Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the importance of leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to promote Marathi literature and preserve the works of renowned Marathi writers for future generations. Addressing the third ‘Vishwa Marathi Sammelan’ at Fergusson College in Pune on Friday, Fadnavis instructed the state’s Marathi Language Department to develop a compact AI language model aimed at enhancing the reach of Marathi language and literature.
The central government last year accorded the “classical language” tag to Marathi. Responding to industry minister Uday Samant's comment about concerns raised over the Marathi Language Department's organization of the event, Fadnavis stated that debate is an essential element, whether the gathering is a literary meet or a theatre festival.
“Such events cannot be complete without discussions and differences of opinion. In fact, creating a debate is part of our core temperament because we are emotional and sensitive people. Debate and counter-debate must take place. Only then will real intellectual churning happen,” the CM said.
“Our language has always been classical, but official recognition is significant. When the Mughals made Persian the ‘Rajbhasha’ of this country, it was Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj who made Marathi the official language of swarajya. He was the one who granted Marathi its royal recognition,” Fadnavis said.
The Chief Minister highlighted that the current era is driven by AI, with efforts underway to elevate Marathi as a language of knowledge. "In the age of AI, if we harness its potential to integrate our rich Marathi literature into a compact language model, we can create a ChatGPT-like tool that will allow future generations to access the literary works of many Marathi writers," he said. He further encouraged the state’s Marathi Language Department to experiment with and develop an AI-based Marathi language model.