Bengaluru: Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) issued a directive that all employees must take care to ensure Kannada, administrative language of the state, is not disrespected in colleges under its jurisdiction.As per the March 24 circular, all principals and heads of colleges must take personal responsibility to ensure respect for the language and harmony are maintained in institutions. If any violation is found, disciplinary action will be taken against staff. No teaching or non-teaching staff should use derogatory or inappropriate words about Kannada while communicating with students or others, the circular said. The move comes after Kannada Development Authority issued a letter to the university to ensure linguistic harmony. VTU vice-chancellor Prof S Vidyashankar said: “VTU has 220 affiliated colleges with 3 lakh students, including students from different states and countries. We are ensuring that Kannada is not disrespected. Since some unpleasant incidents have occurred, we have issued precautionary guidelines to prevent such situations.”The university faced a problem earlier when the warden of private engineering college hostel allegedly instructed students not to speak in Kannada. “If you want to speak in the language, do it at home,” he said in a video that went viral.Scholarships worth Rs 14L distributedUVCE Graduates’ Association (UVCEGA) hosted an award ceremony on March 28 as part of the scholarship programme that supported 72 students through various avenues. This year, scholarships amounting to Rs 14 lakh were distributed.
