WE, THE SINDHIS
By Dr. Nandlal Jotwani
Every language in India is a minority outside its own state
We need to preserve and promote our LANGUAGE and IDENTITY
India is one of the world's ancient civilizations, which represents a wonderful mosaic of multiple castes, religions and languages. The centuries-old multilingual, multicultural milieu and ethos have held the country together, representing 'unity in diversity' in the country.
The linguistic diversity discernible in the macro-structure of the country is also reflected in its micro-structure, i.e., in the constituent States. All the States in India are multilingual, though carved on the basis of dominant languages. The minority languages in the States of course vary from State to State. The States and the Union Territories have their dominant languages, yet they also have speakers of the minority languages. Thus, every language in India is a minority language outside its own State or Union Territory. Hence, the linguistic scenario of the country broadly indicates that India is a country of linguistic minorities.
The twenty two languages enlisted in Schedule VIII of the Constitution of India, are spoken by 96.56% of our total population. The importance of language is reflected in the fact that the number of speakers of some languages in India exceeds the population of some countries in the world. For example, Bengali is spoken by more than 83 million, Telugu by 74 million, Tamil by 60 million and Gujarati by more than 46 million. There are as many as 122 identifiable languages in the country, having 10,000 or more speakers at the all-India level. On the other hand, about 0.17% of our population uses such languages as are spoken by less than 10,000 persons at the all-India level.
The language is a unifying factor which holds together the groups of people by providing them an identity. Just as people value family traditions, festivals and community events, members of the community may see their language as a cultural core value, vital to their community and ethnic identity. If members view their language as a hindrance to economic mobility and integration into mainstream society, they may develop negative attitudes towards their language. Even languages with many thousands of speakers are no longer being acquired by children; at least 50% of the world's around 6,700 languages are losing speakers. We estimate that about 90% of all languages may be replaced by the dominant languages by the end of the 21st century unless urgent action to halt this process is taken by its native speakers and their governments. A positive attitude is critical for the stability of a language.
We, in India, have provided a certain framework of the Constitutional and other Safeguards to the linguistic minorities to help them preserve and promote their languages, art and culture. For example,
Article 29 of the Constitution: Protection of Interests of Minorities :
(1) Any section of the citizens residing in the territory of India or any part thereof having a distinct language, script or culture of its own shall have the right to conserve the same.
(2) No citizen shall be denied admission into any educational institution maintained by the State or receiving aid out of State funds on grounds only of religion, race, caste, language or any of them.
Article 30 of the Constitution : Right of Minorities to Establish and Administer Educational Institutions :
(1) All minorities, whether based on religion or language, shall have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.
(1A) In making any law providing for the compulsory acquisition of any property of an educational institution established and administered by a minority, referred to in clause (1) the State shall ensure that the amount fixed by or determined under such law for the acquisition of such property is such as would not restrict or abrogate the right guaranteed under that clause.
(2) The State shall not, in granting aid to educational institutions, discriminate against any educational institution on the ground that it is under the management of a minority, whether based on religion or language.
The reason embodied in Article 30(1) of the Constitution is the conscience of the nation that the minorities, religious as well as linguistic, are not prohibited from establishing and administering educational institutions of their choice for the purpose of wholesome development of the personalities of the minority children in an agreeable, educational environment.
Article 350 A of the Constitution: Facilities for instruction in mother tongue at primary stage :
It shall be the endeavour of every State and of every local authority within the State to provide adequate facilities for instruction in the mother tongue at the primary stage of education to children belonging to linguistic minority groups; and the President may issue such directions to any State as he considers necessary or proper for securing the provision of such facilities.
Consensual safeguards agreed by the States at national level :
Provision of educational facilities, including teachers and text-books in minority languages at the Primary and Secondary stages of Education by States/UTs.
Establishment by States/UTs of proper machinery for implementation of the Scheme of Safeguards for the linguistic minorities.
