Kargil, February 27, 2021: The Anjuman Jamiat Ulema Isna Ashriya Kargil in a letter to the Lieutenant Governor Ladakh R K Mathur has demanded inclusion of Purigi language as medium of instruction for imparting Education at Primary level, in schools under NEP 2020.

As per an order by the Directorate of School Education UT Ladakh “various committees are being consulted for working on various tasks with regard to
implementation of the Education Policy. Whereas in the context of New Education Policy, in the
NEP para 4.11-4.22, serial number 09, task number 88 of annexure-1 of the same order mentions
a task for development of guidelines for preparing resource materials and courses for languages such as English, Hindi, Bhoti, Urdu, Arabic etc. with the aim to develop the language as medium of instruction to impart education to children in vernacular/local languages at the primary level”, read the letter.

“Further, it is very unfortunate to learn that under the above mentioned paras Purig language has not been included in the list of languages for which guidelines for resource materials and courses
are to be prepared to develop the same as medium of instruction for imparting education at the
primary level in schools”.

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“It is pertinent to mention here that Purig language is spoken by the majority of the population
in Union Territory of Ladakh. Majority of the population of Kargil District as well as a large
population in Leh District, especially in the Sham area, speak Purig language.

“Thus its very shocking and disheartening to know that the language spoken my a large population of Ladakh has been kept out from the list of vernacular/local languages in which education is going to be imparted”.

“Further, by excluding the Purig language, a large number of children, whose mother tongue is
Purgi, will be deprived of this opportunity to learn the basics of education in their own mother
tongue/local language and thus ill defeat the core aim of the New Education Policy.

“Your Excellency is therefore humbly requested to kindly consider the issue and please issue
directions to the concerned to include Purig language in the list of languages as medium of
instruction for imparting Education at the primary level of schooling under NEP 2020″, the letter concluded.

It is pertinent to mention that the Chief Executive Councillor Kargil Feroz Ahmad Khan on the recommendation of Purigi Writers Community had written to the Directorate of Education to include Purigi in the NEP task list.

Later, the Imam Khomeini Memorial Trust also in a letter to the LG Ladakh has demanded the same while questioning the use of term “Bhoti” for Ladakhi language.

Local language experts and historians believe that the use of term “Bhoti” for Ladakhi language is religiously motivated which has no historical evidence to substantiate.