Daily Times

When Quaid-e-Azam envisioned Urdu as Pakistan’s only and only national language over seven decades ago it speaks volumes of Urdu being pertinent and practical language with immense promise and potential.

And with one estimate of Urdu being the language of over a billion of the world’s seven billion plus takes this language beyond borders and gives it an enormous international impetus and recognition.

Imagine from Quaid-i-Azam Public Library Bagh-e-Jinnah Lahore’s Urdu version of spell-binding books on Physics, Chemistry, Maths, Zoology, Botany with graphics, illustrations and diagrams at the national level to Chairs of Urdu at McGill University in Canada, at Beijing University in China, at Al Azhar in Cairo, Egypt and full-fledged Departments of Urdu at Universities in USA and Europe, specially Germany at the international level.

Problems of Urdu as a national language in Pakistan are manifold and are discussed so vehemently and vociferously that it is high time to work with emotional maturity, seriousness of purpose and penetrative thinking. Ilm Dost and Anjuman-e Nifaz-e-Urdu Karachi address challenges to Urdu language by jointly commemorating Yom-e-Urdu recently at KMC Officers’ Club in Karachi which was well-attended by concerned members and media.

Participants included imminent poet Sarwar Jawed, Advocate Naseem Shah of Tehreek-e-Nifaz-e-Urdu, Siddiq Raz, Anees Merchant, Parvez Jamil, Tasneem Faruqi, Syed Muneef Ashr Maleehabadi from Canada, Majeed Rahmani, Meer Husain Ali Imam, Sarbarah Idara Ilm Dost Shabbir Ibn e Adil, Mohammad Ahmad Siddiqi, Maqsood Sheikh and others who passed a resolution to commemorate International Urdu Day on February 25, 2021.

A consensus of opinion on a wiser, logical and practical solution emerged from the proceedings of this meeting that Urdu as a national language need to go side by side with Pushto in KPK, Punjabi in the Punjab, Sindhi in Sindh and Baluchi in Baluchistan as provincial languages also remained of paramount significance with the national language as a practical and pragmatic model of national and provincial understanding and cohesion.

Highlighted was also Urdu, besides being the national language of promise and potential, is language of the common man and daily routine of life of labourers and vendors, private businesses, public utilities, shops and stores, hospitals and clinics, hotels and restaurants, transport and communication, post offices and banks, mobile and phones, show biz and media, sports and recreation, travel and tourism, law and order, khutbas and sermons.

In order to stabilise national language with grace, dignity and honour, a modus operandi needs to be worked out innovatively and sincerely, taking on board and co-existing harmoniously with regional and provincial languages but it all needs to be led from the front by our statesmanship and leadership setting positive and practical examples of decency, discipline and decorum in national parliamentary language.

The writer is a freelancer and can be reached at parvezjamil@hotmail.com