Agartala, Jan 26: On the occasion of the 77th Republic Day, Patal Kanya Jamatia, Chairperson (Minister of State) of the Tripura Rehabilitation Plantation Corporation Limited (TRPC), appealed to the Governor of Tripura for a clear and inclusive policy on the teaching of the Kokborok language in schools, stressing that language development is essential for national unity and cultural harmony.
In her appeal, Jamatia proposed that Kokborok, Bengali, and Hindi be kept as optional subjects in both CBSE and TBSE schools, while English and Hindi remain compulsory in line with the New Education Policy. She emphasized that Kokborok should continue to be taught in Roman script, as is already practiced at the higher education level, and that question papers should be optional in Kokborok or Bengali.
Highlighting ground realities, the TRPC Chairperson stated that nearly 95 percent of Kokborok-speaking people are comfortable with the Roman script, and around 99 percent opt for Kokborok as a subject. She argued that until Devanagari script is uniformly introduced and made available across all state educational institutions, Kokborok in Roman script should remain the standard at the school level.
Jamatia further said that respecting linguistic sentiments and practical preferences would strengthen India’s core principle of “unity in diversity.” She expressed hope that thoughtful acceptance of language, culture, and identity would reinforce national integrity.
