Natural Language Translation

Introduction

Linguistically, India is an extremely diverse country. While there are 22 ‘scheduled languages' in the country, over 120 languages are spoken by ‘10,000 people or more'. The diversity in India in terms of culture and language does bring with it its own set of challenges. The lack of a standard ‘language of communication’ is an impediment in realizing the vast potential India’s demographic divide has to offer. For the fifth of the world’s young population that resides in India, the use of the English language does surface as a solution, however, the requirement of a high level of proficiency in English acts as an impediment to many. 

Keeping such factors in consideration, the ‘Natural Language Translation’ mission of the PM-STIAC aims to make opportunities and progress in science and technology accessible to all in their mother tongue and remove the barrier that a requirement of a high-level of proficiency in English poses. Using a combination of machine and human translation, the mission will eventually enable access to teaching and researching material bilingually – in English and one’s native Indian language.

Additionally, the government has also initiated the ‘National Translation Mission’ aimed at the formation of an inclusive knowledge society via machine-aided translation between English and Indian languages.

Under National Language Translation Mission, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) launched Bhasini Platform in July 2022. BHASHINI aims to transcend language barriers, ensuring that every citizen can effortlessly access digital services in their own language. Using voice as a medium, BHASHINI has the potential to bridge language as well as the digital divide.