In pursuance of the Constitutional and the consensual provisions, the government is committed to the well being of the minorities. Such measures are not limited to protecting and promoting their language, religion and culture, but also in making special efforts for their socio-economic development and mainstreaming. Any section of the citizens residing in the territory of India or any part thereof, having a distinct language, script or culture of its own shall have the right to conserve the same; no citizen shall be denied admission into any educational institution funded/aided by the State, on grounds of religion, race, caste or language; the State shall not, in granting aid to educational institutions, discriminate against any educational institution on the ground that it is under the management of a minority; every person shall be entitled to submit a representation for the redress of any grievance to any officer or authority of the Union or the State/UT in any of the languages used in the Union or the State/UT.
The promotion and protection of the rights of persons belonging to religious and linguistic minorities contribute to the social stability of the civil society they live in. The promotion and realization of the rights of the linguistic minorities are integral part of inclusive development of society as a whole, and within a democratic framework based on the rule of law, would contribute to the provisioning of a level playing field and equal opportunities for harmonious national integration.
Let us now focus on our mother language, Sindhi. As Sindhi language is not spoken by the majority of people in any State or Union Territory of India, the Sindhi community can legitimately be regarded as a linguistic minority in India. The Government of India and the State Governments have therefore established Institutions exclusively for promotion of Sindhi language, literature, arts and culture.
At national level, the National Council for Promotion of Sindhi Language has been functioning as an Autonomous Registered Body under the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resources, Government of India, since 26th May, 1994. Now this Council is headquartered in Delhi. It recognizes the eminent Sindhi personalities for their outstanding contributions in various spheres of accomplishment by bestowing National Awards to them. It extends financial assistance to individuals for publication of their works in Sindhi language besides buying, in bulk, books/ Magazines/Audio-Video Cassettes/ CDs/ VCDs, etc., produced in Sindhi language. It has helped in establishment of a Centre for Sindhi language and culture in the Indira Gandhi National Open University, Delhi. The community at large looks forward to know more about the said Centre and its activities towards protection, preservation and promotion of Sindhi language, literature and culture.
Sindhi Academies
At the level of the States and Union Territories, some States have thoughtfully established the Sindhi Academies for promotion of Sindhi language, literature, arts and culture, e.g., the following Autonomous Registered Bodies, under the State Governments have been functioning for quite some time, duly supported by Public Funds, to undertake such activities as are spelt out in their respective Memoranda:
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In spite of many governmental and non-governmental Institutions functioning for promotion of Sindhi language in our country, the Sindhi youth are not motivated enough to enroll themselves in sufficient number for learning Sindhi language in the Schools, as would be evidenced from the following data up to senior secondary level, researched from various States and Union Territories:
STUDENTS OF SINDHI LANGUAGE UP TO SENIOR SECONDARY LEVEL
(Academic Year 2010-11)
Sindhi Language as the Medium of Instruction at Primary Level (Class I to V)
| State | School | Students | Teachers |
Delhi |
01 | 449 | 06 |
Maharashtra |
24 | 4949 | 188 |
Gujarat |
36 | 5188 | 230 |
Rajasthan |
3 | 51 | 6 |
Madhya Pradesh |
3 | 385 | 17 |
(July 2009 - June 2010) |
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|
|
Total |
67 | 11022 | 447 |
Sindhi Language Taught as a Subject at Primary Level (Class I to V)
| State | Schools | Students | Teachers |
Delhi |
01 | 449 | 06 |
Rajasthan |
11 | 999 | 16 |
Total |
12 | 1448 | 22 |
Sindhi Language as the Medium of Instruction at Upper Primary Level (Class VI to VIII)
| State | Schools | Students | Teachers |
Gujarat |
36 | 5188 | 230 |
Rajasthan |
7 | 117 | 26 |
Madhya Pradesh |
2 | 246 | 9 |
(July 2009 - June 2010) |
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Total |
45 | 5551 | 265 |
