To preserve and promote linguistic diversity by developing primers for Ladakhi, Tibetan, Shina, Balti and Pashto languages, the Department of Linguistics, Kashmir University (KU), in collaboration with the Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL), Mysuru, inaugurated a five-day workshop Tuesday here.
The workshop is part of a larger initiative by CIIL and the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) to create primers for 121 Scheduled and Non-Scheduled Languages across India, an official statement issued here read.
Language speakers and resource persons from various regions have been invited to contribute to this endeavour, a spokesperson in the statement said.
“Speakers for Ladakhi, Shina, and Balti have been invited from the Ladakh region, Tibetan speakers from Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh, and Shantiniketan, Vishvabharti, West Bengal, and Pashto speakers from Gutlibagh, Ganderbal,” the spokesperson said in the statement.
The inaugural session, held at the Department of Linguistics, was chaired by Head, Department of Linguistics, Prof Aejaz Mohammed Sheikh.
Programme Coordinator and Officer-in-Charge SPPEL (Scheme for Protection and Preservation of Endangered Languages), CIIL, Dr Sujoy Sarkar, senior faculty members including Prof Aadil Amin Kak and Dr Musavir Ahmed were also present during the inaugural session.
Members of CIIL including Dr Hilal Ahmad Dar, Dr Zargar Aadil Ahmad, Puspa Thounaojam and other faculty members of the Department of Linguistics, Dr Sajad Hussain Want, Dr Sheeba Hassan and Dr Saima Jan also attended the inaugural session.
Dr Sujoy Sarkar emphasised the importance of the primers and shared insights into previous initiatives undertaken by CIIL.
Prof Aadil Amin Kak underscored the significance of workshops in language preservation, while Dr Musavir Ahmed addressed the population decline within these communities and its implications.
In his welcome address, Prof Aejaz Mohammed Sheikh highlighted the objectives of the workshop and its alignment with the NEP-2020 while thanking CIIL for its ongoing collaboration. He also shed light on the department's previous work on these languages.
Dr Sajad Hussain Wani conducted the proceedings of the inaugural session, the statement added.