Set up exclusive university to teach in Kannada

BANGALORE: Jnanpith awardee Dr Chandrashekara Kambar said that the state government should establish an exclusive university, where degree courses are taught in Kannada.Kambar was felicitated by Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda on Monday in a function organised by the Department of Kannada and Culture. The state government gave a cheque of Rs. 5 lakh to Kambar. Speaking on the occasion, Kambar said that in order to encourage Kannada, the state government should establish an institute where teaching is done in Kannada from kindergarten to post graduation. “Let experts design the syllabus,” he said.Kambar opined that there is a need to develop Kannada software and update it. “When we start using Kannada as we use English in software, it is then that we can popularise the language,” he said. He called for the development of softwares in Kannada to promote the language in a big way. “The committee which I was part of, had submitted the report to the government for the promotion of Kannada in the IT industry. It has been more than two years, nothing has been done,” he added.Recalling his early days, Kambar said that he comes from community who are blacksmiths. “When I started writing, people started making fun of me. I did not know how to work with iron, though my father tried teaching me. I continued writing and I am proud of what I have achieved today,” he said.