Pashto writers visit Hindko Academy

PESHAWAR: A group of prominent Pashto language researchers has commended the Gandhara Hindko Academy for its efforts in preserving and promoting Hindko and other Pakistani languages.

“The researchers met with the staff and visited various sections of the Hindko Academy, including the Dr Elahi Bakhsh Awan Library, and appreciated the work,” said the academy’s director, Dr. Muhammad Adil, while discussing the recent visit.

He said the visiting scholars included Dr Hanif Khalil, a professor at Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad, and a renowned Pashto poet, writer, and researcher with numerous publications in Pashto, Urdu, and English to his credit; Dr Shahab Aziz, an expert in the study of religions; Johar Khalil, a distinguished Pashto poet, writer, and researcher; and Sher Ahmad Khalil, a well-known researcher and author.

The director said the scholars saw books, including rare editions, housed in the Prof Dr Elahi Bakhsh Awan Library and praised the literary collection on the region’s history, literature, and linguistics.

Research Officer Ali Awais Khayal said another noted researcher, Nisar Ahmad Khan, visited the academy and described its published books as groundbreaking contributions. He engaged in a detailed discussion about Peshawar, the Hindko language, and the Hindkowans, offering valuable historical and research-based insights.

He said the visitors were told that established in April 2015 in Peshawar, the Hindko Academy, operated as a public-private partnership between the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Higher Education Department and the Gandhara Hindko Board. Its primary mission was to promote the Hindko language, culture, and literature, alongside other fellow Pakistani languages.

The literati were told that the academy had produced so far over 450 publications in various languages, including Hindko, Pashto, Saraiki, Khowar, Kohistani, Brahui, Pothwari, Pahari, Urdu and English.

The academy published comprehensive Hindko dictionaries and the versified Hindko translation of the Holy Quran by the late Abdul Ghafoor Malik. The regular periodicals of the academy included “Hindko Adab,” “The Gandhara Voice,” “Sarkhail,” “Taarey,” “Fatima,” and the English research magazine “Mother.” These serve as valuable resources for those interested in Hindko and other regional languages’ literature and cultures.

The visitors were told that the academy organized regular literary sessions, conferences, cultural festivals, and poetry recitals to promote linguistic and cultural heritage. It has hosted international conferences and events focusing on various regional languages and cultures.

They were informed that to adapt to modern technological trends, the academy had developed mobile applications to promote Hindko, including a Hindko-Urdu dictionary and collections of Hindko proverbs and poetry.

The literati were told that the academy had developed curricula for academic programmes in Hindko, contributing to the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan’s approval of the BS Hindko programme.