NATIONAL LIBRARY URGED TO DISTRIBUTE TAMIL READING MATERIALS IN URBAN AREAS

KUALA SELANGOR (Malaysia), Nov 22 (Bernama) -- The National Library of
Malaysia has been urged to distribute more Tamil reading materials to increase
the readership of the language among Indians in urban areas.

Deputy Information Communication and Culture Minister Maglin Dennis
D'Cruz said Tamil newspaper readership had declined in the urban areas as the
Indians gradually moved up the socio-economic ladder.

"The readership in Tamil constitutes mainly people living in the estates and
to a certain extent, Indian nationals who are working in Malaysia. The Tamil
newspapers are largely ignored by the Indians living in town. As such, we need
the cooperation of the libraries to distribute more Tamil reading materials in
areas highly populated by Tamils to promote interest in the language.

"By speaking and reading Tamil, the Indian community will be in a better
position to understand their own literature, culture and history," he told
reporters after officiating a 1Malaysia programme to inculcate reading habit,
organised by the National Library Sunday.

Maglin also said that the number of Tamil schools in the country had
significantly dropped from 1,500 during the country's independence to over 500
currently.

He said many Indian students in Malaysia had opted to study in national
schools and as such the ministry had asked the government to make Tamil subject
compulsory in these schools.

Maglin said the National library was not facing shortage of reading
materials and that the government increased the allocation every year for the
purpose.

"Shortage of reading materials is not an issue. We are distributing books
throughout the country including in (the east Malaysian sates of) Sabah and
Sarawak," he added.
-- BERNAMA