Hyderabad, Dec. 22 -- If you have tears, prepare to shed them now. Yes, this is what the crass indifference and utter negligence of Urdu knowing public calls for.

The poet who gave so much for Urdu literature was ignored by the community when the weekly lectures on him touched a milestone. The other day Hyderabad saw the Iqbal Shinasi sessions clocking in the 1101 mark. But sadly, the Jama Masjid Aliya at Gunfoundry did not record many footfalls. Of course, there were a little more than the usual numbers that turn up for the weekly programmes but certainly not enough to mark a landmark event.

There were no new attendees either. The same old faces - mostly on the wrong side of 60s and a few nonagenarians. Students and youth were conspicu...