Kurukh Banna

Kũṛux Bannā (IPA [kũɽux bənːaː]), or the Kurukh Banna or simply Banna Lipi is an alphasyllabic neography used for writing the Kurukh language of the Oraon people in eastern India. It was invented by Basudeo Ram Khalkho based on Brahmic writing systems, and was released in 1991. The Banna script is written left-to-right and is composed of 48 primary characters and 10 numerals.

Since its creation in 1991, the Banna script has been revised twice, first in 1995, and latest in 1998. The script is mostly used in northern Odisha, with some users also in Jharkhand and West Bengal. The Banna script is the medium of instruction in a few Kurukh language schools. A number of educational materials, newspapers, magazines and literary works have been published in the Banna script. Some Kisan people have also adopted the script.

The Banna script has a 24% resemblance with northern Indic scripts. It is one of two competing scripts used to write the Kurukh language, the other being the alphabetical Tolong Siki, another neography which developed independently.

Demands have been made for the Banna script along with the Kurukh language to be given constitutional recognition in India. The script has also been proposed for Unicode inclusion.