In this role as Marathi Bhasha Minister, Vinod Tawde aimed at the promotion of the Marathi Language through all mediums and increasing its popularity in all walks of life.
Under his leadership, the department was keen on securing the classical status for Marathi and encouraged efforts on these parameters. The department worked towards officiating Marathi as the administrative language of Mumbai High Court in order to promote ease of understanding in a legal matter.
Furthermore, the Ministry aimed at extending the outreach of Marathi classical literature works by reprinting the old editions, conversion into electronic mediums and encouraging new writers.
State Laws Renamed
Per the amendments in the Maharashtra Rajyabhasha Act – 1954, Marathi was recognised as the official state language of Maharashtra. Apart from this, with an aim to popularise the use of Marathi in all walks of life, The Marathi Bhasha Department proposed changing the names of the laws in the state of Maharashtra. The names of the laws with the word ‘Bombay’ will be replaced with either ‘Maharashtra’ or ‘Mumbai’.
Pustakanch Gaav
Pustakanche Gaav’- Village of Books in Bhillar near Mahabaleshwar was Vinod Tawde’s brainchild. Inspired by England’s Hay-on-Wye, his initiative aimed at popularizing the habit of reading amongst all ages. Pustakanche Gaav includes books of various languages and programs such as ‘Author Talks’, ‘Book Discussions’ were regularly organized.
Adding the element of local flavour and culture, the department had approached the locals and encouraged them to open their homes to the visitors. The homes were developed as mini-libraries, encouraging local tourism and related ventures for the local population.
Birth Centenary Year of the Legends
Maharashtra is blessed with an incredible legacy of culture and heritage. The year 2018 was the centennial year for Maharashtra’s icons like Sudhir Phadke, Ga Di Madgulkar and Pu La Deshpande. Carrying forward their grand legacy and bringing it closer to our youth, various workshops and cultural events were organised across the state.
It was Vinod Tawde who ensured that these events were a way to pay a fitting tribute to our legends on their birth centenary year for enriching Maharashtra and its people with their works of art.
Vaachan Prerna Din (Reading Day)
The Marathi Bhasha Department, as a fitting tribute to our beloved President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, encouraged the celebration of his birth anniversary as ‘Reading Day’ across the state. This idea was brought to life by Vinod Tawde. The department mandated this day to be observed in schools and educational institutes across the state and this initiative was very well received by the students and teachers across the state. Many schools organized the event for the reading day and had enthusiastic participation from the students.
Marathi Bhasha Gaurav Din
Observed in honour of Maharashtra’s beloved poet Vi. Va. Shirwadkar ‘Kusumagraj’, Marathi Bhasha Gaurav Din is a celebration of the rich legacy and literary traditions of Marathi Bhasha. Each year, the celebration of Marathi Bhasha Din was linked to a theme for the overall promotion of Marathi literature among the next generation. Tawde ensured that the celebrations became a part of the school, college and university extracurricular activities across Maharashtra. Each of these helped channel creative energies to celebrate Marathi in the most unique way.
Marathi at Tel Aviv University
After a historic signing of MOU between the Ministry of Marathi Bhasha and the University of Tel Aviv, Israel, Marathi classes have commenced in the university. This decision was spearheaded by the initiative of Vinod Tawde.
The reason for taking a step in this direction was the centuries-old ties between Maharashtra and the Jewish Community. The Jewish Indian diaspora from Maharashtra still upholds their unique roots. They still proudly distinguish themselves as ‘Bene-Israel’. This initiative expands the frontiers of the Marathi language and introduces its richness to a larger audience globally.
Subsidised Slots for Marathi Book Vendors
With an aim to encourage the promotion of Marathi books, the department has offered subsidized slots for vendors and publishers of Marathi books.
The Municipal Corporations of all major cities across the state were instructed to provide for slots ranging from 500-1000 sq feet at subsidized rates for the sale of Marathi books.
Upgrading of Marathi Encyclopedia
The Marathi Bhasha Department, under Vinod Tawde, had appointed a committee of experts to help with the up-gradation of the Marathi Encyclopedia to help expand its outreach and aid the relevance of information.
The Encyclopedia consisting of 20 volumes were reviewed by experts covering its various subjects like literature, science, history, political science, social science and others.
Furthermore, special QR codes for Educational Content in Marathi were created to promote ease of access and exchange of information in the Marathi language. This also helped in providing additional learning tools for students who are formally studying in Marathi.
Promotion of Marathi Film Industry
Paying heed to the demands of the Marathi Film lovers, Vinod Tawd, in his capacity as the minister, urged the department to intervene with the movie theatres association and mandated primetime slots should also be allotted to Marathi Movies. Additionally, the department worked towards developing Maharashtra as Asia’s leading entertainment city by promoting the film industry and related infrastructural developments. Under Tawde’s leadership, for the first time, Marathi films premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in France. Furthermore, State Film awards were showcased with great pomp and later were telecasted on leading Marathi channels on national television.
Advance Payments for State-Sponsored Awards
Prior to Vinod Tawde taking charge of the Marathi Bhasha Department, major State-Sponsored Awards like the Sahitya Sammellan, Natya Sammellan had to wait months for clearing of the due and gain access to the allocated grant for these awards. In his capacity as the Marathi Bhasha Minister, Vinod Tawde ensure all the past dues are immediately cleared and following that, a special GR was released to ensure that the associations responsible for these awards received full payments in advance to organise these events grandly.