The University of Social Sciences and Humanities administration plans to establish an institute for Indian Cultural Studies, the Dean of Oriental Studies at the HCMC university said.
“In the near future, the faculty’s administrative staff will submit to the school’s board of presidents a plan for establishment of a center for Indian cultural studies,” Dean Hoang Van Viet said on Friday at this year’s Hindi celebrations at the university.
“We need cooperation from the staff, students of the faculty, support and practical help from the Consulate General of India, Indian Business Chamber in Vietnam, individuals, Vietnam and Indian government and non-government organizations; especially, direct and regular guidance of the university’s board of presidents,” Viet said.
He said the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in HCMC would concentrate on improving the Oriental Studies department’s research and international cooperation.
Indian Studies officially became the seventh department of the Oriental Studies faculty in 2000, and the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in HCMC offers the only Bachelor of Arts majoring in Indian Studies in Vietnam. Nearly 80 students have graduated with the major and they all have stable jobs, Viet said.
Hindi language teaching is an important part of the department. Standard Hindi which is one of the 22 official languages of India is widely spoken there and used in the administration of 10 states of the country, comprising 41% of the population. The total number of Hindi speakers as the first or second language is up to 650 million worldwide, ranking second after English with 1.8 billion speakers and Chinese with 1.35 billion.
The U.S.A’s National Security Language Initiative launched in 2006 identified Hindi as a critical language, and the nation’s Federal Government provides a grant of nearly US$1 million annually for Hindi teaching in the American schools.
Also at the event, Abhay Thakur, Consul General of India in HCMC, said, they would soon sponsor a visit for a senior professor from the University of Social Sciences and Humanities to India to visit the universities; bring an Indian senior lecturer to Vietnam; offer scholarships, as well as sponsor publication of a Vietnamese – Hindi dictionary.
