My language, my pride

May 30, 1987, a day engraved in the history as the day Goa received statehood and went on to become the 25th State of India. The demand for statehood was first brought to fore by the supporters of Konkani language in order to preserve the Goan identity.

But, even after Konkani receiving the official language status it has not yet received the popularity and respect it deserves in Goa itself. 'The Navhind Times' tried to find out through the youth of Goa the population's perception towards the mother tongue of the state and realised that they do have respect for Konkani but the language needs to have a greater platform and uniformity to promote it.
"I did my primary education in Konkani medium. I consider that as one of the best decisions my parents made. It helped me think critically in my mother tongue itself, without any conversion / translation (in terms of processing information in mind) and thus, I believe, I got a better analytical thought development that further helped me in my life. Yes, Goans do respect Konkani but due to people moving in from different places, speaking Konkani is not always feasible but, in my friend circle, we all speak in Konkani and respect it very much."

Gautam Parab, Graduate Student, State University of New York at Buffalo

"I guess the medium of instruction being English in most places it has given a further boost to that language. Maybe if we had some good Konkani songs / books available people would feel proud of the language. In a small place like Goa there are numerous dialects of Konkani and this is the reason why people prefer to speak English. But I am definitely proud of Konkani. Whenever I travel to any part of the world, and the moment I find a Konkani speaking person, it makes me feel at home."

Pooja Lawande, lecturer, Calangute
I still don't know whether there is standardised Konkani for Goa. If by Konkani you mean the one which has been described in the book 'Karabaree Konkani', than I am not proud of it because it is out of my reach to decipher and understand it. Since I did my primary schooling in Marathi, I am comfortable expressing myself in Marathi. And the Konkani-Marathi issue is much beyond than defining a linguistic identity to Goa. It's a game of dirty politics of one community trying to prove their supremacy using this issue as a channel.

Kaustubh Naik, Computer Science student, Ponda
"I do speak Konkani at home, with friends and at work and I am really proud of it. I feel sad when people who know Konkani very well, speak in English or any other language. They feel inferior as all their friends speak English. If we don't support our mother tongue Konkani in Goa…who will? If we have to see Konkani rise up, every Goan has to endorse it, speak and write it. It is sad to see that Konkani applications are not entertained in many government offices."