In a bid to promote Sanskrit language in Delhi, the BJP government will hold 10-day free classes at over 1,000 locations, including schools, colleges and temples, in the national capital, Culture Minister Kapil Mishra announced on Wednesday.

According to the plan, the classes will begin on April 23. The government has partnered with NGO Samskrita Bharati to hold camps in various parts of the city. Each camp will offer two-hour daily sessions over 10 days, focusing on the basics of the language. "This will be the first such large-scale programme to promote the Sanskrit language in the city with 1,008 camps," Mishra said at an event held here. Mishra is one of the seven Delhi MLAs who took his oath in Sanskrit in the eighth Delhi Legislative Assembly.

BJP MP from North-East Delhi, Manoj Tiwari, who was also present at the event, said, “We often see hoardings encouraging people to 'Learn English.' For the first time, people will now see 'Learn Sanskrit' across Delhi. The language has greatly impacted my life." The campaign will conclude with a ceremony on May 4 at Delhi University, which Union Home Minister Amit Shah is likely to attend. Participants from the camps will be invited to the event.

Describing Sanskrit as the "soul of Indian culture and traditions," Jai Prakash, All India Sangathan Mantri, Samskrita Bharati, said, "Sanskrit is part of the Vedas and science. It's time it becomes a language of the people once again." Anyone who wants to participate can give a missed call on 9220915556 to register for classes, Prakash said and added that they have also launched a QR code for easy registrations.

The initiative, however, comes at a time when the BJP and several southern states, particularly Tamil Nadu, remain at odds over language-related policies and promotion initiatives. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin has been accusing the BJP of linguistic hegemony, alleging that while crores are being spent on promoting Sanskrit and Hindi, Tamil and other regional languages have been sidelined.

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