Sindhi Language Taught as a Subject at Upper Primary Level (Class VI to VIII)
| State | Schools | Students | Teachers |
Delhi |
01 | 291 | 02 |
Maharashtra |
05 | N/A | N/A |
Rajasthan |
10 | 1399 | 15 |
Total |
16 | 1690 | 17 |
Sindhi Language as the Medium of Instruction at Secondary Level (Class IX & X)
| State | Schools | Students | Teachers |
Maharasthra |
15 | 813 | - |
Gujarat |
15 | 2113 | 79 |
Madhya Pradesh |
9 | 142 | 15 |
(July 2009 - June 2010) |
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Total |
39 | 3068 | 94 |
Sindhi Language Taught as a Subject at Secondary Level (Class IX & X)
| State | Schools | Students | Teachers |
Delhi |
01 | 179 | 02 |
Rajasthan |
25 | 665 | 45 |
Total |
26 | 844 | 47 |
Instruction at Higher Secondary Level (Class XI & XII)
| State | Schools | Students | Teachers |
Maharasthra |
2 | 62 | - |
Gujarat |
15 | 2113 | 79 |
Total |
17 | 2175 | 79 |
Sindhi Language Taught as a Subject at Higher Secondary Level (Class XI & XII)
| State | Schools | Students | Teachers |
Delhi |
01 | 40 | - |
Maharashtra |
13 | 150 | - |
Total |
14 | 190 | - |
Summary: Sindhi Language as a Medium of Instruction
| Level | Schools | Students | Teachers |
| I to V | 67 | 11022 | 447 |
| VI to VIII | 45 | 5551 | 265 |
| IX to X | 39 | 3068 | 94 |
| XI to XII | 17 | 2175 | 79 |
Total |
168 | 21816 | 885 |
Summary: Sindhi Language Taught as a Subject
| Level | Schools | Students | Teachers |
| I to V | 12 | 1448 | 22 |
| VI to VIII | 16 | 1690 | 17 |
| IX to X | 26 | 844 | 47 |
| XI to XII | 14 | 190 | - |
Total |
68 | 4172 | 86 |
The author would indeed appreciate if the institutions/universities imparting higher education could communicate the statistics pertaining to the scholars engaged in the study of Sindhi language and literature.
The foregoing figures about the students of Sindhi language up to Senior Secondary level, are by no means flattering vis-à-vis our Sindhi population in India. Like other minority languages, Sindhi in a milieu dominated by mainstream languages, is faced with the problems of lack of desirous students at the secondary, senior secondary and higher education levels to learn their mother language as a medium of instruction or even as a subject. The modern youth, being well-informed, goes by the 'language utility value' and 'language vitality score' encompassing multiple factors like the 'language availability' in the emerging knowledge society marked by multimedia and mass media, which are, as it were, monopolized by the commercially and culturally dominant mainstream languages. The present generation with its new associations, inclinations, attitudes and aptitudes, mainly driven by market forces, may not feel motivated to carry the cultural baton of 'sindhiyat' as enthusiastically as we indeed wish them to do. However, the fact remains, the survival of language is closely linked to imperatives of the times we live in, in scattered places, and in competitive conditions where demands of economic prudence takes precedence over cultural and aesthetic considerations, resulting in loss of the minority languages not only in India, but across the world. By the end of century, about 50% of the languages in the world will be extinct; about one minority language dying every fortnight! This loss is not only to the speaking community, but to the world at large.
In this linguistic scenario, it would be prudent to put in place an appropriate policy intervention for preservation and promotion of the minority languages, by instituting an appropriate Scheme of Scholarship for Students of the Minority Languages at Secondary, Senior Secondary and higher education levels, under which the eligible students of the minority language at the aforesaid levels, in the States/UTs, are considered for grant of government scholarship in the form of waiver of school/college fees. Further, the scope of employment opportunities for the linguistic minorities needs to be strengthened and expanded to include modern Indian languages of the VIIIth Schedule to the Constitution, e.g. Sindhi, as a subject of the Test conducted by the State Public Service Commissions, on the lines the Union Public Service Commission has included Sindhi language in its Test. We need to link learning of mother language with the employment avenues and livelihood so as to motivate our youth to learn Sindhi and speak Sindhi for preservation and promotion of Sindhi language; and thus we save our language and our identity.
The celebrated author holds the Constitutional Post of the National Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities, Government of India, and the ideas expressed in this Column are his purely personal views. His Email-ID: nandlaljotwani@yahoo.com & Mobile#: 9311902211 - Editor |