Prayagraj: To bring Hindi out of the conventional literary circles and connect youth with the language, the Uttar Pradesh Hindustani Academy has planned to launch a series of programmes on Hindi literature, its history and India’s literary traditions, while stepping up efforts to preserve the memories of eminent writers.Academy secretary Ajit Singh said the initiative would focus on students of secondary schools and intermediate colleges by holding seminars, competitions and other interactive programmes there. Essay-writing and debate competitions will be included in the activities to inform youths about the lives and works of Hindi storytellers and litterateurs.“Gen Z is at an age when it can still be connected with India’s ancient language and literary traditions. We want to reach youths rather than wait for them to come to the academy,” Singh said. He added that the aim was to bring youngsters and writers together and build a larger literary family while preserving the rich legacy of Hindi and making it relevant to contemporary generations.The academy plans to extend its activities to all 18 divisions of the state through programmes for special occasions, literary enrichment and promotion of Hindi. A national seminar would be held in Sultanpur on Sept 16 on ‘Indian Knowledge Tradition and Awadhi Literature and Culture’ while Varanasi will host another seminar on Sept 19 on ‘Medieval Women’s Identity.’ The academy will also honour writers by visiting their homes and recalling their contribution.Meanwhile, the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan in Prayagraj has joined hands with the Union culture ministry’s Gyan Bharatam initiative to digitally preserve around 12,000 rare manuscripts. Sammelan prime minister Kuntak Mishra said the manuscripts were being digitised while retaining their original form and would subsequently be uploaded to the Gyan Bharatam website.The digitisation process began around three months ago and is aimed at ensuring that rare literary and historical material remains accessible to future generations.
