In this note, I will illustrate some of the features of Koshali language which are derived from some of the sources described before. My challenge is how to deal with this vast topic in the body of this note. As a starter I urge readers to be familiar with three works which will be good context to this note: 1. Koshali Bhasha Ra Sankhipta Parichaya by Pragnadatta Joshi(Ed) Dr.Dolgobinda Bishi, 2.Sambalpuri Odia Shabda Kosha by Dr.Prafulla Kumar Tripathy, and 3.Sambalpuri Koshali Vyakarana by Dr.Nila Madhaba Panigrahi and Dr.Prafulla Kumar Tripathy. By necessity, I will give only samples and will not dwell on the theoretical possibilities.

From our Adivashi roots, we have inherited a vast vocabulary, especially connected to intimate connection with natural surroundings: Dangar {hill), Dungri (small hill), Jor (fast flowing rivulet), Unkia (morning light) etc. Other words; DhangrA( young man), DhAngri(young woman), Bui(young lady from a respected family), Bua(father), BhuskA, Bhuski(Fat man, Fat woman). One of the Siddhas named in Yogini Kosha (10 th Century?) is BhuskApA, probably a Koshali.

Pali source: UdurchA (Sanskrit equivalent Uddhata) to be found in Abhidharma Kosha of Trpitaka as one of the Akushala dharma.

Sanskrit: Kindrikari (to go around), Nani (young girl, Sk.: Nandini); ButA (Brutti), Bhuti, meaning wage in Koshali (Bhukti)

Northern source: Sentence structure where negative is placed before verb unlike in Odia: Ex. Mui nain Jae (Koshali) but Mu jibi nahi (Odia); Chanti (ant, pimpudi in Odia), etc.

Western Source: Gudi (temple) as used in Marathi/Bidarbhi, etc…

Tantrik Heritage: The word Puja used sometimes with added meaning, sacrifice (BaLi). In verb form, Pujidemi means I will chop the head off; from the same word, Pajei means sharpening the cutting instrument.

There are many words which are used with different meaning Koshali and Odia, such as NanA (father in some parts in coastal Odisha but father’s sister in Koshali), ChhenA (cheese in Odia but dried cow dung in Koshali.

Thus, archeological dig into Koshali language reveals stamp of most of roots of Koshali heritage. But vocabulary by itself does not make a language. It has to be means of communication in all day to day affairs. Koshali language has been shaped over centuries and has adequately served this purpose. It has different tone, timbre and rhythm, which distinguish itself from Odia, just as Odia has its own stylistic features… The rhythm of Koshali songs is markedly different from Odia.  For instance, Champu fits so well to Odia, just as Dalkhai fits to Koshali. Singing Champu in Koshali will sound bad as Dalkhai in Odia.

How resilient is Koshali? In spite of aggressive Odianisation of Koshal region, Koshali not only survives but also thrives. Odia remains as second language for Koshalis who invariably speak Koshali at home as well as in their day to day social intercourse.

In 1969, Rajendra Lal Mitra argued in Cuttack: if Bengali could successfully replace Odia in the district of Midnapore then why it could not do so in the other three districts of the Orissa Division under the Bengal Presidensy as well which comprised of a population of barely 20 lakhs? (Source: A.K.Mishra in The Raj; Nationalists and Refrorms). Well, he was wrong, just as the attempt to extinguish Koshali in Koshal region has proved to be wrong. When Orissa was formed in 1936, it started with a population of 8,043,681 including the then undivided Sambalpur district but excluding princely states. Now the Koshal region has about 15 million people. So if less than 8 million or so people can be a linguistic unit, why 15 million people will have to be deprived of the similar status?

