New Delhi: The Delhi government has reconstituted the Sanskrit academy with more female members and Delhi University professor Kanta Rani Bhatia becoming the first woman to chair the committee.

The new committee brings together a varied range of scholars, academics and practitioners associated with the language.

“For the first time, the committee will be chaired by a woman, Kanta Rani Bhatia who is the vice chairperson of the academy and a DU professor,” an official statement said.

“Almost half the members of this new Sanskrit academy are women. The Sanskrit Academy will work to generate an interest in the language and expand its influence to a wider audience,” it added.

Deputy CM Manish Sisodia said, “To keep the language alive, we need to make it accessible and relatable. Unfortunately, we often get caught up in teaching grammar at the cost of content”.

At the same time, the Delhi government plans to start 70 Sanskrit centres across the city.

Members of the newly reconstituted academy include some of the best known scholars and researchers of Sanskrit language such as Ashutosh Dayal Mathur of St Stephen’s College, Balram Shukla, who is also scholar in Persian, Pankaja Ghai Kaushik of Lady Shriram College.