On 9th September 2024, Mr. Amar Fayaz Buriro, Director of the Abdul Majid Bhurgri Institute of Language Engineering (AMBILE), participated as the main speaker in a one-day workshop titled “Building a Sindhi WordNet, Linking Language Resources with AI” at the Sindh University Campus Naushahro Feroze. The event was hosted by Prof. Dr. Azhar Ali Shah, Pro Vice Chancellor of the campus and Head of the Department of Information Technology.
The workshop witnessed an enthusiastic participation of hundreds of students, who actively engaged in a lively Q&A session. This provided them with an invaluable opportunity to explore new dimensions in computational linguistics.
The workshop began with the recitation of verses from the Holy Quran, followed by an introduction of the guest speaker by Prof. Dr. Azhar Ali Shah. He highlighted the importance of the workshop’s topic and how it relates to the academic growth of students, particularly in the field of AI and language resources.
In his keynote address, Mr. Amar Fayaz Buriro elaborated on the Sindhi WordNet project and shared insights into the development of the dataset. He explained that the WordNet for the Sindhi language has been developed by extracting and compiling data from various Sindhi social media platforms and websites. He emphasized the critical need for this system’s development, noting that students from various universities have been actively involved in the compilation and expansion of the Sindhi WordNet.
Mr. Buriro provided a comprehensive demonstration of how the WordNet system works and discussed ways to further enhance its dataset. He highlighted the significance of the Sindhi language, describing it as a collective heritage of the world. As one of the oldest languages in existence, Sindhi has influenced many of today’s major languages, including English, German, and French. He underscored that it is the responsibility of the people from the Indus Valley Civilization, as well as academic and research institutions like AMBILE, to preserve and promote this ancient language using scientific methodologies.
He further added that the development of the Sindhi WordNet System could place Sindhi among the major languages utilized in AI programs, opening up new avenues for research and innovation. During the workshop, Mr. Buriro also showcased Bhittaipedia, which garnered significant interest from students who expressed a desire to develop similar projects to advance the Sindhi language in the field of AI.
The event was a resounding success, inspiring students to contribute to the preservation and modernization of the Sindhi language through technology.