GKF mobilises support for legal status and education access
The awareness meeting conducted by the Global Konknni Forum at Ponda.
MARGAO
Reaffirming its commitment to justice for Konkani in Roman (Romi) script, the Global Konknni Forum held an awareness meeting at St Anne’s Church, Ponda, to mobilise public support for its twin demands—the inclusion of the Roman script in the Official Language Act and the introduction of Roman-script Konkani in the education system.
Addressing the gathering, Global Konknni Forum Secretary Jose Salvador Fernandes said the present generation of Roman-script Konkani supporters is determined to safeguard and develop the script despite decades of neglect at the government level. He described the movement as a struggle for linguistic justice, equality and dignity for thousands of Konkani speakers.
Fernandes recalled that when the Official Language Act was enacted in 1987, the Roman script was sidelined by a small but influential group promoting only the Devanagari script. This happened despite the strong participation of Roman-script Konkani supporters in the historic Konkani language agitation in which seven Goans sacrificed their lives.
“The Roman-script community stood firmly behind the Konkani language movement, yet its contribution was ignored once the Official Language Act was enacted,” Fernandes said. “The sacrifices and support of Roman-script protagonists were used to achieve official status for Konkani, but the same community was later pushed to the margins.”
He said the Forum is committed to correcting this historic injustice and restoring rightful recognition to Konkani in Roman script under Article 29 of the Constitution.
Fernandes also stressed the need to introduce Roman-script Konkani in schools from Standard I to X as an optional script. He urged the government to develop the required curriculum, textbooks, teacher training and infrastructure so that students who use the Roman script are not deprived of learning Konkani in their script.
