Hyderabad:
From Indian bureaucrats to executives from as many as 87 countries around the world, when it comes to gaining proficiency in English, it is not England they go to but India.
Indian defence personnel to Indian Foreign Service (IFS) probationers, corporate executives and government officials from non-English speaking countries, they all look to English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU) to learn or hone their language skills. The unique university caters to ministers, bureaucrats, doctors, engineers and others from different parts of the world not just graduate and post-graduate courses in English but also 11 foreign languages.
"Every year about 400 executives from the countries right from Bhutan to Brazil come here for English proficiency under ITEC (Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation) programme," EFLU Vice-Chancellor Sunaina Singh told IANS in an interview.
"These are extension services apart from regular courses. We are completely nationalistic in our approach. As Indian experts on English, we train foreign citizens who come to us. They don't just learn English but also learn culture and go back as ambassadors of India," she said.
Under a new initiative, EFLU through the Ministry of External Affairs established Centres for English Language Training (CELTs) in Sri Lanka and ASEAN countries like Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and Vietnam.
"We are going to set up soon more such centres in five African countries - Sudan, Djibouti, Central Asian Republic, Togo and Mauritania," she told IANS.
The university engaged in research, training and teaching English language, foreign languages and their literatures, linguistics, interdisciplinary and cultural studies is uniquely placed at national and international levels.
Only one of