International Mother Language Day at AMU
Aligarh : BSc Computer Applications student, Aman Tariq won the online speech competition of the Department of Computer Science, Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) on ‘Role of ICT in Localization and Promotion of Matribhasha’. The competition was held to mark the ‘International Mother Language Day’ observations and celebrate linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism.
Ahmad Raza Shibli (B.Sc Computer Applications) secured the second spot and Ariba Khan (BSc Computer Applications) received the consolation prize.
Congratulating the winners, Prof Aasim Zafar (Chairman, Department of Computer Science) stressed the need for the promotion of mother tongues and emphasized the role that Information and Communications Technology can play in it.
He also distributed certificates to the winners.
Faculty members, Dr Shafiqul Abidin, Dr Swaleha Zubair and Dr Mohammad Sajid pointed out that programmes such as the speech competition held to mark the International Mother Language Day help the creating awareness on the need for preserving and protecting languages and dialects.
Dr Swaleha Zubair, Dr Faisal Anwer and Dr Mohammad Sajid were in the jury that judged and announced the competition results.
Dr Mohammad Nadeem, Ayesha Abdulla and Fayeza Zubair coordinated the event.
In the International Mother Language Day observations at the Department of Physics, Prof. B P Singh (Chairman) said, “The idea to celebrate International Mother Language Day first came from Bangladesh. The general conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO decided to celebrate February 21 as International Mother Language Day in November, 1999”.
He was speaking on the Bengla Language movement of Bangladesh and the role of academicians in promoting scientific and technical communications in native languages.
Prof Isar A Rizvi spoke on the need to promote and protect various native languages, Dr Sudhir K Gupta discussed origins of various native languages, Dr Abbas Ali shared interesting aspects of communication in mother tongue, Dr S S Z Ashraf and Dr Noor Alam recited poems to mark the occasion, Dr Jai Prakash elucidated how to overcome challenges for effective scientific communication in native languages, Haseeb Azmi discussed cultural diversity and multilingualism and Faisal stressed the need for preservation of all languages.
At the Department of Commerce, Prof Nawab Ali Khan (Chairman) remarked that languages are not just a means of communication but they represent vast cultural and intellectual heritage.
He was speaking on the promotion and application of native languages at the International Mother Language Day observations.
Dr Naghma Azhar (Program Coordinator) advocated the importance of mother languages to understand the diverse cultures.
Dr Naghma Azhar and Dr Aslam Khan also spoke about promoting linguistic and cultural diversity.
The occasion was observed at the Department of Library and Information Science with faculty members delivering speeches on importance of mother tongue and native languages across the Country.
Prof Nishat Fatima (Chairperson, Department of Library and Information Science) spoke about the use of native languages in religious and other texts and the need for seminal work in native languages.
Students from various linguistic backgrounds delivered speeches and recited poetry in the Kashmiri, Urdu, Bengla and Pahari languages.
Dr Muzamil Mushtaq conducted the program, attended by faculty members, researchers and students.
Ram Das, Dr L Anupriya, Dr Marimuthu, Dr Mohammad Arman Khan and Adeela Majid were declared winners of the essay writing competition on ‘Mother Languages’ held to observe the International Mother Language Day at the Department of Oral Maxillofacial Surgery, Z A Dental College.
The celebrations of this day serve to remind us of the importance of language as a cultural asset and all the activities to observe the occasion will help in raising awareness on the importance of protecting and preserving mother tongues, said Prof G S Hashmi (Chairman, Department of Oral Maxillofacial Surgery).
Dr Aafiya Ambereen conducted the program.
Suhail (Class VIII), Bharti Yadav (Class V) and Alfia (Class VI) stood first, second and third respectively in the Essay Writing Competition held to observe the International Mother Language Day at the Ahmadi School for the Visually Challenged. The competition was judged by school teacher, M P Singh.
In other cultural activities, Sirajuddin Shiekh (Music teacher) performed Bangla and Bhojpuri songs and school students Showkat (Class IV), Preeti Kumari (Class X) and Abhishek (Class VI) sang Kashmiri, Rajasthani and Hindi folk songs.
Dr Naila Rashid (School Principal) explained the importance of mother tongue in early childhood education.
School teachers, Eram Fatima and Babloo Kuraisi also delivered speeches on mother languages.
S Ahtasham Akbar extended the vote of thanks.
Essay writing and poster making competitions were also held at the Abdullah were also held at the Abdullah School for Mother Language Day celebrations.
School Superintendent, Umra Zaheer explained the use of technology for multilingual learning challenges.