GUWAHATI: The Ministry of Home Affairs has acknowledged demands for the inclusion of the Karbi language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, but stated that no fixed criteria exist for considering languages for such inclusion.
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Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nityanand Rai, while responding to queries in Parliament, stated that Karbi is a notified Scheduled Tribe in Assam and, as per Census 2011 data, 5,11,732 out of the 5,28,503 Karbi speakers reside in Assam. Additionally, 14,380 speakers live in Meghalaya, 1,536 in Arunachal Pradesh, 584 in Nagaland, and 107 in Manipur.
The minister also mentioned that demands for the inclusion of several languages, including Karbi, in the Eighth Schedule have been raised over time. However, given the dynamic nature of language evolution, shaped by socio-cultural, economic, and political factors, it has been difficult to establish a definitive criterion for inclusion. Earlier attempts through the Pahwa (1996) and Sitakant Mohapatra (2003) Committees to formulate such criteria have remained inconclusive.
On whether the government has initiated any steps or a time-bound process for including Karbi in the Eighth Schedule, Rai clarified that while the government is aware of the sentiments and requirements regarding the recognition of more languages, considerations must balance these demands with other relevant factors.
A key point of discussion around Karbi’s inclusion has been the proposal to adopt Roman script for the language. However, the government has not indicated any concrete steps in this direction so far.
