The Uttarakhand government will develop 13 Model Sanskrit Villages to promote the world’s oldest language and impart the knowledge of Indian philosophy, Vedas, and other scriptures to the lowest rung of society. Liquor consumption and non-vegetarian food will be discouraged in these villages.

The State Department of Sanskrit Education has identified 13 villages to develop them as model Sanskrit Grams (villages), resulting in the complete behavioural orientation of the villagers’ routine life in accordance with the Sanskrit language.

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According to officials in the Department of Sanskrit, trainers will soon be appointed in these villages to plan and initiate the exercise to enable villagers to use Sanskrit for routine interpersonal communication, alongside the local language. “The basic idea behind creating the Sanskrit Grams is to usher in an environment of the Sanskrit language in the state. The programme will help villagers learn routine communication in Sanskrit and connect the new generation with Indian philosophy and the knowledge system. This will also promote a culture of chanting Sanskrit hymns and reading scriptures like the Vedas, Puranas, and Upnishads during samskar ceremonies and functions as per Sanatan traditions,” said Deepak Kumar, Secretary, Department of Sanskrit Education, Uttarakhand.

Kumar added that public properties and other heritage sites in the model villages will be named in Sanskrit, and locals will be taught to inculcate the culture and habit of cleanliness in the area.

“Liquor consumption and non-vegetarian food habits will be discouraged, especially during marriages and other ceremonial occasions in the Model Sanskrit Villages. Periodic visits by local representatives, including MLAs and MPs, will be organised to maintain the spirit and motivation of transformation in these villages,” said Kumar.

He added that residents of these model villages will be taught to adopt ways of life as prescribed in Indian scriptures and literature. Adequate learning modules and activities will be introduced to help integrate these practices into daily life. A proper syllabus for learning Sanskrit will be prepared for villagers across different age groups, and trainers will guide and encourage them to read the Bhagwat Gita and chant Sanskrit shlokas every day.

“Apart from this, the model Sanskrit Villages will also have special study centres for children, which will be identified as ‘Baal Kendras’. These villages will subsequently be transformed into special tourism zones in the future once they are fully developed as Model Sanskrit Villages, as expected,” Kumar added.

According to the department, the state government will also ask industries, their associations, and organisations to develop employment-oriented vocational courses for the Model Sanskrit Villages in the coming days.

Significantly, the trainers to be deployed at the Model Sanskrit Villages in Uttarakhand will be sponsored by the Central Sanskrit University, Delhi. A regulatory body will be constituted in each village to monitor daily learning, Sanskrit classes, and related activities.