Though Koshal or Western Orissa too was the meeting ground Aryan, Dravidian and Adivashi cultural heritages, in many respects there are significant variables which are distinctly different from coastal Odisha. Koshal is full of hills and valleys, with fast flowing rivers and rivulets. And unlike coastal Odisha it is landlocked. Until it became a part of Odisha, the main and dominant connections of Koshal were with Northern India (modern Jharkhand and beyond) and Western India (modern Chhattisgarh and beyond) with significant contact with coastal region and marginal contact with Dravidian region. Mahanadi passes through Koshal originating through Chhattisgarh, a significant part of which is part of Greater Koshal, meeting the sea in coastal region. Mahanadi, being navigable year around, was the main artery of commerce as well as carrier of social contacts. Most of the significant political contacts were with west and north. Since it was the tail end of ancient Koshal of Puranic age, most of the cultural institutions are influenced by the north. The present note is not meant for delineating the long history of Koshal, but by the time Huen Tsang visited the region in 7^th century AD, Greater Koshal was already known as Koshal  as a distinct region. British brought about 60 to 70 per cent of Koshali speaking area to the Bengal Presidency in early 1900s, which eventually became part of modern Odisha in 1936. During the long history of Koshal and Utkal/Kalinga, military conquests took place from either side. Political masters of Koshal such as Meghbahana Vansa and Somavanshis occupied Kalinga/Utkala, and Anangabhima Deva conquered Koshal. Never the less, Koshal even during brief subjugation retained its identity as a distinct region. The traumatic invasion and rule of Utkala/Kalinga by Ashoka as well as Afgans and Moguls was not experienced by Koshal region. The only attempted invasion of Muslim invasion of Koshal by Ismail Gaji, Commander-in-chief of Bengal Sultan Allaudin Hussain was routed in 1503 by Balaram Dev, who was then commander-in-chief of Koshal army. The Muslim army was defeated and eventually Balaram Dev became king of Koshal.   Koshal was briefly (5 to 6 years) occupied by Marathas but for a much longer period by Utkal/Kalinga. During British occupation, legendary armed revolt (1827 to 1864) led by Surendra Sai too well known to be detailed here. This is a very brief snapshot of the history highlighting some of the important events.

The religious scene in Koshal was dominated by Mahayana/Vajrayana Buddhism and Saiba/Sakta Tantrism, evidence of which abounds throughout the region. Nabin Sahu, well known historian, Padmasambhaba from Sambalpur went Tibbet at the invitation of Tibbetan monarch of 8^th century and spread Vajrayan Buddhism. Voluminous writings by him as well as other Vajrayana Siddhas, like Nagarjuna (not Adi Nagarjuna), Indrabhuti, Laxminkara and Sakyamitra from Koshal suggest that Koshala was an important center of Sanskrit and Pali pedagogy. Vaishavism crept in gradually after Koshal was integrated with Odisha. Demographically, the region had twenty different tribes, some with their own language but all tribals are conversant with Koshali. Aryanisation of the area took place in drips and drabs without any sudden influx as it happened in Kalinga/Utkal. There is evidence of existence of many Srotriya Brahmins usually under the tutelage of various kings and chieftains. Balaram Dev in 16^th century brought a few Brahmins and Karans, who took over priestly duties and administrative functions. Previous to that Gonds were the main civil servants. During Muslim occupation of coastal Odisha, more Brahmins came to Koshal probably to escape Muslim atrocity against Brahmins there. In this historical context Koshali language developed.

CEDAW

The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (cedaw) is international treaty adopted in 1979 by the United Nation General Assembly. The treaty has been ratified by 189 countries, including India. Article 1 defines discrimination against women in the following terms:

“Any discrimination, exclusion or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or  purpose of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of equality of men and women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other filed .“

Women’s rights are secured under the Constitution of India- mainly, equality, dignity, and freedom from discrimination. India also has various statues governing the rights of women. However India’s Gender Equality Index (0.530, in 2015) ranks 125^th out of 188 countries in the world.

In this article I will discuss some the rights which are most important to Indian women.

Life and Health

Women’s lives are unequally at risk in many parts of the world, including India. Statistics continue to show that women suffer unequally from hunger, malnutrition and from unequal access to basic health care. Religions and cultures have contributed to this state of affairs. It is difficult to distinguish between a religion and the cultural traditions that surround it. All religions have denigrated the value of female life. In India even though dowry is illegal, many married women are abused, burnt and killed, because their parents could not pay the dowry.

Multiple studies have shown that when food supply is limited, boys are given priorities over girls. Same is true of healthcare and education. Girls fetch water, work in the kitchen while boys are allowed to play or attend school.

Right to Bodily Integrity

Women suffer many abuses that violate their bodies. These include domestic violence, sexual abuse, molestation, rape, and in certain Islamic culture genital mutilation. Rape is an underreported and under punished crime world over including India. In both the Hindu and Islamic communities, unequal access to property rights and divorce and poverty frequently forces married women to stay in an abusive relationship. The very concept of marital rape is foreign to many religions, which give a husband unlimited access to the wife. Female genital mutilation is frequently defended on the basis of Islam. Some punishment sanctioned by the Koran and the Sharia laws are “cruel, inhuman, or degrading” to women.

