Excelsior Correspondent
NEW DELHI, Mar 27: Noted Tribal researcher, Dr. Javaid Rahi, represented Jammu and Kashmir at the two-day “National Tribal Folk- Literature Festival” held in New Delhi. The festival was jointly organised by the Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya (IGRMS) and the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) working under the Union Ministry of Culture.
The event was inaugurated by the Minister of State for Tribal Affairs, Durgadas Uikey, and witnessed the participation of eminent Tribal researchers, academicians, and scholars from across the country.
While representing Jammu and Kashmir, Dr. Javaid Rahi highlighted practical methods for documenting and preserving endangered Tribal languages. Drawing from his extensive field work in preserving Gujjar Heritage and Linguistic treasure, he emphasized that dying languages can be safeguarded through systematic efforts such as compiling dictionaries, grammars, phonetic readers, glossaries, and creating comprehensive language archives.
He cited his own experiences during compilation of first Monolingual Gojri Dictionary comprising over 75,000 words with meanings, the Folk-Lore Dictionary of the Gujjar Tribe in two volumes, and the Encyclopaedia of Himalayan Gujjars (Folk-Lore Volume), which serve as living models for the conservation and promotion of the Gojri language.
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