Sindh Madrasatul Islam adotption upgration

KCCI interested in adopting Sindh Madrasatul Islam
Karachi, Nov 18: The Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) has shown its interest in adopting and upgrading the historic Sindh Madrasatul Islam (SMI), it has been learnt.

The KCCI plans to turn the institute into a college and ultimately into a modern university. A formal proposal in this regard has been sent by the KCCI to Prime Minister (PM) Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani through a letter dated on 14th October, 2009. The PM Secretariat in turn forwarded the proposal to the Sindh government, asking it to assess and submit a considered opinion about the matter as well as suggestions for appropriate action by November 30, sources privy to this development informed.

Sources said that the KCCI has also written a letter to the federal ministry of education seeking its permission to adopt the SMI at the soonest for immediate implementation of the proposal in the larger interest of education of the "have-nots, the poor and needy students".

The idea to adopt the SMI was floated by the business community during the golden jubilee celebrations of the KCCI and the export awards ceremony held at the Governor House in Karachi on September 26, explained sources. PM Gilani, who was present at the occasion, also exchanged views with the business community about his visit to Istanbul, where he was impressed by traders having adopted academic institutes for the benefit of general public.

Inspired by the Istanbul chamber in Turkey, the KCCI showed its keen interest in adopting SMI, and gradually expanding the historic institute into a full-fledged college with state-of-the-art equipment, computers and modern methods of teaching, staffed with highly qualified faculty, sources claimed. The KCCI has also promised to maintain the existing fee structure to enable the "poor, needy and most deserving students" to receive quality education and make careers for themselves.

In next phase, the SMI would be turned into a world-class university, with the business community pledging that the institute would be recognised as the "pride of Karachi", and the degree awarded by the university being internationally appreciated in a favourable light.

SMI Acting Principal Mrs Afroz Abbasi meanwhile told The matter of the KCCI proposal had been continuing since the past five years, but the suggestion had been opposed by SMI Principal Dr Muhammad Ali Shaikh, who is currently studying on scholarship in the United States. She said that Shaikh had written thrice to the federal ministry of education, opposing the proposal, adding that they were running the school satisfactorily.

KCCI President Abdul Majid Haji Muhammad, however, maintained that they wanted to adopt the SMI because its condition was "not good". He said that there are around 14 schools in Karachi which had been adopted by philanthropists and organisations, and the condition of these institutes had considerably improved after having been adopted.

He acknowledged that the PM had urged the KCCI to follow the example of the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and subsequently, the KCCI had sent two letters to the premier. Thus far, he said, they had not received any positive response. He said that the KCCI also talked to Sindh education secretary, who informed them that since the SMI was under the control of the federal government, he could not do much about it. He said that the lack of quality education was the basic reason behind extremism and terrorism. Majid opined that with provision of quality education, health and ending poverty, Malaysia has become successful in controlling extremism. The news

Post your comments

Schools for special children set up
Hyderabad: The provincial government has established 13 special education schools in 13 districts with an aim to make special children a valuable asset of the society through skill development. Besides, it has also formed monitoring committees to ensure the working of schools whose reports would be sent to higher authorities.

Sindh Minister for Special Education and Bonded Labour Syed Ali Nawaz Shah Rizvi said this during uniform and text books distribution ceremony among special children at the Pilot School for Special Education, GOR Colony, on Tuesday.

The schools have been established in Tando Allahyar, Mithi, Ghotki, Umerkot, Jamshoro, Tando Mohammad Khan, Moro, Mehrabpur, Pir Zakiri, Khairpur Nathan Shah, Hala, Daur and Qambar.

The government wants special children to earn their livelihood instead of becoming a burden on the society and on parents and they would be absorbed in government and private departments.

The minister advised the teachers to impart them skills as per their capacity through love, dedication and commitment adding that the time is not far when they would be converted into national manpower. The government has evolved a strategy to overcome sugar crises and get other problems resolved through open katchehris, he said.

Secretary Special Education Nazar Mohammad Kalhoro, Principal Pilot School Mohammad Amin Memon, new designated Principal for Pilot School Ghulam Rasool Bhurgari and M. A. Chohan spoke on the occasion. Dawn

Post your comments

KESC, AKU signed MoU
Karachi: The Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) and the Aga Khan University (AKU) signed an agreement on Tuesday for the establishment of a new 132-KV shared grid station.

