Guwahati, Oct 3 (IANS): After the Union Cabinet awarded Assamese the classical language status, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma heaped praises on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the decision.

“Assamese is now a classical language. On behalf of the people of Assam, I extend my gratitude to Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi Ji and the entire Union Cabinet for the historic decision to accord Assamese the status of Classical Language,” the Chief Minister said.

He said that the Assamese language now enjoys the status of a culturally significant tongue after the Union government’s nod.

“Assamese joins a select group of languages to enjoy this status. This exemplifies the unique civilisational roots of Assam that has withstood the test of time. With today’s decision we shall be able to better preserve our beloved mother tongue, that not only unites our society but also forms an unbroken link to the ancient wisdom of Assam’s saints, thinkers, writers and philosophers,” the Chief Minister wrote on X.

He added that given the sacrifices the generation has made to protect the Assamese language and culture, today is one of the happiest days of his life.

“Once again my heartfelt thanks to Adarniya Modi Ji, for his relentless efforts to secure Bharat’s Heritage,” the Chief Minister said.

Earlier, the Chief Minister hinted that there was a high probability that the Assamese language would be given classical language status very soon by the Union government.

The creation of a Center of Excellence for the study of the language, funds for Professional Chairs at Central institutions, and worldwide awards for notable contributors are just a few of the major advantages that come with being designated as a classical language.

Notably, Marathi, Bengali, Pali, Prakrit, and Assamese are the five additional languages that have been acknowledged as classical languages, the Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Ashwini Vaishnaw told reporters in the national capital on Thursday.

The decision was taken in a Union Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Tamil, Sanskrit, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, and Oriya have previously achieved the coveted title, bringing the total number of classical Indian languages to eleven.