Spurt in number of Kannada speakers in NE, dip in Maharashtra

  • | Monday | 19th November, 2018

But no thorough study has been conducted on this.”Experts agree that the decrease in the number of Kannadigas in Maharashtra, Andhra and Goa is because of increasing opportunities within Karnataka, especially in Bengaluru and its suburbs. “It is possible that there were a greater number of soldiers from Karnataka posted during the census in the state,” renowned linguistics expert GN Devy said. In Goa, it dipped from 74,615 to 67,923.Comparatively, the northeastern states collectively saw an increase from 4,255 to 5,605 while in J&K, up from 4,418 to 6,953. It could also be that several residents have naturalised themselves. Prof AR Vasavi from the National Institute for Advanced Studies (Nias) said: “We could say that the increase in the northeast is largely because of the greater presence of the four Karnataka-based banks (Corporation, Canara, Syndicate and Vijaya) and also the number of people taking up positions in educational institutions.

Bengaluru: The increased presence of banks, more faculty positions in universities and spurt in business activity in the northeast has led to a 31% rise in the number of people with Kannada as their mother tongue in the eight states of the region, the 2011 census shows.At the same time, the Kannadiga population in Maharashtra, Goa and Andhra Pradesh has dipped by 20%, 9% and 5.5%, respectively, apparently due to more opportunities in their home state.Kannadigas in Jammu and Kashmir improved their count by 57% – largely due to the presence of Kannadaspeaking soldiers. “It is possible that there were a greater number of soldiers from Karnataka posted during the census in the state,” renowned linguistics expert GN Devy said. Although the absolute numbers cannot be compared with each other given the long history of migration and settlement of Kannadigas in Maharashtra, Andhra and Goa as opposed to the other states, the latest linguistic data could be indicative of future migration opportunities for Kannada speakers.In Maharashtra, the number of Kannadigas dipped from 12.5 lakh in 2001 to 10 lakh in 2011, while the same in undivided Andhra decreased from 5.5 lakh to 5.3 lakh. In Goa, it dipped from 74,615 to 67,923.Comparatively, the northeastern states collectively saw an increase from 4,255 to 5,605 while in J&K, up from 4,418 to 6,953. Prof AR Vasavi from the National Institute for Advanced Studies (Nias) said: “We could say that the increase in the northeast is largely because of the greater presence of the four Karnataka-based banks (Corporation, Canara, Syndicate and Vijaya) and also the number of people taking up positions in educational institutions. But no thorough study has been conducted on this.”Experts agree that the decrease in the number of Kannadigas in Maharashtra, Andhra and Goa is because of increasing opportunities within Karnataka, especially in Bengaluru and its suburbs. It could also be that several residents have naturalised themselves.

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