Daily Times

Pakistan Academy of Letters (PAL) in collaboration with National University of Modern Languages (NUML) Monday organised a two-day National Conference on “75 Years of Linguistic and Literary Research of Pakistani Languages”.

Renowned scholar Muhammad Hassan Hasrat presided over the event. In his presidential address, he said that any language is the nation’s identity. The Balti language is spoken by 600,000 people. Ghulam Hassan Hasna, Fida Hussain Balti, Major Muhammad Iqbal, and other writers played a vital role in the propagation of the Balti language, he said.

Qasim Naseem said Muhammad Hussain Hasna played a significant role in the Balti script. He believes that software should be developed to promote and develop this language, and it should be incorporated in school curricula. Talking about Shina language, Akbar Hussain said that 800,000 people speak it.

He discussed Shina’s progress and history, and praised Khalifa Rehmat Jan Malang and Abdullah Malang for their contributions to Shinaz’s poetry. He appreciated the role of Pakistan Academy of Letters (PAL) for its contribution and the Department of Allama Iqbal Open University for the development of Shina language.

Talking about Sindhi language and literature, Abdul Ghafoor Memon said that Sindhi language is the ancient language of Indus Valley. The biggest name in Sindhi language and literature is Mirza Kalich Beg who wrote more than 300 books and did many translations. He gave a beautiful overview of Sindhi language and literature history, stating that research on Sindhi language and literature was done at Sindh University, Shah Latif University, and Karachi University, as well as the Sindhi Literary Board, Sindhi Adabi Sangat, and other institutions. In this regard, the services of Ji Alana, Rasool Bakhsh Palijo, Sheikh Ayaz, Fehmida Hussain and others are commendable.

Dr Manzoor Weserio said a lot of academic research has been done on Shah Latif, and many other researchers have also done a lot of work on Shah Latif. The comparative study of Pakistani languages is quite valuable.

With regard to Seraiki language and literature, Badr Masood stated that the Seraiki language and literature has a rich literary past. Baba Farid’s and Khawaja Farid’s poems united the people’s hearts.