<span style="color: #222222;">Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu today said India's linguistic diversity is the cornerstone of country's ancient civilization. Inaugurating a webinar on "Fostering Multilingualism for Inclusion in Education and Society" on the occasion of International Mother Language Day, Mr Naidu stressed on the need for usage of mother tongue. He expressed happiness that this year, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Culture and IGNCA are organizing the four day virtual event to preserve and promote awareness among the people. He said language links the past with the present and is the depositor of collective wisdom. He said mother tongue, which is an important link to socio cultural identity, needs to be preserved, promoted and propagated.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Mr Naidu said it is unfortunate and detrimental that children are being educated in a language which is alien and not spoken at home. He emphasised that initial education of a kid must be through mothertongue. He said educators and parents must take congnizance of this fact and primary education must be in mother tongue. He said usage of mother tongue must be included in governance.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Speaking on the occasion Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank said that the importance of language lies not only in national unity but also in strengthening the culture of the country. He highlighted that the National Education Policy- 2021 has given maximum attention to the development of mother tongues. Mr Pokhriyal said, research has proved that 90 per cent of a child's brain develops by the age of six and for the holistic development of the children, it is necessary that the knowledge is acquired in the mother tongue.</span><br />