Gondi language: victim of government neglect

Without active government support, a unique language, connected with the aspirations of the largest forest-dwelling tribal group in India, is unlikely to make much headway in resurrecting itself

The 2011 census says that the total population of the Gond tribe in the country is 11,344,629.  The total Gondi speaking population, according to it, is 2,713,790. But according to Gond community leaders and observers, the actual numbers could be much higher, given the fact that huge concentrations of Gondi-speaking people are located in the Naxalite-affected areas of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh; in most of these areas, no census is taking place.

Actual number of Gondi speakers, say community members, is many times the number reflected in the census. Gondwana Ganatantra Party (GPP) president, Hira Singh Markam, says that based on surveys carried out by the party, the total number of people with Gondi as their first language is an estimated 20 million. “Since our surveys, too, have their limitations, the actual numbers could be well above this figure

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