India for Hindi as UN language: Sharma

New Delhi: India plans to step up its diplomacy to have Hindi included as one of the official languages of the UN and popularise it outside the shores of the country as well.

"Hindi should be included in the UN. A substantial percentage of the world population uses this language," said Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma Friday night after launching the ministry's Hindi website.

The six official languages of the UN are English, French, Chinese, Russian, Spanish and Arabic.

All formal meetings are interpreted in these languages and all official documents, in print or online, are translated into all six.

Underlining the importance of popularising Hindi language and literature in the world, Sharma said an international Hindi conference would be held in New York early next year.

Launched by the public diplomacy department of the external affairs ministry, the website - www.meaindia.nic.in - is a bilingual one, with contents available in both Hindi and English.

The Hindi website, developed by the National Informatics Centre, will help the government project its position to a wider section of people on key foreign policy issues like the India-US nuclear deal, India-Pakistan peace process and India's engagement with major powers.

"It will be of great use in generating interest in Indian democracy, literature, culture, arts and socio-economic development," said Sharma, speaking in Hindi.

He also underlined the government's ongoing efforts to promote Hindi abroad by holding more regional conferences around the world. His ministry is encouraging its missions abroad to disseminate India-centric information in Hindi.

He, however, cautioned against creating a rivalry between English and Hindi stressing that both languages "should walk hand in hand" and be used to project the strengths of Indian culture and India's position on strategic issues.

More regional Hindi conferences, besides the World Hindi Conference, should be organised to deepen global understanding of the rich literature and legacy associated with Hindi, he emphasised.