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Northeast India is a true marker of the fact that ethnic identity is not just a box to tick on a census form, but, it is about language, land, memory and resistance. For indigenous communities like the Karbis of Assam and the Kokborok speakers of Tripura, language is more than a tool. Language for them is a living archive of belonging. Their fight for linguistic and political recognition, through script assertion, uplifting of oral and physical traditions, and demands for constitutional status, is not just about words. Their resistance is all about dignity, and being defensive against the forces that seek to flatten their culture and diversity.
Historically, the language of the Karbis, who primarily reside in the Karbi Anglong district of Assam, was mostly transmitted orally. The absence, or the “loss” of the native script posed challenges in preserving their language. This led the community to adopt external scripts over time.
The American missionaries in the 20th century introduced written texts in Karbi using the Roman script. It included publications like the newspaper Birta in 1903. On May 31, 1973, the Karbi Lammet Amei (KLA) held a key meeting in Diphu. They unanimously decided to switch from the Assamese Purvi Nagari script back to Roman. The move aimed to make the language youth-friendly and education-ready. Roman script is now widely used in Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council (KAAC) schools, Karbi publications, and community initiatives.
Individuals like Sikari Tisso played a pivotal role in enabling this linguistic continuity. His decades-long work documenting Karbi grammar and compiling dictionaries earned national acclaim, including recognition from the Linguistic Society of America and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Yet, Karbi remains excluded from the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution, which recognizes the official languages of the country. While some suggest adopting Devanagari could aid recognition, the community staunchly favors Roman script for its practicality and global relevance.
The sister state of Assam, Tripura, also faces a similar issue but is quite different in some aspects. Several indigenous people of the state, who speak Kokborok, have been at the center of a contentious script debate. In 1979, Kokborok was introduced as an official state language. Its written form often oscillated between the Bengali and Roman scripts. Many speakers of the language wanted to use the Roman script for its phonetic suitability and widespread acceptance, but the state education system retained the usage of Bengali script.
Since 2023, the Twipra Students’ Federation (TSF) and Roman Script for Kokborok Choba (RSKC), a coalition of 50+ tribal groups, have opposed the restrictions of the Tripura Board of Secondary Education (TBSE) on using the Roman script in exams, calling it cultural erasure. Their continued protests ultimately led the board to allow both scripts, exposing the clash between state policy and indigenous identity. In March 2025, TSF launched a statewide strike, disrupting transport and accusing the government of “script imposition.” A 2023 RTI revealed 99% of students prefer Roman script over Bengali. Many view the Bengali script as symbolic colonization tied to post-partition shifts that marginalized native voices. While the current BJP government remains non-committal, the TIPRA Motha backs Roman script as key to self-rule and reform.
The Kokborok too lacks inclusion in the Eighth Schedule, just like its Karbi counterpart. But, on the 46th Kokborok Diwas, the Tripura Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ratan Lal Nath said that the state government was trying to get the Kokborok language included in the Eighth Schedule. Both of these languages have no representation in national universities, and lack government-funded publishing houses or standardized curricula and testing materials.
Although the Karbis have demonstrated that community-led growth can lead to significant advancements, their language lacks institutional support and its academic and commercial prospects are limited in the absence of state recognition. For example, the mass migration of Karbi youth to cities has led to alienation and fading language use, while Karbi-medium schools face resource gaps. In Tripura, post-partition demographics and urbanization have marginalized Borok identity economically and culturally.
The Kokborok and Karbi cases together show two sides of the same issue. While one battles for script autonomy against state opposition, the other has succeeded in script acceptance but lacks governmental acceptance. This calls for a larger cultural sovereignty, decolonized educational opportunities, and acknowledgement of indigenous knowledge systems that are closely linked to the politics of script in both situations.
For communities like the indigenous Tripuris and Karbis, language is a part of their identity, survival, and land. Even though technology provides means for cultural revival, globalization exacerbates the threat through migration, digital dominance, and English education. Their demands frequently conflict with those of mainstream systems. In order for people to live, speak, and think in the language they call their own, true recognition, including inclusion in the Eighth Schedule, must go beyond tokenism of paperworks.
Bio: Diya is a West Bengal-based individual with an M.A. degree in Journalism and Mass Communication and a B.A. (Hons.) degree in Comparative Literature from Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India. With a professional foundation built through internships at esteemed organizations like Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited, Times Now, WedMeGood, amongst others, she transitioned to full-time experience at an NVIDIA project, specializing in AI-driven data annotation in captioning of images. Diya brings expertise in content writing, and communication, where her passion for crafting narratives that highlight cultural and political themes are visible. Diya is committed to driving meaningful conversations through innovative and analytical approaches.
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