Jammu, Feb 11: Emphasising the importance of linguistic roots in early childhood education, Dr Ghulam Nabi Itoo, Director of Good Governance at the Islamic University of Science and Technology Awantipora, on wednesday stated that children should be trained in their mother tongue during their formative years to ensure holistic brain development.
Dr Itoo was speaking during the first session on the second day of the annual conference of Adbi Markaz Kamraz (AMK) in Jammu organised in collaboration with J&K Academy of Art,Culture and Languages sponsored by Jammu and Kashmir Bank. Delivering the presidential address, he called for serious and systematic efforts towards the progression and implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. He described the policy as a document that foregrounds mother languages and urged stakeholders representing diverse linguistic identities in Jammu and Kashmir to engage actively with it.
Highlighting implementation challenges, he noted that acknowledging existing limitations would pave the way for effective execution of the policy. As part of the initial stage, he proposed a comprehensive survey to identify multilingual classrooms and student ratios. In the second phase, he stressed mapping and mobilizing qualified resource persons to ensure capacity building and successful implementation.
The first technical session of the conference was chaired by G N Yatoo, Nodal Officer, Multilingual Section, SCERT. Monika Sharma presented a review of NEP 2020 in relation to regional languages, while Academic Officer (Kashmiri), J&K SCERT, Shabir Hussain reviewed its progress in promoting the Kashmiri language. Academician Shifali Gupta discussed the policy’s implications for regional languages in Jammu. Joint Director SCERT Syed Shabir Hussain emphasized experiential learning and underscored the role of mother tongue in early childhood teaching–learning processes.
Later, a debate on the theme “Global Modern Trends and Kashmiri Literature” was chaired by poet and novelist Ayaz Rasool Nazki. Mir Tariq and Dr Sohan Lal Kaul participated in the discussion, reflecting on the influence of global literary currents on contemporary Kashmiri writing.
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