At the historic centenary celebration of the Ol Chiki script, President Droupadi Murmu issued a powerful call to safeguard tribal languages, cultures, and ancestral wisdom. The event, held in Jharkhand’s East Singhbhum district, commemorated a century since the creation of the Ol Chiki script by the esteemed Pandit Raghunath Murmu. President Murmu emphasized that this script serves as a cornerstone for the Santhali community’s cultural identity and pride. She opened her address with a moving rendition of a Santhali Nehor prayer song, a childhood memory, which invokes blessings from ‘Jaher Ayo,’ representing Mother Nature, for societal guidance. Delivering her speech entirely in Santhali, the President expressed profound emotion at visiting the sacred site and lauded the unwavering commitment of Santhali scholars and activists in preserving their script and language. She highlighted the Union government’s groundbreaking publication of the Indian Constitution in the Ol Chiki script as a pivotal step towards linguistic inclusivity, stressing that effective governance necessitates communication in native tongues. The ceremony also saw President Murmu honoring twelve individuals for their remarkable contributions to Santhali language and literature, with state officials pledging continued support for tribal heritage preservation.
