Dogri as Official Language of J&K – Road Ahead

Prof. Lalit Magotra
Erstwhile State of J and K was unique in the sense that it had two of its regional languages – Dogri and Kashmiri, included in the 8th Schedule of Indian Constitution. No other State or Union Territory had or has this distinction. This was necessitated by the peculiar condition arising out of the prevailing linguistic diversity of the State. Dogri is the major language of Jammu region spoken by majority population of the region and so is Kashmiri as far as Kashmir region is concerned. Even prior to the inclusion of Dogri in the 8th Schedule, both Dogri and Kashmiri had been recognized as independent literary languages by the Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi – India’s National Academy of Letters. Writers of both these languages are being conferred with the Sahitya Akademi Awards for past many decades.
Speaking of Dogri specifically, in the education system, it is a part of the curriculum at School, College and University levels – though much remains to be desired, especially at the Primary level. At University level, 35 batches, each of about 35 students, have passed out with Masters Degree in Dogri so far, in addition to scores of students who have done Masters privately or through distance education stream. A large number of students have obtained Ph.D and M.Phil Degrees. There has been a phenomenal growth and development of Dogri literature since nineteen forties, with Dogri Sanstha Jammu playing a stellar role in this renaissance. Today there are thousands of Dogri books, covering all genres of literature, in addition to Dogri-Dogri, Dogri-English and Dogri-Hindi dictionaries, besides a number of volumes published on Dogri Folklore – folk songs, folk tales, folk ballads and collections of idioms & proverbs etc.
People of Jammu region had been striving for a long time for the adoption of Dogri as an official language in J&K. Dogri met all criteria and requirements to be accorded this status. However fulfillment of this dream of Dogras had long eluded them.
Now, with the Lok Sabha passing the J&K Official Languages Bill, which includes Dogri and Kashmiri alongwith three other languages to be the official languages of the Union Territory of J&K, a long cherished desire of the people of Jammu is near fulfillment. In addition, this move of Central Government will also instill a sense of honour & equality among Dogras as citizens of J&K, which, according to the popular perception, has been long denied to them.
This decision of Central Government is, without doubt, a momentous decision, for which people of this region must owe gratitude to the Central Government. Obviously, it has also generated great excitement & expectations among the public. However, one must realize, that this decision in itself will not transform Dogri to a functioning official language overnight. The questions to be addressed are that how this decision will be implemented practically and what is that which changes for Dogri by passage of this Bill?
It is logical to infer that Official Language should mean a language which is used in official correspondence in all Government communications and procedures, including those of Judiciary, Revenue and all public dealing departments. It will be instructive to be aware of the present situation so that the course of action in future could be decided. The present situation is that most of the growth and development of Dogri, so far, has been confined to the fields of literature and linguistics. On the other hand, for being an Official Language, Dogri has to be equipped to handle tasks like official correspondence and communication which uses all the specialized and technical terminology pertaining to various Government departments and courts etc. Though on face of it, the task to empower Dogri to handle the new challenges appears quite daunting but it is certainly not insurmountable, if undertaken with proper zeal and planning both at Macro and Micro level. It does not appear appropriate, in the limited space here, to go into the nitti-gritty, as to how to achieve the required objective but one can broadly out-line the areas which should be paid immediate attention.
For the creation of man-power proficient in Dogri, one has to start from the grass-root level. First of all, teaching of Dogri at all stages of education, especially at primary level, should be implemented firmly and with sincerity. Short-term courses should be organized to train primary teachers to teach Dogri and creation of Posts of Dogri Teachers at Higher Secondary and Secondary level should be given top priority. Papers like – ‘Functional Dogri’, ‘Basics of Computers’ and ‘Translation Methodology’ should be introduced at Graduate & Post-Graduate levels.
It will be relevant to point out that a very heartening and welcome development has taken place recently, which may go a long way in achieving some of the objectives to empower Dogri. The Lt. Governor of J&K, who is also Chancellor of Jammu University, in a meeting of the University Council on 11.09.2020, has directed the Vice-Chancellor to set-up a Centre of Excellence in Dogri in Jammu University. This Centre, in addition to research in the academic areas, could play a pivotal role in empowering Dogri to make best use of the opportunities, which have come its way.
The other step which should be taken on priority is to create Centres/Institutes of Training for youth who are already qualified in Dogri to become well versed with the techniques of official communication and correspondence and with other related matters. This will, on one hand, prepare the youth to meet the requirement of desired man-power and on the other hand, will also generate numerous other job opportunities for them.
Last but not the least, it is natural to feel elated and excited over the inclusion of Dogri & Kashmiri in the list of official languages, but one should not lose sight of the fact, that ours is a region with a rich diversity of languages. We have our sister languages like Gojri, Pahadi and Punjabi etc., co-existing with Dogri & Kashmiri. Rather than having a sense of anxiety over the multiplicity of regional languages, we should feel proud of our linguistic diversity. Each and every language deserves love and respect and should get opportunities to progress and flourish. We should jointly endeavour for the promotion of all our regional languages and support them to get what they deserve and what is due to them.
And in the end, let us try to explore the spirit behind giving importance to the indigenous languages of the country. It basically pertains to the rights of a common man. Imagine (actually, one does not have to imagine, as it is a daily happening) a common poor Indian, standing in a Court of Justice, scared and bewildered, where a matter of life and death for him is being argued, between lawyers and the Hon’ble Justice, in a foreign language – a language completely incomprehensible to him. The least he deserves, as a citizen of independent India is to know as to what is being deliberated upon a matter, extremely crucial to him. This sorry state of affairs is existing after 70 years of our ‘Independence.’
According the status of official languages to indigenous languages of the country is actually a step to empower a common man in his own country and is a step in the right direction which everyone should welcome.
feedbackexcelsior@gmail.com

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here