There can be no doubt that the control of women’s bodies has been central preoccupation of many, if not most, religions of the world. In a wide range of cases, they violate some of the most basic right of a human being.

Education and JOBS

Nothing is more important to women’s life chances than education. With education a woman may consider her options and to some extent shape her future. With education she may get a job, start a business, do her own accounts, read an important notice that comes to her in the mail. She may question traditions and discover how women in other parts of the world are managing to live better.

Women‘s educational opportunities and achievements are dramatically limited in many nations including India. As per 2011 census, India’s overall literacy rate was 74.04 %( China-96.4%) but women’s literacy rate was only 65.5%. Kerala has the highest female literacy rate (92%) among the Indian states followed by Mizoram (89%).In Odisha the, the male literacy rate was 73.5% but the female literacy rate was only 50.97%. Among the Oriya women the lowest literacy level was in Nabarangpur district (21%) and in Malkangiri(21%).

According to 2015 statistics only 35.3% of India’s female population over 25 has some form of secondary education. Based on 2013 statistics, the percentage female students enrolled in undergraduate degree programs were 46%.The percentage female students were, 51% in medicine, 40% in IT, 35% in management, 32% in law and 28.5% in engineering. All these are hopeful numbers.

However the overall labor participation of women in India is only 29%.  The share of central government jobs held by women in India is only 10%. Only 15.45% of IAS officers were  women. Out of 323 top CEOS of Indian companies only 8(2.5%) are women.   Women earn 56% of what their male colleague earn for performing the same job.

Rights of Property and Family Law

Artcle 15 of the women’s convention (cedaw) insists on women’s equality before the law. Women are to have equal rights to enter into contracts,equal property rights, and have equal treatment before courts and tribunals. This is simply not the case in many countries of the world, including India.Under traditional Islamic law, women are explicitly unequal.In india and Bangladesh , there are some laws governed by religious norms and some by secular laws. In both situations women are treated unequally with men. In India secular marriage is available as an option, but secular divorce is not. Acouple must appeal for divorce to the religion of their birth.

Reproductive Rights

International human right activists agree that women’s access to contraceptions is extremely important women’s right. It gives women reproductive control and protection against some sexually transmitted diseases(condom and diaphagram). Islam and Catholic Church oppose birth control abd abortion. Fortunately, In India women have legal right to birth control and abortion evnthough many of them do not have access to these services, especially in rural areas.

Rights of Political Participation and Speech

Even though women have held high offices including that of the President, Prime Minister, and Speaker of the LokSabha, Leader of the Opposition, many Governors and Chief Ministers only 12% of the Indian members of the Parliament are women. Out of 4896 MPS/MLAS across the country, only 418 or 9%are women. This is very sad statistic, 70 years after independence. In Odisha, out of 147 MLAs only 11(7%) are women.

Even though India does not officially suppress women’s speech, but the fear of offending the religious and the political authorities does at times pose a threat to free speech.

Conclusion

The Indian Constitution (1950) in its enumerated Fundamental Rights include a right for all persons to equal protection of the laws and also a right to nondiscrimination on the ground of  “religion, caste, sex or place of birth”. The Constitution (Article17) also abolished “untouchability”. Unfortunately 67 years later, discrimination based on caste, sex, and religion continues in India.

While the educated urban middle class women’s rights continue to improve, it is not the case for vast majority of women in India. India’s maternal deaths from child birth and infant mortality rates are unacceptably high. Female infanticide is common. Women’s access to healthcare is limited. Women’s literacy rate and labor force participation rate is lower than that of men. Percentage of women in political office and high power jobs are very low. Women are also paid less than men for similar jobs. On the whole in Indian culture women are valued less than men.

No nation can claim to be free and prosperous, where half of its people are being oppressed and neglected. All developmental experts agree on at least one point-that sustainable and long-term development is not possible without the full participation and empowerment of women. We should remember Pandit Nehru’s observation that “you can tell the condition of a Nation by looking at the status of its women”. If we apply Pandit Nehru’s criterion, India Gender Equity Index ranking of 125 among 188 countries in the world is nothing but shameful after 70 years of independence. India has a long way to go make life better for her women citizen. It is time all of us work at it.

To rectify the present situation India should reserve certain percentage of all the political offices (from panchayat to MlAs, MPs) for women until their numbers come close to that of men.