The NCPUL officials contend that the ministry has also neglected to nominate members to the council's general council and executive committee, leading to a significant reduction in their operational capacity.
Team Clarion
NEW DELHI – Two officials of the National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language (NCPUL), a prominent national-level autonomous body dedicated to fostering Urdu language and literature, have alleged that the Ministry of Education has been obstructing its crucial functions such as organising the World Urdu Conference and providing funding for research and seminars.
The officials, opting to remain anonymous, revealed that the Ministry of Education has consistently delayed the approval for the World Urdu Conference, a flagship event held annually until 2019. Despite proposing to host the event in February 2020, the ministry deferred it, expressing concerns over potential protests linked to nationwide protests against Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA)
Due to the pandemic, the NCPUL organised two webinars in 2020 and 2021as alternatives to the conference. However, proposals for the in-person World Urdu Conferences in 2022 and 2023 received no response from the education ministry, leaving the fate of the prestigious event hanging in balance.
The alleged hindrance from the ministry extends beyond event organisation, affecting critical functions such as the allocation of grants for educational initiatives and the procurement of books by Urdu writers for distribution among libraries.
The NCPUL officials contend that the ministry has also neglected to nominate members to the council’s general council and executive committee, leading to a significant reduction in their operational capacity.
The executive committee, typically consisting of nine members, now only has four, including the education minister and two joint secretaries from the education ministry. The general council, with a stipulated membership of 37, is virtually non-existent, as the government has not reconstituted it after members’ tenures expired in 2021.
Despite submitting proposals for the release of funds for promotional activities, the officials claim that the ministry has not responded, leaving the organisation in a state of uncertainty and functional paralysis.
Adding fuel to the fire, The Telegraph reported that attempts to seek clarification on these allegations from the Higher Education Secretary, Sanjay Murthy, over two months ago, went unanswered.
These developments now cast doubt on the government’s commitment to promoting and fostering Urdu language and literature, raising concerns about a potential crisis for the NCPUL.
