Mangsebung Rural Municipality to Implement Bantawa Language Curriculum

Mangsebung Rural Municipality to Implement Bantawa Language Curriculum

Mangsebung Rural Municipality, Ilam, has decided to implement the ‘Bantawa Language Curriculum.’ For this purpose, the municipality has formed a task force to develop the curriculum and begun the work, according to Rural Municipality Chairperson Hemant Rai. The municipality has already implemented the ‘Local Curriculum’ and the ‘Limbu Language Curriculum’ at the basic education level.

Chairperson Rai stated, “After discussions and consultations with stakeholders, we have started preparing the Bantawa language curriculum for areas with a majority of Bantawa speakers. We have already formed a task force to move the work forward.”

The task force is led by Madan Kumar Rai, Principal of Jivan Jyoti Secondary School, with members including teachers Uday Rai, Sakuntala Rai, and Ambika Prasad Rai, former teacher Gunja Kumar Rai, and Education Officer (Sixth Level) Yuvaraj Khanal.

Central Deputy General Secretary of Kirat Rai Yayokkha, Krishna Kumar Rai, welcomed the development, saying that the creation of the Bantawa language curriculum is good news for the entire Bantawa-speaking community. He added, “We positively view the initiative of Mangsebung Rural Municipality to utilize the constitutional right to mother tongue education, and our organization will extend positive support for its implementation.”

Part 3, Article 31, Sub-Article 5 of the Constitution of Nepal provides every community with the right to establish and operate schools and educational institutions in their mother tongue. Chairperson Rai stated that Mangsebung is working on preparing the Bantawa language curriculum in accordance with this provision.

Previously, Mangsebung Rural Municipality developed the local curriculum ‘Hamro Mangsebung’ for classes 1–8 and has been teaching it as an optional subject in both community and institutional schools. Likewise, the Limbu language curriculum for classes 1–5 has been implemented in four schools: Pavitra Basic School in Ward No. 3, Saraswati Secondary School in Ward No. 5, Samjik Mundhum Basic School, and Samjik Mundhum Pathshala, according to Buddhi Prasad Khatiwada, Chief of the Education, Youth, and Sports Section.

In Mangsebung, there are three community secondary schools (classes 1–12), seven community secondary schools (classes 1–10), sixteen basic schools (classes 1–8), and four basic schools (classes 1–5). On the institutional side, there are two secondary schools (classes 1–10) and two basic schools (classes 1–8).

According to the 2021 National Census, Mangsebung has a population of 16,810, with 42.83% Limbu and 33.6% Rai ethnic groups. Based on the ethnic and linguistic composition, Mangsebung, which had earlier implemented the Limbu language curriculum, is now preparing to introduce the Bantawa language curriculum. Since 2018, Mangsebung has officially declared the Limbu language as the working language in Ward No. 5, where the Limbu population is predominant.