National Translation Mission
Encyclopedia
National Translation Mission (NTM) is a Government of India
initiative to make knowledge texts accessible, in all Indian languages
listed in the VIII schedule of the Constitution, through translation
. NTM was set up as per National Knowledge Commission's
recommendation. The Ministry of Human Resource Development
has designated Central Institute of Indian Languages as the nodal organization for the operationalization of NTM.
, the primary medium of higher education in India, remains inaccessible to even the literate majority of the country. Therefore, there is an urgent need to translate material in all fields like literary, technical, scientific and business etc. so that such material is accessible to a wide range of different language speaking population across the country. Translation, thus, is seen not just as an instrument of democratizing and secularizing knowledge, but also of empowering languages and speech communities.
NTM intends to establish translation as an industry in the country. Its main objectives include generation of translation tools such as dictionaries and thesauri
; development of software for translation, memory, etc.; promotion of machine translation
and machine aided translation; translator education through orientation programs & courses; fellowships & grants for research projects, etc. Bringing visibility to translators and translation activities by organizing book launches for translations; instituting prizes and fellowships; organizing Regional Festivals of Translation; book exhibitions, etc. also are part of the activities of NTM.
Project Advisory Committee (NTM-PAC) of NTM, with Joint Secretary(L), MHRD, as the Chairperson, is the highest decision making body of NTM. It is a committee of 25 members representing various sections of the academic community, ministerial bodies and publishing houses related to translation. NTM-PAC is supported by four sub-committees in matters related to copyrights and legal matters; selecting knowledge texts; fixing rates for translators, copy editors etc.; and Grant in Aid schemes of NTM.
Lists of the most prescribed texts in Indian universities in various disciplines are generated out of the Knowledge Text Module, another major facet of NTM-databases. Two searchable database components have been created under it: Indian Universities Database and Knowledge Text Database. Indian Universities Database furnishes information on courses, syllabi and textbooks etc. of over 350 Union Grants Commission (UGC) accredited universities and institutions. Knowledge Text Database
provides complete details of the prescribed books. When made public, this would become one of the first state
initiatives to provide information about all the universities/institutions and courses which can be accessed through a single window. It would help scholars and academicians from various regions to access the latest information on courses and syllabi of any university/institution of the country. University
Boards can review the course details and syllabi structure of other universities before revising their curriculum. This may help in creating parity among universities of rural and urban regions.
NTM-databases, created in Microsoft SQL 2005
, can contain a maximum of 2^31 objects and span multiple Operating System-level files with a maximum file size of 220 Terabyte
. Control mechanisms have been incorporated to the database for concurrent access to shared data, for ensuring data integrity. NTM aims to increase the usability of the databases by making them both as web and standalone applications.
, Hindi
, Kannada, Malayalam, Oriya
and Tamil
is completed. English-Hindi, English-Bengali and English-Kannada dictionaries are already published by Pearson Education India. The second phase includes four other Indian languages– Punjabi
, Gujarati
, Marathi
and Telugu
, out of which work on the first two languages has been completed.
NTM has extended the work to 8 other Indian languages also- Assamese
, Konkani
, Maithili
, Manipuri, Nepali
, Sanskrit
, Santali
and Urdu
.
NTM has been interacting with several teams (like C-DAC, Pune, Noida, Mumbai; LTRC, ILMT, EILMT, Anusaaraka, Shakti—all at IIIT, Hyderabad) engaged in developing Machine Translation software to explore the extent to which the MT research and NTM can interface for mutual benefit.
NTM has been collecting syllabi directly from universities through extensive fieldworks and also through virtual search. Information and opinion from faculty and students texts prescribed and referred in various courses taught in these universities were also recorded during these fieldworks.
Regional Language Knowledge Text Scenario Survey
NTM has been conducting a survey to study the need and demand for knowledge texts in translation, the availability of knowledge texts, and the general publication scenario in regional languages in order to formulate strategies for productive interventions by NTM. Interactions with various regional publishers, faculty, students, translators, and librarians, etc. were carried out during this survey.
Discipline Experts Inputs
In order to finalise the knowledge texts to be taken up for translation by NTM, experts of various disciplines across the country were contacted and inputs have been collected. NTM has gathered lists of books recommended by the experts in more than twenty disciplines for translation. NTM has also contacted discipline experts with regional language background to ratify the selection of these books.
Royalty Scenario
NTM conducted a nationwide survey so as to find out the prevalent practice among some of the major as well as regional publishers towards the payment of royalty to authors/copyright holders, translators etc. In all, NTM has gathered information from over 100 publishers, which is essential in framing NTM-policies, especially in case of turnkey projects.
Government of India
The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...
initiative to make knowledge texts accessible, in all Indian languages
Languages of India
The languages of India belong to several language families, the major ones being the Indo-European languages—Indo-Aryan and the Dravidian languages...
listed in the VIII schedule of the Constitution, through translation
Translation
Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. Whereas interpreting undoubtedly antedates writing, translation began only after the appearance of written literature; there exist partial translations of the Sumerian Epic of...
