Urdu Academy gets new Director

Aligarh : Prof Mohamed Quamrul Hooda Faridi, Department of Urdu has been appointed as the Director of the Urdu Academy, Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) to promote, advance and encourage the study of Urdu language and literature.

He said that he is excited to embrace the interdisciplinary nature of the Urdu Academy, which places publication of manuscripts, developing the Urdu language and preserving the Urdu tradition and culture under one umbrella.

“Promoting the study of Urdu language and literature through various interventions and interdisciplinary collaborations is going to be at the forefront of what I am looking to do while providing leadership,” Prof Faridi said.

He noted, the Urdu Academy of AMU has a huge responsibility of Urdu Medium Schools including Madrasas and those schools where Urdu is taught as first, second and third language, in Uttar Pradesh, Uttrakhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Orissa.

Prof Faridi has published over 17 books and more than 100 papers in peer-reviewed journals.

His name features in the Editorial Board of the Quarterly ‘Fikr-o-Nazar’, AMU and ‘Saghar-e- Adab’, Muzaffarpur.

Prof Faridi is the joint-editor of ‘Shareek Moodeer’, Tahzeeb-ul-Akhlaq and Khabar-o- Nazar and also edits the Arts Faculty Journal, ‘Danish’ and ‘Alfaz’.

He has received several awards from the Uttar Pradesh and Bihar Urdu Academies including the ‘Urdu Dastan: Tahqeeq-o-Tanqeed’, ‘Tilism-e-Hoshruba Tanqeed-o-Talkhees’, ‘Izhar-o-Iblagh’, ‘Sir Syed Aur Urdu Zaban-o-Adab’ and ‘Kalimuddin Ahmad Award’ for his book ‘Urdu Nasr: Asnaf-o-Asaleeb’.

Urdu Prose, specifically ‘Dastan’, history of Urdu language, Sir Syed Ahmad Khan and the Aligarh Movement are his interest areas.