Rajbhasha status sought for Kumaoni, Garhwali

Dehradun, September 24
Dhaad, a social welfare organisation of Uttarakhand, has sought rajbhasha status for the Kumaoni and Garhwali dialects in the state. Addressing a press conference here today, Tanmay Mamgain, coordinator, Dhaad, said the Uttarakhand Government needed to do more to promote the Garhwali and Kumaoni dialects.
He favoured studies in the Garhwali and Kumaoni dialects up to the postgraduate level and also making these dialects compulsory subjects up to Class VIII.
Expressing concern over the dwindling number of Garhwali and Kumaoni speakers, he said the Dhaad planned to hold workshops in various districts of the state and other parts of the country to promote the use Garhwali and Kumaoni as the common man’s languages. “We will be holding a Bhasa yatra that will cover every district in Uttarkhand and other parts of the country in order to create awareness about Garhwali and Kumaoni. He said Uttarakhand should have an academy for the promotion of Garhwali and Kumaoni on the lines of the Urdu Academy.
Mamgain said the Uttarakhand Government needed to make efforts to ensure the inclusion of the Garhwali and Kumaoni dialects in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution. He announced the Aditya Ram Nawani Lok Bhasa Award 2012 for Vimala Negi in the Garhwali dialect category and Hyat Singh Rawat in the Kumaoni section.