Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Eminent writers and columnists on the third and concluding day of Literature (Adabi) Conference held on Sunday at Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) called for a positive and constructive role of social media in reconstruction of the society.

Those who participated in the day’s deliberations included renowned writers Iftikhar Arif, Wajahat Masood, Zahida Hina, Manzar Naqvi, Fatima Hassan and Khurshid Nadeem.

Welcoming the participants, AIOU Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Shahid Siddiqui said that the university was playing its positive role in addressing the socio-economic issues of the society through academic, literary and social activities.

The Adabi Conference was part of the literature carnival that has been made an annual feature to promote role of literature and language in the society’s reformation.

The third day’s activities included a sitting with famous fiction and story writer Zahida Hina, besides launching of two books Chargh Zar, written by Akhtar Usman and Jo Surat Nazar Ayi by Farooq Adil.

Deliberating upon the role of literature and the social media, the participants pointed out that it is the social responsibility of educational institutions to create awareness among the youth as how best they could use the social media for their education and proper brought up.

They appreciated AIOU for its leading role in projecting healthy practices. Listing the pros and cons of the social media, they said it could be destructive for the society if its proper use is not ensured.

Literature, they said is inter-connected with the society’s overall growth and due to its wide-access, the social media has become more dominating. The social media is leaving deep impact on the society, as its access is available to everyone who is free to express himself.

Authenticity and creditability of the contents appeared on Facebook, Twitter and websites are very important. There should be a code of conduct for this purpose, they emphasised.

Altogether, there were 11 working sessions which were participated by eminent writers, columnists and books’ publishers from all over the country.

They deliberated upon the role of literature in reconstruction of the society. The first-working session was devoted to the issues relating to publication of literature, difficulties in its way and future challenges.

National Book Foundation Managing Director Dr Inamul Haq Javed and other speakers including Farrukh Sohail Goindi, Afzal Ahmed and Gagan Shahid called for strengthening publishers-writers relationship to get better results in the books’ publication sector.

Published in Daily Times, April 16^th 2018.