APPENDIX R PRODUCTION OF TEXT-BOOKS AND POPULAR AND AUTHORITATIVE BOOKS IN PROVINCIAL LANGUAGES
Production of (a) text-books up to the Intermediate stage in the provincial language orlanguages and (b) of popular and authoritatice books for the general reader, also in the provincial languages.
The memorandum submitted by the University of Bombay at whose instance the Secretary of the Inter-University Board, India, suggested the subject for discussion is reproduced below :-
"(a) it is high time that such a central organization as the Board should give an impetus to the production of proper text-books in Indian languages. It is no longer a debated question that education through the mother tongue of a pupil is the most vital education. It is also clear that first text-books must be prepared under the direction of the Universities. It is further evident that the initial outlay on such a project has to he large. The Universities by themselves cannot provide all the finance necessary. The Government of India and the Provincial Governments must be influenced to make large subsidies for such a project. Even adult education can be real education only when books of the highest standard are available in the mother tongue of a learner. All sides considered there is hardly any other task more worthy of the active help and sponsoring by the Central Board.
"(b) It need hardly be mentioned that a number of popular and authoritative books are in existence in England. Adult education will be helped by the existence of such books. Adult education through English is not only an impossibility but also an undesirability. At present, there are hardly any authoritative books in simple style, avoiding the deep technicalities of the subject, in Indian languages. Those who can read depend for their knowledge on the half-knowledge and worse still that possessed by newspaper writer. Literature on Politics, Socialism, Psychology, etc., is badly wanted; because the cheap and doctrinaire literature, issued by interested parties (and these have enough knowledge of Psychology to issue it in the mother tongue of the people-is warping the minds of a larger section of the population. This work therefore is as important as the work mentioned in the foregoing paragraph."