Dr. Zakir Hussain was sent first for his education to the
Islamia
High School
in Etawah (U.P.), which specialized, in puritanical strictures.
After finishing school, he joined the
M.A.O.
College
at
Aligarh
and studied up to the M.A. When the Indian National Congress and the
All India Khilafat Committee joined hands in launching the
Non-Cooperation Movement, Mahatma Gandhi toured the country to
induce teachers and students to leave government administered
schools and colleges. The young Zakir Husain, who was then
half-student and half-teacher, very prominent among the students and
very popular with a large section of the staff, persuaded Hakim
Ajmal Khan and other leaders to establish a national institution at
Aligarh
. The Jamia Millia Islamia came into being on October 29, 1920.
Zakir Hussain did not wish to leave his studies incomplete and he
went to the
University
of
Berlin
in
Germany
for higher studies in 1923, returning with a doctorate in Economics
three years later. He rejoined the Jamia Millia in February-March,
1926 and became the Shaikhu Jamia (Vice-Chancellor). It was at the
Jamia Millia that Dr. Zakir Husain developed his gifts as an
educationist. It was his experience here as well as his deep study
of the philosophy of education, which enabled him to take charge of
the scheme of Basic National Education when it was launched in 1938.
He was the President of Hindustani Talimi Sangh, Sevagram from 1938
to 1948.
In November 1948, Dr. Zakir Husain was appointed
Vice-Chancellor of the
Aligarh
Muslim
University
. He was also nominated in the Indian Universities Commission.
The World University Service made him the Chairman of the Indian
National Committee and in 1954 he was elected the World President of
the organization. He was also nominated to the Rajya Sabha and made
the Indian representative on the Executive Board of the UNESCO from
1956 to 1958. He remained Chairman of Central Board of Secondary
Education till 1957, a member of the University Grants Commission
till 1957, a member of the University Education Commission in
1948-1949 and of the Educational Reorganization Committee of Bihar,
Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. In 1957 he was appointed Governor
of Bihar, Vice President of India in 1962 and in 1967 he was elected
as Head of the State and was formally sworn in as the third
President of the
Indian
Republic
. He held the highest office of the country with exemplary grace and
dignity till his sudden death on May 3, 1969.
Dr. Zakir Husain was awarded Padma Vibhushan in 1954
and Bharat Ratna in 1963. He was awarded D.Litt. (Honoris Causa) by
the Universities of Delhi,
Calcutta
,
Aligarh
,
Allahabad
and
Cairo
.
His interest in literary and academic work was so keen
that he translated Plato's 'Republic' and Cannon's Elementary
Political Economy' into Urdu soon after joining the Jamia Millia in
1920. While in
Germany
, he got an edition of the 'Diwan-E-Ghalib' printed - doing much of
the compositionig himself, because the press did not have enough
staff - and also brought out a book in German on Mahatma Gandhi (Die
Botschaft des Mahatma Gandhi). He delivered a series of lectures on
economics under the auspices of the
Hindustani
Academy
and another series in English, on Capitalism: Essays in
Understanding, under the auspices of the
Delhi
University
in 1945. He also translated Friedrich List's 'Nationalockonomic'.
His Convocation Addresses have been collected and published under
the title "The Dynamic University". But he excelled in
writing for children and his stories are masterpieces of style.
Tall, well built, fair in complexion, with a noble
forehead, a sensitive aristocratic nose, a well-trimmed beard and
always neatly and tastefully dressed in Sherwani and Pyjama, Dr.
Zakir Husain was an imposing embodiment of culture and refinement.
He was sensitive to beauty in all its forms and had an intense
passion for excellence. His varied tastes and hobbies, his love of
roses, his collection of cacti, fossils, paintings and specimens of
calligraphy, objects d'art, and curios and above all, his rich
library are evidence of his versatile personality.
He was steeped in the spiritual and aesthetic culture
and the ethical principles of the Muslim Sufis and poets. He had the
Sufi’s indifference towards the externals of religion and, though
a deeply religious man, his religiosity was never obvious. It was
the inspiration for secularism by which he endeared himself to men
of different religious communities.
Dr. Zakir
Husain's nationalism was, like Gandhiji's, a reflection of his
allegiance to the highest moral values and to the ideals of a
culture, which had become the whole of his own self. It was a
nationalism, which demanded for the individual that freedom which
is the essence of democracy, that self-discipline which is the
foundation of democratic citizenship and that identification with
the good of the society, which gives substance and meaning to the
life of the individual.
The Federation of
Aligarh Alumni Associations has instituted the Dr. Zakir Husain
Award to recognize the services towards the upliftment of the poor
and the oppressed members of the society in
India
.
SIR
ZIAUDDIN AHMED (February 13, 1878 - December 23, 1947)
Sir Ziauddin Ahmed
was born in 1877 in the town of
Meerut
in
India
. A visionary an outstanding and versatile educationist
and parliamentarian,
he was also the longest serving Vice-Chancellor in the history of
Aligarh
Muslim
University
. His close association with Sir Syed Ahmed Khan added to his
stature.
Sir Ziauddin Ahmed did his Bachelor of Arts degree with
distinction in 1895 from
M.A.O.
College
,
Aligarh
, Master of Arts in Mathematics from
Calcutta
, and
Allahabad
Universities
in 1897 and 1898 respectively. He joined
Trinity
College
,
Cambridge
in 1901 for Honours degree in Mathematics, and graduated with
excellence by securing first position. In 1904 Sir Ziauddin was
awarded the Sir Isaac Newton Scholarship, a rare honor for a foreign
graduate, and he was the first Indian to achieve this award. His
thirst for knowledge took him to
Gottingen University
,
Germany
and in 1905 he completed his Ph.D. in Mathematics. In addition to
this, Sir Ziauddin also visited
Paris
University
in
France
, and
Bologna
University
in
Italy
in 1905 for advanced studies in his chosen field of
Mathematics.
