The Department of Art, Culture & Language of the Delhi government, under the leadership of Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, today set up and notified Tamil Academy to promote Tamil language and culture. The Delhi government has appointed Ex-MCD councillor and current member of Delhi Tamil Sangam N Raja as the Vice-Chairman of the academy. The newly set-up academy will soon be allocated an office space with the necessary infrastructure.

“Delhi is a culturally rich city where people from all parts of the country live and work. It is this diversity that forms Delhi’s vibrant and cosmopolitan culture. Delhi has a large population of people from Tamil Nadu and we want to present a platform to the people of Delhi to get the taste of the art and culture of Tamil Nadu. I am glad that many notable people like the newly elected Vice Chairman Shri N Raja came forward and joined hands with us to establish this academy,” said Deputy CM Manish Sisodia who also holds the charge of the Art, Culture and Language Department.

On the occasion, N Raja said, “I am glad to see that the Delhi Government under Deputy CM Shri Sisodia has established the Tamil language academy. I am honoured to be a part of this academy. The Tamil language and culture have a long tradition in the history of Indian culture as well as in Delhi. With the formation of this academy, we will kickstart a new journey of preserving the language in Delhi and promote it too.”

The Department of Art, Culture and Language of the Delhi govt has decided that the new academy will introduce various awards to promote and reward the good works of people in Tamil language and culture. The government will also provide language courses through this academy. The Delhi government will also celebrate and organise cultural festivals for the people of Tamil Nadu.

The culture of the Tamil people is rooted in several forms of expression such as dance, music, literature, folk arts. Being the birthplace for one of the oldest civilisations, the Tamil identity and its culture is strongly centred around its language which is fondly referred to as the Tamilannai (The Tamil Mother).

N Raja has a longstanding involvement in preserving and promoting the Tamil language and culture. He has been actively promoting the language through the Delhi Tamil Sangam, of which he is a current member.