Lok Sabha goes multilingual: Interpretation in all 22 scheduled languages; Kashmiri, Konkani, Santhali added

NEW DELHI: Simultaneous interpretation of parliamentary proceedings in all 22 languages listed in the eighth schedule of the constitution is now available, lok sabha speaker OM Birla announced on Tuesday during the monsson session of the parlianment.

Until now, the service covered 18 languages – Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Kannada, Maithili, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. The addition of Kashmiri, Konkani and Santhali has completed the list.

After the announcementm, BJP MP Dr Sanjay Jaiswal urged the government to add Bhojpuri to the constitution.


In November, it was reported that the Centre for Human-Centric Artificial Intelligence at IIT Madras Pravartak Technologies Foundation was developing technology to translate parliament debates into 22 Indian languages in real time.

The eighth schedule of the constitution initially listed 14 languages when the constitution came into effect. Amendments over the years have raised the number to 22. These languages are entitled to representation on the official languages commission, and their promotion is supported by the government.

The parliament of India reflects India’s linguistic diversity, with members coming from different states and speaking in their mother tongues. Many parliamentarians prefer to use their regional languages during debates, making interpretation services essential for smooth communication in the house.