. NTM was set up as per National Knowledge Commission's
National Knowledge Commission
On 13 June 2005 , the Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh, constituted the National Knowledge Commission, as a think-tank charged with considering possible policy that might sharpen India's comparative advantage in the knowledge-intensive service sectors.In particular, the Commission was to...
recommendation. The Ministry of Human Resource Development
Ministry of Human Resource Development (India)
The Ministry of Human Resource Development is an Indian government ministry, responsible for the development of human resources...
has designated Central Institute of Indian Languages as the nodal organization for the operationalization of NTM.
Origins
EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, the primary medium of higher education in India, remains inaccessible to even the literate majority of the country. Therefore, there is an urgent need to translate material in all fields like literary, technical, scientific and business etc. so that such material is accessible to a wide range of different language speaking population across the country. Translation, thus, is seen not just as an instrument of democratizing and secularizing knowledge, but also of empowering languages and speech communities.
NTM intends to establish translation as an industry in the country. Its main objectives include generation of translation tools such as dictionaries and thesauri
Thesaurus
A thesaurus is a reference work that lists words grouped together according to similarity of meaning , in contrast to a dictionary, which contains definitions and pronunciations...
; development of software for translation, memory, etc.; promotion of machine translation
Machine translation
Machine translation, sometimes referred to by the abbreviation MT is a sub-field of computational linguistics that investigates the use of computer software to translate text or speech from one natural language to another.On a basic...
and machine aided translation; translator education through orientation programs & courses; fellowships & grants for research projects, etc. Bringing visibility to translators and translation activities by organizing book launches for translations; instituting prizes and fellowships; organizing Regional Festivals of Translation; book exhibitions, etc. also are part of the activities of NTM.
Project Advisory Committee (NTM-PAC) of NTM, with Joint Secretary(L), MHRD, as the Chairperson, is the highest decision making body of NTM. It is a committee of 25 members representing various sections of the academic community, ministerial bodies and publishing houses related to translation. NTM-PAC is supported by four sub-committees in matters related to copyrights and legal matters; selecting knowledge texts; fixing rates for translators, copy editors etc.; and Grant in Aid schemes of NTM.
NTM Website in 23 languages
NTM is in the process of establishing itself as the clearing house of all translation related activities in the country. Interaction with the public is a requisite and NTM has developed its website (www.ntm.org.in) in 23 languages for the purpose. NTM website introduces the Mission, its objectives, beneficiaries, and structure etc. Updates on list of books selected for translation, experts consulted, announcement of translation assignments etc. are available for the public here. The Discussion Forum facilitates the users to discuss various topics like the books selected for translation in a subject, an existing translation, and terminology issues in Indian languages etc.NTM Databases
NTM also maintains National Register of Translators(NRT) through its website. NRT is a databank wherein translators register themselves online. NRT is a searchable directory of translators, evaluators and discipline experts with classified information on profession, experience, languages known and expertise in translation, etc.Lists of the most prescribed texts in Indian universities in various disciplines are generated out of the Knowledge Text Module, another major facet of NTM-databases. Two searchable database components have been created under it: Indian Universities Database and Knowledge Text Database. Indian Universities Database furnishes information on courses, syllabi and textbooks etc. of over 350 Union Grants Commission (UGC) accredited universities and institutions. Knowledge Text Database
Database
A database is an organized collection of data for one or more purposes, usually in digital form. The data are typically organized to model relevant aspects of reality , in a way that supports processes requiring this information...
provides complete details of the prescribed books. When made public, this would become one of the first state
Sovereign state
A sovereign state, or simply, state, is a state with a defined territory on which it exercises internal and external sovereignty, a permanent population, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other sovereign states. It is also normally understood to be a state which is neither...
initiatives to provide information about all the universities/institutions and courses which can be accessed through a single window. It would help scholars and academicians from various regions to access the latest information on courses and syllabi of any university/institution of the country. University
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
Boards can review the course details and syllabi structure of other universities before revising their curriculum. This may help in creating parity among universities of rural and urban regions.
NTM-databases, created in Microsoft SQL 2005
Microsoft SQL Server
Microsoft SQL Server is a relational database server, developed by Microsoft: It is a software product whose primary function is to store and retrieve data as requested by other software applications, be it those on the same computer or those running on another computer across a network...
, can contain a maximum of 2^31 objects and span multiple Operating System-level files with a maximum file size of 220 Terabyte
Terabyte
The terabyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information. The prefix tera means 1012 in the International System of Units , and therefore 1 terabyte is , or 1 trillion bytes, or 1000 gigabytes. 1 terabyte in binary prefixes is 0.9095 tebibytes, or 931.32 gibibytes...
. Control mechanisms have been incorporated to the database for concurrent access to shared data, for ensuring data integrity. NTM aims to increase the usability of the databases by making them both as web and standalone applications.
Basic Bilingual Dictionaries
The bilingual dictionaries are modelled after the hugely popular Longman Corpus Network - based Basic English-English dictionary. In the first phase work on six languages- BengaliBengali language
Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...
, Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
, Kannada, Malayalam, Oriya
Oriya language
Oriya , officially Odia from November, 2011, is an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family. It is mainly spoken in the Indian states of Orissa and West Bengal...
and Tamil
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
is completed. English-Hindi, English-Bengali and English-Kannada dictionaries are already published by Pearson Education India. The second phase includes four other Indian languages– Punjabi
Punjabi language
Punjabi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by inhabitants of the historical Punjab region . For Sikhs, the Punjabi language stands as the official language in which all ceremonies take place. In Pakistan, Punjabi is the most widely spoken language...
, Gujarati
Gujarati language
Gujarati is an Indo-Aryan language, and part of the greater Indo-European language family. It is derived from a language called Old Gujarati which is the ancestor language of the modern Gujarati and Rajasthani languages...
, Marathi
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
and Telugu
Telugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
, out of which work on the first two languages has been completed.
NTM has extended the work to 8 other Indian languages also- Assamese
Assamese language
Assamese is the easternmost Indo-Aryan language. It is used mainly in the state of Assam in North-East India. It is also the official language of Assam. It is also spoken in parts of Arunachal Pradesh and other northeast Indian states. Nagamese, an Assamese-based Creole language is widely used in...
, Konkani
Konkani language
KonkaniKonkani is a name given to a group of several cognate dialects spoken along the narrow strip of land called Konkan, on the west coast of India. This is, however, somewhat an over-generalisation. Geographically, Konkan is defined roughly as the area between the river Damanganga to the north...
, Maithili
Maithili language
Maithili language is spoken in the eastern region of India and South-eastern region of Nepal. The native speakers of Maithili reside in Bihar, Jharkhand,parts of West Bengal and South-east Nepal...
, Manipuri, Nepali
Nepali language
Nepali or Nepalese is a language in the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family.It is the official language and de facto lingua franca of Nepal and is also spoken in Bhutan, parts of India and parts of Myanmar...
, Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
, Santali
Santali
Santali can refer to:* Santali language, spoken by Santals in Eastern India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Bhutan* Santali latin alphabet, invented in the 1890s by the Norwegian missionary Paul Olaf Bodding, and still used by most Santals, especially the members of the Northern Evangelical Lutheran Church...
and Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
.
Bilingual e-dictionaries
e-dictionaries of NTM are based on ‘Longman Advanced Bilingual Framework’(LABF). LABF Dataset will be used through the Dictionary Production System(DPS), originally developed by Longman and marketed by Ingenierie Diffusion Multimedia(IDM), France. The NTM-Longman e-dictionary deals with 338,000 words, phrases and meanings; 78,000 head entries, 5,400 encyclopaedic entries, 54,000 phrases, over 515,000 examples and 26,000 synonyms, antonyms and related words.Machine Translation
An English-Kannada Machine Translation(MT) package which bids to break new ground on the MT scene in India is being developed under NTM. The main aim of this project is to automate the translation of a given English sentence into Kannada. This Package is divided into 3 main modules– Parallel Aligned Corpora, Digitization of Source Language(SL) resources and Architecture. The Architecture is divided into 8 modules and implemented using Java with Netbeans Integrated Development Environment(IDE). The front end is designed using Swings and back-end SQL. The dictionary is put into action using random access file. Since Hash tables are particularly efficient when the maximum number of entries can be predicted in advance, this technique is used to accomplish searching. Collection classes are used as data storage structures.NTM has been interacting with several teams (like C-DAC, Pune, Noida, Mumbai; LTRC, ILMT, EILMT, Anusaaraka, Shakti—all at IIIT, Hyderabad) engaged in developing Machine Translation software to explore the extent to which the MT research and NTM can interface for mutual benefit.
Dictionary of Translation Studies
Dictionary of Translation Studies being prepared by NTM intends to serve as a companion to students and scholars interested in and associated with the discipline of Translation Studies. It is a compilation of the technically charged terms used in the discipline. It endeavours to be a comprehensive dictionary, exhausting the technical terms used in Indian as well as western discourse of translation and also the terms used in the sub-domains of Translation Studies like Interpreting, Machine Translation, etc.NTM Survey
Knowledge Text Database FieldworkNTM has been collecting syllabi directly from universities through extensive fieldworks and also through virtual search. Information and opinion from faculty and students texts prescribed and referred in various courses taught in these universities were also recorded during these fieldworks.
Regional Language Knowledge Text Scenario Survey
NTM has been conducting a survey to study the need and demand for knowledge texts in translation, the availability of knowledge texts, and the general publication scenario in regional languages in order to formulate strategies for productive interventions by NTM. Interactions with various regional publishers, faculty, students, translators, and librarians, etc. were carried out during this survey.
Discipline Experts Inputs
In order to finalise the knowledge texts to be taken up for translation by NTM, experts of various disciplines across the country were contacted and inputs have been collected. NTM has gathered lists of books recommended by the experts in more than twenty disciplines for translation. NTM has also contacted discipline experts with regional language background to ratify the selection of these books.
Royalty Scenario
NTM conducted a nationwide survey so as to find out the prevalent practice among some of the major as well as regional publishers towards the payment of royalty to authors/copyright holders, translators etc. In all, NTM has gathered information from over 100 publishers, which is essential in framing NTM-policies, especially in case of turnkey projects.