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Shashi Tharoor asked, “What purpose is being served by trying to make Hindi an official language in the United Nations? I understand the Prime Minister and External Affairs Minister can speak in Hindi, but what if a future External Affairs Minister comes from Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, who couldn’t speak in the language?” Minister Sushma Swaraj promptly responded that Hindi was not only spoken in India, but in countries such as Fiji, Mauritius, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago and Guyana, as well as by NRIs living in the United States. Other countries using Hindi should share the expenditure incurred in making the language an official one. “We are ready to spend. But smaller countries such as Mauritius won’t be able to pay. We are negotiating with them,” she said.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/what-is-the-purpose-of-hindi-as-an-official-language-in-un-asks-tharoor/article22357862.ece