New Delhi
The Ministry of Tribal Affairs will on Monday (September 1) launch the Beta Version of ‘Adi Vaani’ — India’s first Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered translator for tribal languages. The Ministry termed it a landmark step towards inclusive tribal empowerment and preservation of India’s rich linguistic diversity,
In its first phase, Adi Vaani will cater to tribal languages viz. Santhali, Mundari, Bhili, Gondi, Kui, and Garo. Developed under the banner of Janjatiya Gaurav Varsh, this pioneering initiative is set to transform the linguistic and educational landscape in tribal regions.
Available on Play Store (with iOS coming soon) and through a dedicated web platform, Adi Vaani is designed to bridge communication gaps between tribal and non-tribal communities, while safeguarding endangered tribal languages using advanced AI.
The Tribal Affairs Ministry stated that this initiative will strengthen India’s constitutional values of cultural diversity and equity while advancing flagship national missions, including Digital India, Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat, Adi Karmayogi Abhiyan, Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan, and PM JANMAN.
The Ministry has invited citizens, educators, cultural workers, and communities to join this transformative effort to celebrate and preserve India’s tribal linguistic heritage.
What Is Adi Vaani?
Adi Vaani is an AI-based translation tool that serves as the foundation for a future large language model dedicated to tribal languages. The project combines advanced AI technologies with community-driven approaches to protect, promote, and revitalize tribal languages and cultures across India.
India’s Linguistic Landscape
India is home to 461 tribal languages spoken by Scheduled Tribes and 71 distinct tribal mother tongues (Census of India, 2011). Among these, 81 languages are vulnerable and 42 are critically endangered. Many face the risk of extinction due to limited documentation and intergenerational transmission gaps.
Adi Vaani addresses this challenge by leveraging AI for systematic digitization, preservation, and revitalization of tribal languages. It has been developed by a national consortium of premier institutions led by IIT Delhi with BITS Pilani, IIIT Hyderabad, and IIIT Nava Raipurin collaboration with Tribal Research Institutes (TRIs) in Jharkhand, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Meghalaya.
The project aims to:
- Enable real-time translation (text and speech) between Hindi/English and tribal languages.
- Provide interactive language learning for students and early learners.
- Digitally preserve folklore, oral traditions, and cultural heritage.
- Support digital literacy, healthcare communication, and civic inclusion in tribal communities.
- Awareness on govt. schemes and important speeches
Scope, Languages, Methodology & Features
In its Beta launch, Adi Vaani supports Santali (Odisha), Bhili (Madhya Pradesh), Mundari (Jharkhand), Gondi (Chhattisgarh). Additional languages including Kui and Garo are under development for the next phase.
AI Language Models: Refined deployment of models such as No Language Left Behind (NLLB) and IndicTrans2 for low-resource tribal languages.
Community Participation: TRIs, experts, and communities are involved in data collection, validation, and iterative development.
Functional Toolkit:
- Text-to-Text, Text-to-Speech, Speech-to-Text, Speech-to-Speech translations.
- Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for digitizing manuscripts and primers.
- Bilingual dictionaries and curated repositories.
- Subtitles for Prime Minister’s speeches, health advisories (e.g., Sickle Cell Disease awareness), and information on government schemes and initiatives in tribal languages.
Impact & Way Forward
Adi Vaani is more than a translation tool – it is a national mission to:
- Digitize and safeguard tribal knowledge and cultural expressions.
- Empower tribal communities with education, healthcare access, and public service delivery in their native languages.
- Promote inclusive governance by ensuring last-mile reach of government schemes.
- Position India as a global leader in AI-driven preservation of endangered languages.
