 “Aatmanirbharta’ which means self-reliance, has been chosen by the Oxford English Dictionary as its ‘Hindi word of the year 2020 as it “validated the day-to-day achievements of the countless Indians who dealt with and survived the perils of a pandemicâ€. The word gained a massive increase in 2020 following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address on the COVID-19 recovery package to overcome it.
The Oxford Hindi word of the year is a word or expression that is chosen to reflect the ethos, mood, or preoccupations of the passing year, and have lasting potential as a term of cultural significance.
Explaining the selection of the word, Kritika Agrawal, who sits on the advisory panel that selects the Hindi Word of the Year, stated: “In an address to the nation in early May 2020, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced India’s Covid-19 recovery package, he emphasised the need of becoming self-reliant as a country, as an economy, as a society, and as individuals, in a bid to navigate the perils of a pandemic. The Prime Minister elaborated on this, noting that Aatmanirbhar Bharat is not about being self-contained or being close to the world, it is about being self-sustaining and self-generating. We saw a significant increase in the usage of Aatmanirbharta (self-reliance) following the Prime Minister’s address, highlighting its increased prominence as a phrase and concept in the public lexicon.â€
In 2019, the Hindi Word of the Year was Samvidhaan or the Constitution owing to the nationwide debates and discussions which adopted the abrogation of Articles 370 and 35(A).