India Rejoins Unicode Consortium for Global Language Support
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) of India rejoined the Unicode Consortium as a Supporting Member. This move positions India as one of only two government members with voting rights within the consortium. The Unicode Consortium plays important role in standardising text and emojis across the internet, ensuring that various languages, including Indian languages, are recognised globally.
Background of Unicode Consortium
The Unicode Consortium is a non-profit organisation responsible for developing and maintaining the Unicode Standard. This standard encodes characters from virtually all writing systems in use . It aims to encourage international communication by providing a consistent way to represent text in computers and on the internet.
India’s Involvement in Unicode
India’s involvement with the Unicode Consortium began in 2000. The government aimed to promote Indian languages and scripts in the digital realm. The initiative was part of the Technology Development for Indian Languages (TDIL) programme. This programme was designed to create a digital infrastructure that supports Indian languages and scripts.
Membership Details
The recent membership requires an annual commitment of $20,000, approximately ₹17 lakh. This financial investment grants MeitY a half vote in the technical committee’s decision-making processes. The technical committee primarily meets in the United States and online, allowing India to participate in discussions regarding global text representation.
Challenges and Criticism
Despite the membership, there have been concerns about the effectiveness of India’s participation. Reports indicated that the Tamil Virtual Academy, a member since 2003, has not actively engaged with the consortium since 2016. This raises questions about the actual impact of such memberships on the promotion of Indian languages.
Significance of Rejoining
Rejoining the Unicode Consortium is for India. It allows the country to influence decisions regarding the inclusion of Indian scripts and emojis. This influence is essential for ensuring that Indian languages are adequately represented in digital formats.
Future Implications
The renewed membership could lead to better digital representation of Indian languages. It may also encourage other states to engage meaningfully with the consortium. The ongoing commitment to internationalising Indian scripts is vital for preserving linguistic heritage in a digital age.
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