At the signing ceremony of the joint venture, the KESC was represented by its CEO Tabish Gauhar while Firoz Rasul, President, Aga Khan University, represented his institution. The new grid station will allow for a reliable supply of electricity to the Aga Khan University and Aga Khan University Hospital, said a KESC press release. It will also cater to the future needs of the university and hospital, where the electricity demand is expected to grow to 16 MWs by the year 2022.

The statement said that a task force comprising professionals from the KESC and AKHMCF will oversee the completion of the grid station that will be constructed at a cost of Rs450 million, equally shared by both sides.

It will be a state-of-art GIS grid that will meet the total requirement of 11MW. The commissioning of this grid in September 2011 will relieve the overloaded grids of Civic Centre, Baloch Colony and Gulshan-e-Iqbal and adjoining areas.

Post your comments

Pharmacy symposium at Ziauddin University
Karachi: A one-day symposium, titled, "Practice of hospital pharmacy in Pakistan" was held at the Ziauddin University on Tuesday.

Organised by the Ziauddin College of Pharmacy, in collaboration with the Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Pakistan, the symposium was attended and addressed by pharmacists and pharmaceutical scientists from the University of Karachi, Aga Khan University, and various other teaching and research organisations.

The speakers at the occasion highlighted the concept of pharmaceutical care, clinical pharmacy, and other pharmacy practice models, including learning and education of pharmacists. The news

Post your comments

Second International Urdu Conference
Karachi: The Second International Urdu Conference started on Tuesday in the premises of the Karachi Arts Council to pay tribute to the language, a bonding force that has been keeping people belonging to different religions, castes, ethnic groups and sects together in the Indian subcontinent for centuries.

However, this time around the Urdu enthusiasts had to face a major setback as many of the foreign experts and writers could not make it to the conference because of the law and order situation in the country.

Last year, 11 writers and scholars from India and 20 from other parts of the world participated in the conference and presented their papers. Writers, poets, novelists and short story writers of Urdu are participating in the five-day event and at the end of each day, a musical night has been arranged in which renowned singers of Pakistan would capture the attention of the visitors with the magic of their voices.

One of the aims of the International Urdu Conference is to pave way for the promotion of Urdu, and therefore, the scholars attending the conference would also suggest how to develop this language further and promote it internationally. On Tuesday at the opening ceremony, renowned personalities like Fatima Surayya Bajya, Jamiluddin Aali, Hajra Masroor, Zehra Nigah, Iftikhar Arif and Kishwar Naheed captured the attention of the students and readers of Urdu literature.

It was heart-warming to witness that besides renowned scholars, poets, fiction writers and academics; youngsters in large numbers were also present at the conference. Almost half of the hall was filled with youngsters. Muhammad Ahmad Shah, general secretary of the Arts Council welcomed the participants.

"We are sorry that we could not gather Urdu experts from around the world this time because of the poor law and order situation in the country," Shah said, however, he remained optimistic about the impact of the conference on the language.

"Most of our foreign participants were ready to come and share their views with us but with every bomb blast the number of participants decreased," he informed remorsefully. Iftikhar Arif, a prominent writer and poet, who has travelled from Islamabad to participate in the conference, presented his research on the topic "Azadi ke baad Pakistan mai Urdu adab ka Jaeza."

Arif focused on how Urdu can be developed in the present environment. He claimed that Urdu enthusiasts had done more damage to the language than the enemies. "When you write difficult Urdu and introduce difficult words, very few opt to speak and write that language," he said while advising the writers and speakers to use simple language to promote reading.

Talking about the past, he said that in the pre-Partition era, Urdu was haunted by regional politics and the policies of the British government, but the writers are also not without blame for not maintaining the status quo. Gopi Chand, an Indian scholar of Urdu, also addressed the audiences through a telephonic conference.

Fareeda Khanam and Mehnaz featured in the musical night. The conference provides an opportunity for the admirers and students of Urdu to understand the roots of the language and enjoy its different moods. Daily times

Post your comments