LANGUAGE IN INDIA

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Volume 26:1 January 2026
ISSN 1930-2940

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Illiteracy, Language, and Social Exclusion: A Sociolinguistic Study of Gujjars and Bakarwals in Pulwama

Nusrat Jan
Sheeba Hassan and
Tahseen Hassan

Abstract

This study critically examines the intertwined phenomena of illiteracy, linguistic marginalisation, and social exclusion among the Gujjar and Bakarwal communities in Pulwama district, Jammu and Kashmir. Employing a sociolinguistic framework, the research investigates how the systematic exclusion of Gojri, the community's mother tongue, from formal education policies perpetuates significant educational deficits, particularly affecting women and nomadic populations. Using both quantitative and qualitative data from census records, government reports, and field interviews, the study reveals that the prominence of Urdu and English as teaching languages exacerbates linguistic alienation, resulting in high dropout rates and literacy levels significantly below state and national averages. Additionally, factors such as seasonal migration, socio-economic deprivation, inadequate educational infrastructure, and the lack of culturally responsive pedagogy compound these challenges, reinforcing patterns of exclusion and limiting socio-economic mobility. The study argues that mother tongue-based multilingual education, combined with culturally attuned policy reforms and active community engagement, constitutes a vital strategy for promoting educational inclusion while safeguarding linguistic and cultural heritage. These findings contribute to broader discourses on minority language rights and educational equity, highlighting the urgent need for targeted interventions to address the structural barriers faced by Gujjars and Bakarwals in Pulwama.

Keywords:Illiteracy, linguistic marginalisation, social exclusion, Gojri language, nomadic pastoralists, gender disparity, mother tongue-based education, multilingualism, educational equity, marginalised communities.

Introduction

Sir George A. Grierson's ?Linguistic Survey of India? (1903-1928) remains a foundational, though contested, source for the study of South Asia's linguistic diversity, including some of the earliest descriptive accounts of Gojri, the mother tongue of the Gujjar and Bakarwal communities. While the ?Survey? provides valuable historical evidence of Gojri's Indo-Aryan roots and linguistic distinctiveness, its methodological limitations, such as reliance on colonial administrators and socially privileged informants, inconsistent data collection, and a classificatory framework that privileged dominant written languages over oral vernaculars, have been widely critiqued. These biases contributed to the historical invisibility of Gojri in governance and schooling, reinforcing the marginalisation of Gujjars and Bakarwals from opportunities for literacy and formal education. Contemporary reinterpretations, including the ?People?s Linguistic Survey of India?, seek to redress these omissions by advocating participatory, community-centred research that foregrounds marginalised voices. In this context, the Pulwama study on illiteracy and exclusion highlights how the colonial neglect of Gojri continues to shape present educational inequities, while positioning mother tongue-based multilingual education as a corrective strategy that both preserves the historical value of Grierson's documentation and transcends its colonial limitations by affirming the linguistic and cultural identities of marginalised communities.

Gujjars and Bakarwals, nomadic pastoralist Scheduled Tribes comprising 11.9% of Jammu and Kashmir's population, face profound socio-educational marginalisation due to seasonal transhumance migrations across districts like Rajouri, Poonch, Baramulla, and Pulwama, as documented by Israr Ahmed et al. (2015) and Mohd. Tufail et al. (2014). Their literacy rates remain critically low at 22.51-31.65%, far below the state's 55.52% general average, with empirical studies by Wani and Islam (various years, cited in recent analyses) and the 2021 Transhumant Population Survey attributing this to disrupted schooling from pastoral priorities, inadequate infrastructure, teacher absenteeism, gender disparities (e.g., ST female literacy at 39.7%), and cultural barriers. Government interventions like mobile schools and hostels exist but suffer implementation gaps in remote terrains, while research highlights the need for culturally sensitive policies, longitudinal retention studies, and localised teacher training to bridge these persistent gaps.

This is only the beginning part of the article. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE IN PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION.

Nusrat Jan
Research Scholar, Department of Linguistics,
University of Kashmir
nusrataltaf1314@gmail.com

Sheeba Hassan
Assistant Professor, Department of Linguistics,
University of Kashmir
sheeba@uok.edu.in
&
Tahseen Hassan
Research Scholar, Department of Linguistics,
University of Kashmir
tahseenh611@gmail.com
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