and small arms fire. Soon the enemy launched a counterattack. In a hand-to-hand fight, which followed, his light machine gun crew was killed. Captain Kalia took over the light machine gun himself and killed three enemy personnel and injured three others. In the action he was hit by a burst of bullets and breathed his last on June 9, 1999. A native of Una in Himachal Pradesh, Kalia was awarded Vir Chakra—the third highest gallantry award of the country. Squadron Leader Ajay Ahuja, Vir Chakra: Squadron Leader Ajay Ahuja was the first casualty of Kargil war. Ahuja's MiG-27 was brought down by a Pakistani missile on May 27, 1999, when he had gone scouting for missing Flight Lieutenant Nachiketa's aircraft. Arrested by Pakistani authorities, Ahuja was allegedly tortured to death. He was also awarded Vir Chakra (posthumously) for his heroic act. Lance Naik Ghulam Mohammad Khan, Vir Chakra: He was a soldier of 12-JAK-LI (Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry) and resident of Baramulla in J&K. On June 7, 1999, he displayed exceptional bravery during the assault on Point 5203. He spotted 20 enemy soldiers, neutralised three with a rocket launcher, and held his ground despite heavy retaliation that claimed eight comrades. 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Timeline of Kargil War May 6, 1999 | Army Petrol spotted 9-10 infiltrators in the east of Batalik May 7, 1999 | Pakistan Artillery fired on Indian Petrol May 8, 1999 | First clash between troops and infiltrators May 9, 1999 | Heavy Shelling from Pakistan damaged Ammunition depot at Kargil May 10-14, 1999 | Infiltrators spotted in Drass, Kaksar and Mushkoh valley May 15, 1999 | Captain Saurabh Kalia of 4-Jat regiment and his petrol party was caught alive by Pakistan Army May 26, 1999 | Entry of Air Force in Combat action June 13, 1999 | Tololing, a major ridgeline, in the Drass sub-sector was captured after several weeks of bitter fighting. Captain Neikezhakuo Kenguriise sacrificed his life when he led a platoon to re-capture Tololing. He was later awarded Mahavir Chakra, the second highest gallantry award. June 21, 1999 | Point 5203 was recaptured under the leadership of captain Amod Kalia who later attained martyrdom. July 5, 1999 | Tiger Hill recaptured-- the 4660 metre strategic mountain position from which Pakistani soldiers dominated the Srinagar-Leh highway in Drass sector. Grenadier Yogender Yadav who was awarded Param Vir Chakra (PVC) for his bravery displayed in capturing Tiger Hills. Captain Vikram Batra PVC (Posthumous) also played a key role in capturing the strategic post. July 6, 1999 | Khalubar was recaptured-- The capture of Khalubar proved to be the turning point in Operation Vijay and led to the complete rout of the enemy. Lt Manoj Pandey PVC (Posthumous) displayed exceptional courage in capturing the post. July 7, 1999 | Point 4875 was recaptured by captain Vikram Batra who led his men to victory on this post. Now the post is named as Vikram Batra post. July 14, 1999 | Both sides ceased their military operations. Jul 26, 1999 | Indian armed forces achieved victory in the Kargil War after three months' strife. Thereafter July 26 is celebrated as Vijay Divas every year. Kargil War Fact file Number of Intruders Initial reports spoke of only 100 intruders, but later reports confirmed the number was at 3,000. Cost Daily cost of war for India was at around Rs 15 crore. Causalities: As per the official data of ministry of defence 527 Indian soldiers dead and 1,363 wounded during the conflict. Deployment The total Indian troop strength in the region had reached 730,000. The build-up included the deployment of around 60 frontline aircraft. Terrain The battle terrain of 'Operation Vijay' is dominated by high altitude peaks and ridgelines most of which are over 16000 ft. This region is part of the 'cold desert' region of Ladakh. Air operations The Air Force carried out nearly 550 sorties of all types over 50-odd days of operations during the conflict. One Mig-21, one Mig-27 and one MI-17 helicopter were lost. The planes used for ground attack were MiG-2ls, MiG- 23s, MiG-27s, Jaguars and the Mirage- 2000. Record Bombing The Indian Artillery fired over 250,000 shells, bombs and rockets during the Kargil conflict. Approximately 5,000 Artillery shells, mortar bombs and rockets were fired daily from 300 guns, mortars and MBRLs. Such high rates of fire over long periods had not been witnessed anywhere in the world since the Second World War.


News18
12 hours ago
- News18
Prof Uma Kanjilal Appointed As First Woman Vice Chancellor Of IGNOU
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