Bengaluru shops have been asked to ensure that 60% of the content on signboards should be in Kannada.
Bengaluru:
Amid the controversy over the Karnataka government’s order asking shops to ensure at least 60 per cent Kannada content in signage, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar today said the deadline to comply with the rule has been extended by two weeks . However, the Deputy Chief Minister clarified that the Congress government is expected to follow the law.
He said in a post on To be.”
Keeping in mind that more time is required to install 60% Kannada nameplates in all shops, commercial outlets etc. in Bangalore, the already given time limit has been extended by 2 weeks.
Kannada is sovereign in Kannada land, hence it is very important to maintain the language of our heart.
— DK Shivakumar (@DKShivakumar) 29 February 2024
“It is important that we fully respect our mother tongue, so we hope that this law will be duly followed, and we will see its compliance by the end of the extended period of 2 weeks,” the post said.
Earlier, in a move that brought the Hindi versus Kannada debate back into the spotlight, the Bengaluru civic body in December had asked shops to ensure that at least 60 per cent of the content on their signboards was in Kannada.
Bruhat Bengaluru Municipal Corporation chief commissioner Tushar Giri Nath had warned that commercial stores under the civic body’s jurisdiction would face legal action if they did not comply by the end of February. He had said that in this action, along with fine, the trade license can also be cancelled.
The ’60 per cent Kannada’ signage rule is set to be implemented across the state after the Siddaramaiah government brought in the Kannada Language Comprehensive Development (Amendment) Bill, 2024. The law has been approved by the Assembly and the assent of the Governor has also been received.
The 60 per cent signage rule was announced after dramatic scenes in Bengaluru markets over the language dispute. In a viral video, leaders of Karnataka Raksha Vedike, an organization pushing the language issue, were seen threatening shopkeepers on a microphone. A leader was heard saying, “This is Karnataka. Kannadigas are the pride of this state. You go and show your pride in your state. Marwaris, next time you say you don’t know Kannada, you will be on target.” “
The promotion of Kannada language has received support from across the political spectrum. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has earlier said that every person living in Karnataka should learn Kannada. “We are all Kannadigas. Since the unification of Karnataka, people speaking different languages have settled in this Kannada land. Every person living in this state should learn to speak Kannada,” he said in October.
“It is impossible to survive in states like Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh without learning the local language, but you can survive in Karnataka even if you don’t speak Kannada,” he said. Even in his first term, the Chief Minister had emphasized on the widespread use of the local language.
BJP MP from Karnataka and Union Minister Pralhad Joshi has also supported the signage move. Speaking to NDTV after members of pro-Kannada groups vandalized some shops in Bengaluru over the language dispute, he had said, “Everyone should be able to read signs and not everyone can read English. What’s the harm in me?” In English or in some other language, like Hindi? This isn’t England.”
“If violence has taken place, it cannot be sanctioned but these people (shopkeepers) should also understand the sentiment and need,” he said.
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