By Mahfuza Jasmine
DHAKA, Feb 14, 2019 (BSS)-Bangla Academy plans to build its Language Movement Museum as a centre of excellence where scholarships and other facilities will be offered for the country’s language researchers.
“Language Movement Museum will be a centre of excellence . . . country’s language researchers will be given various facilities, including scholarships, for carrying out research on languages,” said Bangla Academy Director General Habibullah Shirajee.
In an exclusive interview with BSS, Shirajee said, “Language Movement Museum will not only be a museum, it will also work to create facilities for language research.”
Besides, he said, scholarship will be given to language researchers, while general people and readers will be allowed to visit this museum free of cost.
Shirajee said language museum is the place for unveiling the national identity of Bengali. So, the National Museum can be rich by accumulating artefacts, but the language museum will be richer because of its historical background, he added.
Describing language movement as a beginning of Bangladesh’s independence movement, Shirajee emphasized building a language university to promote language consciousness among young generations.
“I think it is necessary to build a language university in the country . . . through this, the younger generation will be able to know about the history of Bangla and other languages and language movement,” he added.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated Bangla Academy Language Movement Museum on February 1 in 2010. The museum is located on the first floor of the historic Bardhaman House of Bangla Academy.
History of the language movement along with publications, photographs, compilation of documents and quotes related to the language movement has been preserved in the language museum. This museum could be the primary source of knowledge for those who want to know about historic language movement. This museum will also be helpful in collection of basic information for language researchers.
National Literature and Authors’ Museum and Bangla Academy Archive have been established on the ground floor of the same building. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the National Literature and Authors’ Museum on February 1, 2011.
In this museum, the history of Bangla language, heritage, writers of Bangla literature, literary and life and work of the poets, have been preserved.
In addition to ‘Amar Ekushey Boi Mela’ the visitors gather in the language movement museum throughout the month of February. People come to visit the museum and also express opinions on commentary book. The museum’s registers show that from February 2 to 7, the number of visitors to the museum has been increasing steadily.
Mohammad Fakir Azad of Nawabganj is a regular visitor the language museum since its inception in 2010. “I visit the language museum repeatedly because of my spiritual belief towards mother language,” he told BSS.
“I come here because I feel the presence of those who had sacrificed their lives for the mother language in 1952,” said Fakir Azad.
Recalling his first visit to book fair of the Bangla Academy, he said, “At the age of thirteen, I came to the book fair first with my elder sister when publishers displayed books on grass as there were no stalls. Now, Bangla Academy is organizing month-long book fair in colourfully decorated stalls.”
From Sunday to Thursday, the museum is open for all from 11am to 1pm and from 2pm to 4pm. The museum remains closed on Fridays, Saturdays and public holidays.
On the occasion of Amar Ekushey Boi Mela, the museum remains open every day. From Sunday to Thursday the museum is open for all from 3pm to 6pm. On Friday it is open from 11am to 12.30pm and 3pm to 6pm and On Saturday the museum is open from 11am to 1pm and 3pm to 6pm.