Agartala, Jan 15: A renewed demand for the adoption of the Roman script for Kokborok/Kau Bru gained momentum in Tripura as Tipra Motha chief Pradyot Bikram Manikya DebBarma and several elected tribal representatives formally urged the state government to take a clear and immediate decision on the issue.
Documents revealed that a memorandum was submitted to Chief Minister Manik Saha by elected members of the Tripura Legislative Assembly and the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council, seeking official recognition of the Roman script for Kokborok/Kau Bru. The memorandum was signed by multiple tribal representatives, including ministers and MLAs, under the leadership of Pradyot Kishore Manikya, Chairman of the Administrative Reform Committee of the TTAADC.
The signatories stated that the continued use and imposition of alternative scripts had obstructed the growth and wider acceptance of Kokborok, affecting education, administration and the empowerment of its speakers. The memorandum argued that recognising the Roman script was constitutionally valid and warned that denial or continued non-recognition could amount to violations of Articles 14, 29(1) and 350A of the Constitution, as well as provisions of the Sixth Schedule. It further maintained that the Tripura government possessed full legal authority to recognise and implement the Roman script through executive or policy decisions.
The elected representatives demanded that the Roman script be adopted as the official script for Kokborok in the state, that question papers for Kokborok subjects in CBSE, ICSE and TBSE examinations be printed in Roman script, and that textbooks be published accordingly. They also sought permission for the use of Kokborok in Roman script in government recruitment examinations, including those conducted by the Tripura Public Service Commission.
The memorandum recalled that Kokborok was accorded state language status in 1979 through an amendment to the Tripura Official Language Act, 1964, and noted that the demand for the Roman script had existed since 1967. It referred to earlier language commission reports, including those by Shyama Charan Tripura, Kumud Kunda Chowdhury and Pabitra Sarkar, which recorded broad support among Kokborok speakers for the Roman script.
Reacting to the development, Pradyot Bikram Manikya DebBarma said Tipra’s elected representatives, including himself, had conveyed their “unambiguous support” for Kokborok/Kau Bru in Roman script to the authorities. He stressed that other elected Tiprasa representatives must also clearly state their position, warning that ambiguity or silence could have long-term consequences for children and future generations, beyond political differences.
The question of the script for Kokborok has remained a long-standing and sensitive cultural and political issue in Tripura. With formal memoranda now placed before the government and growing public pressure from tribal leaders, the issue has once again come to the forefront of the state’s linguistic and identity discourse.
