Cop, Punjabi scholar give digital push to promote Urdu in state

At a time when debates over the supremacy of regional languages over use of Hindi have reignited across the country, a senior Punjab Police official and a Patiala-based Punjabi language scholar are quietly working to give a digital push to the Urdu language.

Keen to revive the nuanced culture of adab (courtesy) and mausiki (music) in a region dominated by Punjabi pop and rap, Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Punjab Police, Mohammad Faiyyaz Farooqui, who has a master’s in Persian language, has launched a YouTube channel titled ‘Urdu Adda’ — a digital initiative aimed at teaching the Urdu language, with a particular emphasis on its diction and pronunciation in a simple and engaging manner.

The police officer’s literary turn — from chasing criminals to reciting couplets — offers a refreshing contrast to daily headlines of crime, drug busts and encounter operations in the state.

Challenging the oft-repeated narrative that Urdu is a foreign tongue, Farooqui, who was decorated with the President’s Medal for his distinguished service, asserts “Urdu is very much an indigenous language. It is a language of the land and should not be tied to any caste, creed, region or religion,” he says.

Through Urdu Adda, Farooqui hopes to rekindle interest in a language long associated with grace, poetry and syncretic culture. His effort has already begun attracting a niche, with growing audience seeking solace in verse amid the din of the modern life.

In a similar way, young scholar and writer Satdeep Gill from Patiala, who has been associated with the Wikipedia movement since 2009 and is an administrator of Punjabi Wikipedia, also started the Urdu Wikisource project in April.

He said despite considerable development of Urdu Wikipedia, the absence of Urdu Wikisource was constantly lacking. “We started the Urdu Wikisource with an objective to provide easy access to Urdu literature. We are currently working on 10 books and digitising the content of the same. Soon, it will be available for readers of the Urdu language,” he said.

Satdeep, who is also a polyglot, says, “Wikisource is a project started by the Wikimedia Foundation in 2003. Currently, there are around 6.4 million books available in 80 languages on Wikisource, which any Internet user can read and download for free. At least 500 books are available on the Punjabi digital plattform. Punjabi Wikimedians are working day and night to increase their number.”

Book ‘Urdu Amoz’

goes out of stock

In 2023, the Language Department had published its first official Urdu book, “Urdu Amoz”. The 267-page book is designed to teach Urdu through the Punjabi medium. The introductory page reads, “Punjabi madhyam rahi Urdu sikhavan di mudli pustak” (A preliminary book for learning Urdu via Punjabi medium). But now, the book is no longer available at the Jalandhar district Language Department as it sold out quickly.

No urdu classes due to non-availability of qualified teacher

Since 2022, Urdu classes offered by the State Languages Department have come to a complete halt due to unavailability of a qualified Urdu teacher. “We require someone with an MA in Urdu to hold classes. Despite our efforts, we haven’t been able to find a suitable candidate,” said a senior official from the department.