Rourkela: The members of All India Kurukh Parah Yuvak Sangh (AIKPYS) and five other tribal organisations Friday staged a massive rally in Rourkela calling for the inclusion of Kurukh language in the eighth schedule of the Constitution, a longstanding demand of the tribals.
Kurukh is the dominant language of the tribals irrespective of religious affiliations. The tribals have been demanding for long the inclusion of their language in the 8th schedule.
As declared earlier, over 7,000 tribals from Odisha, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh participated in the rally Friday. The rally began from Birsa Munda Chowk after offering homage to the tribal icon. Then, the participants walked to the ADM office here and handed over a memorandum to him addressed to the President of India. The majority of the women were dressed in traditional white and red sarees, which they generally wear during their religious celebrations. The men were dressed in white shirts and dhoti.
“We will continue to press for inclusion of our language and its script ‘Kurukh bana’ in the 8th schedule in a peaceful manner,” said Bijaya Beck, one of the office bearers.
Another woman participant said, “This will benefit us. Our children will get more jobs and other opportunities. By denying this the government is denying us our fundamental rights.”
PNN