A year after a row erupted over the script used in Kokborok exams in Tripura, the ruling TIPRA Motha’s founder, Pradyot Kishore Debbarma, on Monday alleged that some invigilators this year refused to translate the indigenous-language paper prepared in Bengali script for tribal students unable to read it. Pradyot said many such students had to submit blank answer scripts despite previous assurances from authorities regarding translation support. In a video message posted on social media, Pradyot said, “I received a call this morning informing me that the Kokborok question paper for our Tiprasa students was in Bengali, and many had to turn in blank answer scripts because they couldn’t read Bengali.” Referring to a mutual agreement reached last year between TIPRA Motha and the government regarding the Kokborok script for board examinations, Pradyot said the government had assured students could write their answers in Roman script and that those who cannot read Bengali would receive translation support from invigilators during the Class 10 examination. While he acknowledged that invigilators provided translation support in many examination centres during this year’s Kokborok exams, he said this assurance was not honoured in two or three centres. “I have spoken to leaders of the Twipra Students Federation and the TISF (both tribal student organisations) and MLA Biswajit Debbarma, who has served as TSG general secretary, and asked for an immediate report on the situation. I have received reports that there was no cooperation from the teachers. I haven’t come here to remain silent. We are in an alliance, but that doesn’t mean we will stay silent if someone doesn’t follow instructions locally,” he said. Pradyot said he would meet Chief Minister Manik Saha, who also heads the education department, to request an investigation into the issue. He urged Motha MLAs to raise the matter in the Assembly and Motha Members of the District Council in their areas. The budget session will start on March 21. The Tripura Board of Secondary Education held the Kokborok exam for higher secondary students on February 27 and for Class 10 candidates on February 28. No response from the board on the matter was available. On March 8, Pradyot sought urgent action from Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan regarding the dispute over introducing Roman script for Kokborok in the state amid the TBSE and CBSE examinations. Kokborok is the lingua franca of a majority of the 19 tribal communities in Tripura. While the language has a long history and is recognised as an official language of the state under the three-language policy, it lacks an official indigenous script. The board examinations were conducted amid controversy last year, as TBSE President Dr Dhananjoy Gan Choudhury repeatedly changed his stance on the script for Kokborok examinations before the state government intervened, allowing both Bengali and Roman scripts. The board president initially said students would not be allowed to write Kokborok answers in Roman script, citing a lack of qualified evaluators. He later reversed this decision, citing the tradition of the past 18 years, only to revert again, claiming “higher authorities” had instructed him to allow only Roman script. After an indefinite strike across the state, the board announced that both Roman and Bengali scripts would be permitted for Kokborok answers. Kokborok was first recognised as an official state language of Tripura in 1979. Two commissions were established under former legislator Shyama Charan Tripura and linguist Pabitra Sarkar. While the Left Front government publicly preferred Bengali script, both commissions found that Roman script was favoured by the majority of the tribal population. The tribal language is taught in 22 degree colleges in Tripura and at Tripura Central University. Currently, Bengali and Roman scripts are used for writing the language. Since the formation of the first BJP-led government in 2018, there has been a push to introduce Devanagari or Hindi script. Political parties, students, language activists and cultural workers have opposed this move, asserting that it would disrupt the language dynamics in the region.
