PESHAWAR: Speakers at a consultancy gathering held here the other day demanded of the authorities and policymakers to adopt mother languages as compulsory subject in educationalinstitutions.

The meeting on Mother Languages Movement was organised under the auspices of Mafkoora, a research and development organisation,here.

The participants, including rights activists and language experts, urged the provincial government to issue a notification to ensure teaching of the designated mother languages as compulsory subject in both public and private educational institutions.

They said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was home to over two dozen languages, out of which five, namely Pashto, Hindko, Kohistani, Seraiki and Khowar, had been adopted as medium of instruction in their respective districts.

They said losing mother language was tantamount to losing indigenous heritage, collective wisdom, culturalidentity and values of pluralism, worldview, mutual respect and tolerance.

They said linguistic diversity promoted peace, respect for views of others, interfaith harmony and several other social values, traditions and ownership claim over tangible and intangible cul-tural heritage.

They noted that promoting linguistic diversity was in fact a national cause as it meant preservingatreasure trove.

A resolution unanimously passed on the occasion demanded that all educational boards in KP should set a separate paper for students sitting annual examinations in respective mother languages bearing 100 marks from next academic session.

The participants agreed to call an all-party conference regarding the issue of mother languages and their importance in social and political life.

The participants also urged KP Textbook Board authorities to ensure availability of books of compulsory subjects in schools. They also sought action against the institutions not appointing teacher of mother language to teach it as compulsory subject.

Hayat Roghani, chief executive officer of Mafkoora, said a trend on KP mother languages would be launched on social media. He said a delegation would meet Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, the provincial education minister, the chief secretary and secretary elementary and secondary education to ask them to ensure teaching of mother languages in educationalinstitutions.

Rahman Gul Hamdard, Adil Mahmood, Yousaf Anwar, Akash Torwali and others spoke.