URDU orthography, or the traditional spelling rules that govern the writing of Urdu language, has always been a bone of contention. It was Rasheed Hasan Khan (19252006 his dates of birth and death mentioned online are usually incorrect) who through his book Urdu Imla (1974) made the issues related to Urdu orthography quite popular, though some say more contentious.

But the movement for reforming Urdu orthography had begun as early as in 1800 at Fort William College (FWC), Calcutta (now Kolkata).

At the FWC, John Gilchrist had prepared a set of rules to spell certain Urdu words. He was the first in history to have suggested that Urdu`s aspirated sounds, such as bh, ph, kh, be written with a `do chashmi hai`, or the two-eyed `h`, which is written with a grapheme that looks like two small circles joined together, resembling the two eyes, hence the name.

The suggestion was quite useful andpractical, but it took about a 100 years or so before it was fully adapted by Urdu`s writing system.

In the latter half of 19th Century and early half of the 20th Century,some scholars, such as, Debi Prashad Sahar Badayuni, Moulvi Nazeer Ahmed Dehlvi, Ahsan Marehravi, Abdus Sattar Siddiqi and Pandit Dattatreya Kaifi suggested some orthographic changes. At the institutional level, Anjuman Taraqqi-iUrdu Hind under the supervision of Moulvi Abdul Haq in pre-independence era deliberated and formulated some rules with Abdus Sattar Siddiqi and Hashmi Fareedabadi on the reform committee.

After the independence, Ghulam Rasool, Ghulam Mustafa Khan, Farman Fatehpuri, Rasheed Hasan Khan, Shaukat Sabzwari, Abu Muhammad Sahar, Hafeezur Rahman Wasif and some others offered their suggestions to reform Urdu orthography.

Gopi Chand Narang`s book Urdu Nama (1974) recommended orthographic rules. But it became controversial and Gopi Chand Narang was accused of plagiarising much from the manuscript of Rasheed Hasan Khan`s book Urdu Imla that was sent for pre-publication review. In Pakistan, first it was UrduDictionary Board that drew up a set of rules to spell certain words and write them in its 22-volume, UrduUrdu dictionary. Then Muqtadira Qaumi Zaban, or National Language Authority (now rechristened as Idara-i-Farogh-i-Qaumi Zaban, or National Language Promotion Department, or NLPD), Islamabad, took up the matter and two national seminars were organised in 1985 and2022todiscusstheorthographic issues. The recommendations of the NLPD were published on both the occasions. Punjab University`s Urdu Encyclopedia of Islam project, too, had an orthographic scheme under the guidance of Dr Syed Abdullah.

But many issues related to Urdu orthography still remain unresolved and standardisation of Urdu orthography still remains elusive.

So, when I got a copy of a book on Urdu orthography`s history and the issues it has been facing all along, I was simply pleased. But what made me more delighted was the fact that the book is written by a young scholar from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

It is in fact a doctoral dissertationpublished in the book form.

Such crucial topics are rarely chosen for a research worlc at our universities these days and it is really painful to see how our universities have been turned into paper mills, churning out dubious research papers.

Most of these theses are either fal(e, pretending to be original research or, at best, are just mediocre, presenting summary of what has already been written and published on the topic, without offering any new thought or discovery. These researchers conveniently forget that the actual purpose of research is to create knowledge, to push forward the borders of human knowledge and offer some insight as well as solutions.

But this dissertation happened to be a different one and, thank God, my initial euphoria was not misplaced. T itled Urdu Imla: Masaael-oMabahis Ki Rivayer and subtitled Irtiga, Ikhtilafaat, Sifarishaat Aur Hal, it is a thesis submitted at Allama Iqbal Open University`s Urdu department and a doctoral degree was conferred upon the researcher.The author, Dr Abrar Khattalc, is a scholar from Nowshehra and teaches Urdu at Government Khush Haal Khan Khatt alc Degree College, Akora Khattak. The book is an endeavour to trace the different orthographic rules that have traditionally been governing the writing of Urdu. It tries to point out the differences that have all along been surfacing among the authors and scholars of Urdu. It also underscores the differences among institutions, such as the NLPD, on writing certain Urdu words with certain spellings. Dr Khattak evaluates the suggestions offered from time to time regarding Urdu orthography and offers solutions to some orthographic issues, albeit we may disagree with some of his solutions or suggestions. What counts more is that a research worl( fulfills the basic criterion of thinking on one`s own and bringing forth something different and new.

The 376-page book is published by Faisalabad`s Misaal Publishers.

drraufparekh@yahoo.com