UPSC Prelims 2021 Q50: International Mother Language Day — Explained
Consider the following statements:
1. 21st February is declared to be the International Mother Language Day by UNICEF.
2. The demand that Bangla has to be one of the national languages was raised in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
- 1 only
- 2 only
- Both 1 and 2
- Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: (b) 2 only
Statement-wise explanation
- 1: incorrect — International Mother Language Day (21 February) was proclaimed by UNESCO, not UNICEF, at its General Conference in November 1999. The UN General Assembly welcomed the proclamation in resolution A/RES/56/262 (2002). UNICEF is the UN children's fund and does not proclaim international days.
- 2: correct — In February 1948 Dhirendranath Datta, a member from East Bengal, moved an amendment in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. It asked that Bengali be used alongside Urdu and English. It was rejected, and that rejection helped spark the Bangla Language Movement. On 21 February 1952 police fired on protesting students in Dhaka, and that date is what International Mother Language Day commemorates.
How to eliminate
Mostly fact-based, but two kinds of reasoning narrow it. Statement 1 swaps one UN body for another. Language, culture and education are UNESCO's mandate, and UNICEF works on children, so 'UNICEF' should make you suspicious. That cuts out the options that keep Statement 1. Statement 2 is plausible from basic history: Bengalis were the largest linguistic group in Pakistan, Urdu was pushed as the sole national language, and the conflict that produced 21 February started in Pakistan's own institutions. If you know the day commemorates the Dhaka language martyrs, the demand had to come up in Pakistan's Constituent Assembly first. Fact to remember: IMLD = UNESCO, November 1999, chosen to mark the 21 February 1952 Dhaka firing.
Know more
International Mother Language Day (IMLD)
The idea came from Bangladesh. UNESCO's General Conference proclaimed the day in November 1999, and it has been observed every 21 February since 2000. The UN General Assembly endorsed it in 2002 (A/RES/56/262). The 2021 theme was "Fostering multilingualism for inclusion in education and society".
Why 21 February: the Bangla Language Movement
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1948 | Urdu promoted as Pakistan's sole national language; Dhirendranath Datta's amendment for Bengali in the Constituent Assembly is rejected |
| 21 Feb 1952 | Police fire on students in Dhaka demanding state status for Bengali; the dead are remembered as language martyrs (Ekushey February, Shaheed Minar) |
| 1956 | Pakistan's first Constitution recognises Bengali as a state language with Urdu |
| 1971 | Bangladesh becomes independent; the language movement is seen as a root of the liberation struggle |
| 1999 | UNESCO proclaims 21 February as IMLD |
Don't mix up the UN bodies
| Body | Mandate |
|---|---|
| UNESCO | Education, science, culture, languages; proclaims IMLD; runs the World Heritage list |
| UNICEF | Children's rights and welfare |
| UNGA | Proclaims most other international days |
India's link
India observes the day as Matribhasha Diwas, run by the Ministries of Education and Culture. NEP 2020 stresses teaching in the mother tongue or home language, at least up to Grade 5 where possible. This is a common Mains link for the topic.
In the news
2021 marked 50 years of Bangladesh's independence and the Mujib centenary, which put the language movement in focus. In India, the Vice-President's widely covered IMLD 2021 messages and webinar on the theme 'Fostering multilingualism for inclusion' kept 21 February in current affairs.