Furqan Qamar: Prof. Furqan Qamar, vice chancellor of the Central University of Himachal Pradesh has been appointed the secretary general of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU), a body responsible for maintaining coordination between all universities in India. Furqan, now 54, has been teaching Economics and Management and was vice chancellor of Rajasthan University earlier. He has done his Ph.D. from Lucknow University on financial management of universities. The AIU publishes the Handbook of Indian Universities every year which provides comprehensive and useful information about universities year after year.
Pak’s earliest Ph.D Holding Woman Dies:
One of Pakistan’s first women to earn a Ph.D. Degree, B.B. Qureshi passed away in her sleep at Edhi Center in Karachi. A spinster all through her life, Qureshi had to come live in the Edhi Centre for Homeless Women during her terminal years.
B.B. Qureshi, one of Pakistan’s first few women to earn a Ph.D. degree, was born into an educated family in Muradabad, India in 1922. She did her BA and MA Economics from Aligarh Muslim University. After partition, her family moved to Rawalpindi where Qureshi taught economics at a government college. She taught for several years in Africa and had the honour of having taught the former UN secretary general, Kofi Annan, in Ghana. She completed her Ph.D. in agricultural economics from Trinity College in Dublin.
When Qureshi finally returned to Islamabad after years of teaching abroad, she was so disappointed at the standard of education that she decided not to teach anymore. Her brother did not treat her well and she shifted to Karachi and lived in Edhi Centre.
Sajida Begum, founder director, Aasra Home for Women and President, Tanzeemul Muhsinath and Muhammad Ghaus Sabir, working Chairman of the Bismillah Education Trust were presented with the Kempegowda Award by the Bangalore Municipal Corporation (known in Kannada as Bangalore Mahanagar Palike-BBMP) last month. Sajida founded the Aasra Home for Women, a short-stay home where women who have suffered domestic violence, or who have been unfairly divorced or have been deserted by their husbands or families are counseled and rehabilitated. She was earlier member of the Karnataka State Waqf Foundation for Women’s Development.
Mr. Sabir heads the Bismillah Education Trust which runs the Sadathunnisa Women’s Degree College and a High and Primary school in the South Bangalore locality of Bismillahnagar. A dedicated worker, Sabir has invested a lifetime for the cause of promotion of education among the underprivileged sections.
Mysore: Prof. Mushtaq Ahmed, noted social worker of Mysore and an associate of Jamiatul Ulema Hind died in the first week of July. He was 80. He is survived by his widow and two daughters. Prof. Mushtaq taught Urdu in Banumiah’s college and upon retirement engaged himself in active social work. He conducted several surveys regarding socio-economic and educational status of Mysore Muslims which were published by Islamic Voice. He initiated several measures to improve academic standards of Government Urdu Schools run in the City of Mysore.
7 Feet Tall Girl from Turkey
Ankara: A Turkish teenager has dreamed of breaking a record and she has. She’s one of the tallest people in the world.
Rumeysa Gelgi, 17, a native of Safranbolu, a town roughly 120 miles north of Ankara, holds the title for the tallest female teenager, according to a Guinness World Records news release. Doctors believe Gelgi has Weaver Syndrome, which explains her tall stature.
The high school student towers over her siblings and even parents. She stands at 7 feet tall and 0.09 of an inch and just to be sure, a doctor measured Gelgi three times in one day.
“It’s one of my biggest dreams to be awarded with this record,” Gelgi said. “I know that only the special people can make it and I know I’m one of them now.”
K. A. Burhan Passes away: Khwaja Abdullah Burhan, former secretary of the 120 year old Muslim Orphanage on Dickenson Road, died on July 12 after prolonged illness. He was 80. Burhan second half of his life in the service of orphans and the Orphanage. A graduate from the St. Joseph’s College, he was issueless. He has left behind his widow. He was secretary of the Orphanage for continuous three terms from 1998 till 2010 when the Waqf Board took over the Orphanage administration. The Orphanage witnessed several developments and improvements in living conditions of inmates which houses 380 of them now. An elegant mosque called Masjid e Noor came up on southern corner of the 4-acre property in the heart of Bangalore. A computer centre and a library were set up under his stewardship which became defunct during the Waqf Board administration. Mourners from across the social spectrum joined his funeral prayers in the Masjid e Noor on April. He was laid to rest in Shantinagar Graveyard. May Allah bestow peace and forgiveness on the departed soul. Ameen!
Shakeel Mazhari is no more: Noted Urdu poet Abdul Shukoor who was more known with his pseudonym (takhallus) Shakeel Mazhari died in a Bangalore hospital on July 1. He had retired as Director of the Dandeli Steel and Ferro Alloys in 1997. Mazhari earned a diploma from Bellary Polytechnic and joined the company in 1970s. He had done Adeeb Fazil from Aligarh University too. He briefly worked as a sub editor for Daily Salar before that. Karbe Shikastagi; Lafzon ki Dhoop and Khushboo, khwab aur Dhuan earned wide acclaim. His daughter Afshan Yasmeen works as a reporter with The Hindu in Bangalore. He was laid to rest in Islampur Graveyard near HAL.
Promoted to IAS: Ms. N. T. Abroo and Mr. S. Ziyaullah, both Karnataka Administrative Services (KAS) officers have been promoted to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) cadre by the Government of India. They figure among the list of 18 KAS officers thus promoted on the basis of seniority and merit. Ms. Abroo is currently Chief Gazetteer in the Gazette Department and Mr. Ziyaullah is Additional Chief Electoral Officer and Additional Secretary to the Government, DPAR.
Uzma Irfan, head, Corporate Communication of the leading Construction company Prestige Group, was given the Bangalore Real Estate Award 2014. Daughter of Prestige Group chairman Irfan Razack, Uzma has a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the American Inter Continental Unviersity, London and handles the corporate communication for the company. She has also founded the school Inventure Academy, an international school affiliated to Cambridge International Education (CIE) in Bangalore. She was presented the Award on July 5.
Uzma edits the Collection@UBCity, a newsletter for the UB city, the ultra modern chic mall in the central business district of Bangalore with nearly all international brand showrooms.
New BET Office-bearers
Bangalore: The Bismillah Educational Trust, Bismillah Nagar has elected the its office bearers for the three-year period. Karnataka Minister for Information, Infrastructure and Hajj Mr. R. Roshan Baig was elected the Chairman unanimously. Alhaj Abdul Jabbar will be the working chairman while Sheikh Umar and S. Mahaboob will be vice chairmen. Muhammad Kareemuddin is the new Honorary Secretary. J. Shafiullah and K. M. Mujeeb Ahmed are joint secretaries. G. R. Riaz Ahmed is Honorary Treasure and S. K. Shakeel Ahmed is internal auditor.
Mr. M. G. Sabir the outgoing working chairman and the Siddique pasha, outgoing Honorary Secretary were given a warm send-off.
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