Chandigarh, May 24 -- As summer vacations begin across government schools in Chandigarh, students are turning their break into a meaningful and memorable experience by learning a new Indian language and getting a closer look at the country's vibrant cultural diversity. In a first-of-its-kind initiative, week-long Bhartiya Bhasha Summer Camps, launched under the National Education Policy (NEP) by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), are being organised across all 111 government schools of the city. A total of 22 Indian languages are being taught, with around 75 to 80 students enrolled in each school. Apart from school teachers, community volunteers have also been roped in for the camps. Making the most of their holidays, students from Classes 6 to 9 will engage in interactive, hands-on sessions where they will pick up greetings, phrases, songs and real-life conversation skills in a new language. Through these novel camps, they will not just make their summer break more productive, but also discover diverse cultures, cuisines, festivals,traditional arts, history and geography. The languages offered include Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Bodo, Santhali, Maithili and Dogri. Among schools with high participation are Government High School, Maloya Colony (Tamil); Government Middle School (Gujarati and Sanskrit); Government Model Middle School, Sector 49 (Sanskrit and Punjabi); Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 19 (Urdu, Bengali, and Sanskrit), and Government Senior Secondary School, Mauli Jagran (Sanskrit and Marathi). At Government Model High School, Sector 37-C, 70 students have signed up to learn Kannada. Nepali - the only foreign language in the list - is also being taught at several schools. The camps already started on Friday in some schools, including Government Model High School, Sector 42, where Sanskrit was taught and Government Middle School, Sector 26, Bapu Dham Colony, where Bengali was taught. UT director school education Harsuhinderpal Singh Brar said the programme was a transformative step in strengthening India's linguistic heritage and fostering multilingual citizens. He added that it supported NEP's "Learn One More Indian Language" vision, giving students valuable insights into Indian culture and preparing them for a broader job market nationwide. To continue the spirit of the initiative, Bhartiya Bhasha Clubs will be set up in schools. All participants - students and teachers - will receive certificates acknowledging their commitment to embracing India's linguistic diversity....