Mapping Diversity Through Inclusion : Thinking of a Multicultural Curriculum in Higher Education in Assam

The deepening of Democracy is no more resembles to the earlier majoritarian perspective, where the minority's culture, demands and needs were no value in the majority obsessed society. It was something which the fanatic assimilationist groups trying to submerge the voices of the downtrodden in the name of National Concord in the pre-liberal democracies. It showed exclusive tendencies. But with the hasty extension of equity and inclusiveness in Democracy in a plural nation the diversity certainly got a major place into the government agenda. It is no exception even in India. The framers of Indian Constitution in the beginning although did not value the necessity of a multicultural curriculum which can represent the diversity of India into the syllabus for the coming generation. But with the maturity of Constitution the governments have been recognized the importance of inclusion of local – regional art, history, culture and language as a major subjects to be taught at the higher education side by side with the mainstream ideas. This has often been debated whether the local be represented or submerged by nation states in projecting a unified nation system. The Assam in this connection become a major reference point where the “little nationalisms” are still fighting for representation in the higher education curriculum design which is in many ways submerged by the mainstream society and authors. There have been two major movements fought for protection of Language and many such movements were already initiated for inclusion of local languages and culture by the smaller language groups in Assam, the streets were filled by many mass protest for representing local history and culture in the curriculum, the walls were being written for demanding separate educational facilities for the natives in the post independent period. Taking these demands were into consideration the paper intended to study the issues of diversity, equity and inclusion via a multicultural curriculum design in higher education in Assam in retrospect to the mass demands mooted by the people from Assam. The methodology adopted for the paper is descriptive and analytical and data will be collected from relevant secondary sources