Context- On the occasion of Meghalaya’s 52nd statehood day on January 21 this year, the state government released an official state anthem.
About
- The anthem was not performed or played anywhere in the state on Republic Day.
- The government said that the anthem should no longer be performed as the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for it is still being organized.
- Controversy: The two-minute-long anthem features segments in three languages – Khasi, Garo and English.
- Soon after it was launched, there was a discontent over the Jaintia or Pnar language no longer being represented in it.
- On the opposite side, the inclusion of English, the Jaintia Students’ Union accused the state government of “promoting a overseas language”, and stated it must alternatively “consist of dialects of all three tribes – Khasi, Jaintia and Garo.”
Demography in Meghalaya
- Meghalaya is considered to have 3 essential matrilineal communities – Khasis, Garos and Jaintias.
- But the Jaintias are clubbed along the side of the Khasis in the nation’s Scheduled Tribes (ST) listing, along with tribes such as War, Bhoi and Lyngngam.
- Together, they make up 14.1 lakh of the country’s populace (based on 2011 Census statistics).
- The Garos number around 8.21 lakh, with the kingdom’s overall population being 29.7 lakh.
Ethnic Groups in Meghalaya
- Meghalaya is inhabited by many distinct tribes, the maximum distinguished being the Khasis, the Garos, and the Jaintias.
- The Garos inhabit the western vicinity, the principal place through the Khasis and the eastern region by the Jaintias.
- The Khasis: ‘Hynniewtrep’ as they call themselves signifies ‘the seven huts’ which constitute about 50 percent of the population of the state.
- The Khasi tribe follow the culture, rituals and norms of matrilineal community.
- The Garos: They are habitants of Garo Hills and call themselves Achik-mande.
- In the Garo language ‘achik’ means ‘hills’ and ‘mande’ means ‘man’. Hence, Achik-mande means the hill-men.
- The Garos are also one of the few tribes inside the global who observe a matrilineal societal machine.
- The Jaintias: This tribe is referred to as Pnar or Synteng. They belong to the Hynniewtrep sect of the Austric race whose kingdom became the oldest and extensively spread round Jaintia Hills.
- Like the other , this tribe is also matrilineal wherein the youngest daughter of the own family inherits the own family members.
Meghalaya State Language Act of 2005
- The Government has stated that the anthem’s languages were selected based on the Meghalaya State Language Act of 2005.
- The Act designated English as the state’s legit language and additionally unique Khasi because the ‘Associate Official Language’ for all purposes in the districts of East Khasi Hills, West Khasi Hills, South West Khasi Hills, East Jaintia Hills, West Jaintia Hills and Ri Bhoi.
- Garo language was given the same status in the districts of East Garo Hills, West Garo Hills, South Garo Hills, North Garo Hills and South West Garo Hills.
Source: The Hindu
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