IIT Kharagpur's Language Tech Initiative Engages Young Minds in Purulia

A School Connect programme by IIT Kharagpur's Humanities and Social Sciences Department introduced West Bengal students to natural language data analysis. The initiative, part of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, engaged students in multilingualism, language technology, and endangered languages through hands-on activities at local schools.

In celebration of its Platinum Jubilee, the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur hosted a School Connect programme in Purulia district, West Bengal. The initiative aimed at students from Standards 8 to 10, focused on introducing them to the analysis of natural language data.

Organized at Baghmundi High School and Ramakrishna Mission Vidyapith, the programme included interactive sessions and practical workshops. Students were given the opportunity to collect and verify natural-language data as well as train multilingual models.

The event also emphasized the importance of multilingualism and language technologies, with discussions on endangered languages and language ecology. The Department of Humanities and Social Sciences at IIT Kharagpur spearheaded the workshops.

(With inputs from agencies.)