GUWAHATI, July 23: Indigenous Forum, Assam expressed concern over appeals urging indigenous tribal communities to register Assamese as their mother tongue in the forthcoming Census, stating that such a move could create divisions and weaken the process of Assamese nation-building.
In a statement, forum president Mrinal Hazarika and secretary Pranjal Deori said indigenous tribal communities should continue to register their respective home languages in the Census to strengthen the demand for constitutional recognition. They suggested that Assamese be recorded as the common or link language to preserve its status as the state’s official language while protecting the linguistic identity of tribal communities.
The organisation said encouraging tribal communities to declare Assamese as their first language could trigger fresh linguistic divisions. It also criticised appeals asking post-Yandabo settlers not to register Assamese as their mother tongue, claiming such views did not support Assamese nation-building.
The forum urged post-Yandabo settlers who have made Assam their permanent home to register Assamese as their mother tongue in the Census, while reiterating that indigenous tribal communities should record their own mother languages and Assamese as the link language.
