Imposing Sadri language as mother tongue in primary schools opposed

OUR CORRESPONDENT

TEZPUR: A virtual seminar of Kudmali Sahitya Sabha, Assam central committee with all district committees was held on Monday. The meeting was chaired by president Loknath Kudmi.

The meeting started with a Kudmali song by artiste Ambika Kudmi. Chief secretary of Kudmali Sahitya Sabha, Assam, Suresh Kudmi said that the Education Minister of Assam, Dr. Ranoj Pegu had tried to impose the Sadri language as mother tongue in primary schools for Assam Adivasis/tea tribes as per the National Education Policy Act.

"We cannot accept this. Kudmali is the mother tongue of our Kudmi community. Kudmali language is used as the mother tongue among the Kudmi community as well as many other ethnic tribal groups of Assam Adivasis/tea tribes. Folk songs of Kudmali language folk literature (Sahrai geet, jawa geet karam geet, tusu geet, biya geet, khel geet, nisukani geet etc.) are prevalent among the Kudmi as well as other hada-mitans ( Rajuar, PanTanti, Teli, Kumar, Luhar/Kamar, Muchi, Dom, Mahali, Napit). Therefore, in areas with Kudmi within the tribal tea community, primary school education should be provided in the mother tongue of Kudmali," he said. The chief secretary also demanded the government to ensure teaching of tribal languages like Mundari, Kudukh, Sawatali Kharia.

In the meeting, the founder chief secretary of KSSA, Jeevan Jyoti Kudmi delivered a lecture on health and educational awareness. School Inspector of Dhekiajuli, Morami Mahato Kudmi, who was present as a specific speaker, said that it was advisable to provide bilingual (Kudmali and Assamese) education in primary schools in areas where there were majority Kudmali speaking people among the Adivasis/ tea tribes community.

Prosenjit Mahato, president of Adivasi Kudmi Samaj Jharkhand State Committee, who was the invited guest, said that the Kudmali language had a teaching system in six universities, many colleges, higher secondary schools and being a language recognized as the second state language in two States (West Bengal and Jharkhand), there would be no difficulty in preparing it for students by writing quality textbooks through science-based research on this language.

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