New Delhi, February 21 (HS): Urdu is not just a language; it is a culture, a way of life, and a rich global language that can also play a role in building India and reaching the heights of a developed India. The above views were expressed by Padma Bhushan awardee, Indira Gandhi Kala Kendra President, eminent journalist, intellectual, and thinker Ram Bahadur Rai during his presidential address at the inaugural ceremony of the three-day World Urdu Conference of the National Urdu Language Development Council.

He further said that Urdu should be proud of its past and present, but it is also necessary to make it the language of science and technology so that it can play a role in fulfilling the dream of a developed India. This should be the first agenda of the Urdu conference. He congratulated the Director of the Council for organizing this historic conference and said that under his leadership the Council will take necessary steps to promote Urdu and also include it in the campaign for developed India.

On this occasion, Indresh Kumar, the guide of the Muslim National Forum, said that the general feeling of patriotism will also play an important role in the creation of a developed India. He said that just as India was better than the rest of the world in the past, it can be better in the future too, and for this, Urdu and other Indian languages ​​can play a strong role.

Earlier, the conference was inaugurated with the national anthem and lighting of lamps, and the Director of the Council, Dr. Shams Iqbal, welcomed all the guests by presenting them bouquets, shawls, and souvenirs. In this inaugural session, Director of the National Urdu Language Development Council Dr. Shams Iqbal gave an introductory speech, welcomed all the guests, and highlighted the objectives of the conference. He said that the vision of developed India is a national concept for which every section of the society will have to play a collective role. In this, languages ​​across the country will also have an extraordinary participation, which also includes our Urdu language. He highlighted the unforgettable role of the Urdu language and artists in the development and progress of the country from the freedom movement till today and said that we need to play the same role even today. Referring to the topics of the conference, he said that the research papers and discussions presented on them will not only pave new paths for the development of our language but will also show the way to complete the project of developed India.

Ms. Suman Dixit, Director, Language Department, Ministry of Education, Government of India, while expressing her views, said that Urdu is a very beautiful language whose words are found in all the languages ​​of India, which is an important feature of this language. She said that the Council has been taking Urdu to the public through various schemes since 1996, and this global conference is also a part of the same. She said that in today's era, we should try to reach everyone beyond books so that it does not remain only the language of the elderly but also becomes the language of the new generation. He said that Urdu should be used on social media and digital platforms as well, and the role of Urdu should be decided in the creation of a developed India.

The honored guest of the conference was Prof. Ehtesham Hasnain, who, in his address, said that developed India is the main theme of this conference, in which the cultural expressions of our country will play an important role, including our Urdu language, which has a very vast dictionary. He said that Urdu is an Indian language, 99 percent of whose works have their origin in Sanskrit. He said that the growing interest in Urdu among the new generation is welcome.

Honored guest NBT Director Yuvraj Malik, in his keynote address, said that the opening day of this conference is very memorable, for which I congratulate the Council Director, Dr. Shams Iqbal. He said that India is not a country; it is a culture, and our languages ​​reflect our culture. He said that every language has a culture and every culture has a language; both cannot be seen separately. Yuvraj Malik further said that the concept of developed India is a concept that represents not only economic, but also intellectual, social, cultural, spiritual, and linguistic development.

Now we cannot limit Urdu to only literary and cultural subjects, but we will have to move towards scientific and technical subjects as well. There is a need to translate Urdu works into other languages ​​and to translate good literature of other languages ​​into Urdu on a large scale.

The inaugural session of this three-day conference concluded with the national anthem. A large number of Urdu intellectuals, teachers, and Urdu lovers from the country and abroad participated in this program.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar