The Department of Urdu, Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) concluded a month-long Urdu Language Course for its second batch of students from the University of Istanbul.
The Vice Chancellor of AIOU, Prof. Dr. Nasir Mahmood, presided over the certificate distribution ceremony, with the Academic Attaché of the Turkish Embassy in Pakistan, Mehmet Toyran, as the chief guest.
Director of Yunus Emre Institute Pakistan, Prof. Dr. Halil Tokar, all the deans of AIOU, principal officers, faculty members, and Director of International Collaboration and Exchange, Dr. Zahid Majeed were also present at the event.
Turkish students introduced themselves in Urdu and mentioned that they were able to learn how to write and speak the language in just one month.
They proudly spoke in Urdu during their visits to various places throughout the course, without using a single word of English.
The Vice Chancellor, Prof. Dr. Nasir Mahmood, expressed his admiration for the students and their teachers for their dedication and hard work.
Dr. Nasir Mahmood also emphasized the importance of language and culture, and how completing this course will enable these students to become ambassadors and contribute to strengthening the relationship between Turkey and Pakistan.
The educational attaché of Turkey expressed gratitude towards the Vice Chancellor and teachers of AIOU for teaching Urdu to their students.
The Dean of Faculty of Social Sciences, Prof Dr. Abdul Aziz Sahir, commended the teachers for their efforts in teaching Urdu to Turkish students.
He added the Turkish students were able to use Urdu during their visits to Islamabad’s Sunday Bazaar, buildings, gardens, markets, Taxila’s archaeological sites, and Lahore’s historical and cultural sites.
Dr. Zahid Majeed and Dr. Arshad Mahmood, both faculty members of the Urdu Department, also gave speeches at the ceremony. Certificates were distributed to the Turkish students and their teachers by Vice Chancellor AIOU at the end of the ceremony.
