ISLAMABAD, Feb 25: The Senate standing committee on cabinet and establishment on Saturday called for introducing modern ways to promote the national language in the country.

The committee meeting, presided over by Senator Tanveer Khalid, reviewed the functions and performance of the National Language Authority (NLA).

The committee was informed that since the establishment of the authority in 1979, it had been making strenuous efforts to promote Urdu by developing dictionaries, translating official documents and textbooks, and publishing various other important material.

An Urdu code plate has been developed for computers to facilitate use of Urdu in e-mail and internet, and the UNICODE membership has also been obtained.

Regarding new projects, the NLA officials told the meeting that the Centre of Excellence for Urdu Informatics, localization of Microsoft Office 2003 and Windows XP, and production of scientific and technical reading material in Urdu are being considered to give a boost to the national language.

The NLA officials said the present government considering the importance of Urdu language constituted a committee of distinguished scholars in January 2005, which formulated its recommendations and sent those to the government for consideration.—APP