NEW DELHI: Sikkim’s only Lok Sabha MP, Indra Hang Subba, on Tuesday requested the Ministry of Education to include Rai, Sherpa, Tamang, and Gurung languages as optional second languages for Classes 11 and 12 under the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE).
The request was made in a letter and meetings with Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Minister of State for Education Sukanta Majumdar in New Delhi on Monday.
Subba backed joint representation from four major community groups: Sikkim Akhil Kirat Rai Sangh, Denjong Sherpa Association, Sikkim Tamang Buddhist Association, and the All Sikkim Gurung (Tamu) Buddhist Association. He raised concerns about ministry’s earlier rejection, communicated through a letter dated December 20, 2024.
“These languages are already part of the CBSE curriculum in classes 9 and 10. Discontinuing them in senior secondary classes breaks the academic continuity and undermines efforts at cultural and linguistic preservation,” Subba said. He added that the inclusion would align with the NEP 2020, which encourages multilingualism.