GUWAHATI, April 26 ? The Asam Sahitya Sabha has postponed its proposed agitation scheduled to begin from May 18 next, on the issue of implementation of the State Language Act, in view of the State Government?s forming an eight-member advisory committee to study the problems and recommend measures for implementation of the Act.
Meanwhile, the Sabha has decided to remake the first Assamese film Joymati made by Rupkonwar Jyoti Prasad Agarwalla synchronising with the birth centenary of Rupkonwar. The Sabha has also made considerable progress in the production of the Assamese Encyclopedia (Asamiya Biswakosh) and it is expected that the first four volumes of the encyclopedia will be available to buyers by November next. Disclosing these, Sahitya Sabha general secretary Dr Basanta Kumar Goswami told newsmen at the Bhagawati Prasad Baruah Bhawan here this evening that the Sahitya Sabha had to opt for an agitational programme on the issue of implementation of the State Language Act in the face of the apathy shown by the State Government on the issue.
The State Government dragged the issue for more than four decades and facing pressure from the Sabha it even went for a fracical decision to use the official language in State Government offices only on Monday that too to mark the page numbers, office notes, serial numbers and contents on March 14 last. But faced with the threat of agitation from the Sabha, the State Government issued an ordinance on April 10, appointing an eight-member committee with the president of the Sabha as its chairman, to study and advise on matters relating to the implementation of the Act. The committee?s term will be for four years, Dr Goswami said. The Sabha has formed a committee to celebrate the birth centenary of Rupkonwar Jyoti Prasad Agarwalla. The celebration will start on June 17, 2002 with a year-long programme. To turn the celebration in a national event for the people of Assam the Sabha has initiated the process of forming local units of the celebration committee.
The programme of the celebration includes, among others, installing life-style statues and bust of the Rupkonwar at Jorhat, Guwahati, Diphu and Dhubri, publication of commemorative postal stamp, renaming of the Tezpur University campus after the Rupkonwar, publication of the Rupkonwar?s letters, introduction of a national award in the name of the Rupkonwar, publication of the notations of the Rupkonwar?s songs, compilation of a biography of the Rupkonwar, translation of the Rupkonwar?s artistic works in ethnic languages and remaking his Joymati. The compilation of the first four volumes of the Asamiya Biswakosh has progressed considerably. The Biswakosh projects expected to be completed by 2017 AD, has been planned with 22 volumes on various subjects with an estimated cost of Rs 3 crore 98 lakh. Each of the volumes will contain 1,000 pages and will be bounded superbly so as to match international standard. Each of the volumes will cost the buyers Rs 1,000 with a provision of 20 per cent rebate for those who book in advance.
The two volumes on science and technology will also have coloured photographs to illustrate their contents. The first volumes are planned on Indian literature (one volume) world literature (one volume) and science and echnology (two volumes). Dr Jogendranath Bhuyan is the editor-in-chief of the volume on Indian literature, while Dr Birendranath Dutta of the volume on world literature and Dr Dinesh Goswami of the two volumes on science and technology, said Dr Goswami.