'Kannada literature huge draw for many'

But we are treating Kannada as a second rate language,” opined Retired Director of Kannada Institute of Development Studies, Dr T V Venkatachala Shastry.

He was speaking at the inauguration of a Kannada library at the National Institute of Engineering - Institute of Technology (NIE-IT) here on Monday.

Reminiscing about the orders given by the former ruler of Mysore, Chamaraja Wadiyar X, Dr Venkatachala Shastry said that the former king had instructed that subjects, including literature and science, be taught in Kannada.

In 1833, when English was ruling the roost in all schools run by the Britishers, the then ruler Mummadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar had said that Kannada should be given priority over other languages.

Appreciating the beauty of the Kannada script, Dr Venkatachala Shastry observed that retired justice Nittur Srinivasa Rao had said that the script represents the beauty and diversity of the culture and the region.

Addressing the gathering, retired Vice Chancellor of Kuvempu University, Dr K Chidananda Gowda said that even 600 years before Shakespeare wrote his first book, Kannada writers such as Pampa had already penned their greatest literary works.

Observing that English borrowed its script from other languages, Dr Gowda said that freedom fighter Vinoba Bhaave termed Kannada as the “Queen of scripts in the world”.

Rajyotsava awardees N Ramanuja, Prof A V Narasimha Murthy, Snake Shyam were felicitated on the occasion. NIE-IT President M A Sampath Iyengar, Principal Dr Vidya Raj C and others were present.