On
return from Europe in 1906, Sir Ziauddin Ahmed devoted the rest of
his life to the
M.A.O
College
and
Aligarh
Muslim
University
. When
M.A.O.
College
was given the status of a University in 1920, he became its first
Pro Vice-Chancellor. In 1935 he was elected as the Vice-Chancellor
and remained so until 1946, thus becoming the longest serving
Vice-Chancellor in the history of
Aligarh
Muslim
University
. In 1946 he was appointed as Rector of the University and held the
position until his death in 1947.
Sir Ziauddin Ahmed took keen interest in
University affairs, and raised funds for the University time and
again. His dream to
start a medical college at
Aligarh
Muslim
University
, was not realized in his lifetime, but has come true with the
establishment of the
Jawaharlal
Nehru
Medical
College
at AMU,
Aligarh
.
In 1947, Dr
Ziauddin undertook a tour of Europe and
USA
to study the latest trends and developments in higher education.
While traveling by from
Paris
to
London
, he suffered a stroke and died on December 23, 1947.
His untimely demise left void in the
University and in the lives of his followers and well wishers. Dr. Ziauddin was
laid to rest next to Sir Syed Ahmad Khan in the premises of the main
mosque of the
Aligarh
Muslim
University
according to his own wish.
The Federation of
Aligarh Alumni Associations has instituted the Sir Ziauddin Ahmed Award
to recognize the best high school students (one male student) from
the Children of AMU Alumni or members of the AMU Alumni
Associations in
North America
.
SHAIKH
ABDULLAH (PAPA MIAN) (June 1874 - March 1965)
Sheikh
Abdullah was born in a village in the Poonch
district of Kashmir. His grandfather Mehta Mast Ram was the
Lambardar of the village. His father’s name was Mehta Gurmukh
Singh and his own name before conversion was Thakur Das, he embraced
Islam in 1891 while at
Lahore
. He was married to Waheed Jahan, the youngest daughter of Mirza
Mohammad Ibrahim of
Delhi
in 1902 at
Aligarh
. He was survived by five daughters and one son. One of his
daughters, Mumtaz Jahan (Mrs. Haider), served over thirty years as
Principal of the Women’s College at
Aligarh
Muslim
University
, of which he was the founder.
He received his early education at the village school. He had
to leave his home for English education. He first went to
Jammu
and then to
Lahore
. After passing the Matriculation Examination in 1891 from
Lahore
he proceeded to
Aligarh
for higher education. While at
Aligarh
he attracted the attention of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan who was always
very kind to him. It was under his influence that Sheikh Abdullah
began to take interest in the social resurgence of the Muslims.
After taking the degrees of B.A. and LLB, he established himself at
Aligarh
permanently and started his career as a lawyer but at the same time
he nurtured in his heart the desire to improve the lot of the women
folk.
Because of his
interest in women’s welfare Sheikh Abdullah was made the Secretary
of the Women’s section of the Muslim Educational Conference in
1902. He organized the work of the conference very ably. In 1904 he
started a monthly journal for women, the Khatoon,
which aimed at creating a suitable atmosphere for women’s
education. Through the columns of this journal he pleaded for better
facilities for women education and for the improvement of their lot.
The journal served the cause of women’s education for a decade. He
stopped its publication only when he was convinced that the cause
for which he had fought single-handed had been taken up by others in
different parts of the country and there was no need of the journal
under his editorship.
He next devoted
himself whole-heartedly to the development of the Girls’ School,
which he had started as far back as 1906. He succeeded in getting
financial assistance from Begum Sultan Jahan, the ruler of
Bhopal
. This was followed by a grant from the government. In 1914 the
opening ceremony of the School Boarding House was performed by the
Begum of Bhopal and a Ladies’ Conference was also held in the
school premises, which was a grand success. Thus in a short time
Sheikh Abdullah succeeded in creating an awakening among the people
regarding women’s education. His success was due largely to the
cooperation and help, which he received from his wife in running the
school. She served the school as Honorary Superintendent of the
Boarding House for 25 years from 1914-1939. All through her life she
nursed the institution with care and patience and hundreds of girls
from all over
India
found in her a true guide and mother. Thus it was through their
joint care and supervision that the small institution expanded into
Degree
College
(now known as Muslim University Women’s College/Abdullah College).
Sheikh Abdullah
served the
Aligarh
Muslim
University
in various capacities. He was a member of the
University Court
from 1920 till his death and a member of the Executive Council from
1920 to 1928 and also served as Honorary Treasurer of the University
for many terms. He was a leading Advocate of the
Civil Court
,
Aligarh
, and was the President of the Bar Association. The
Aligarh
Muslim
University
awarded him the degree of LLD in 1950. He was awarded Padma Bushan
in 1964, and earlier he was given the title of Khan Bahadur by the
British.
Sheikh
Abdullah’s principal interest was in the fields of education and
social reform. But he did not keep himself completely aloof from
politics, although he did not take any active part in it. He pleaded
for modernizing the system of government so as to suit the changing
needs of the time, but he did not demand full democracy or
self-government. In the twenties he served for some time as a member
of the U.P. Legislative Council. He was sympathetic towards the
Khilafat agitation. At the same time he was critical of the work of
the Central Khilafat Committee in trying to rouse the emotions of
the Muslims on the question of the dismemberment of the
Turkish Empire
. He was a supporter of the policies of the All-India Muslim League,
although not very actively associated with that body. At the
Aligarh
session of the League in 1925 acted as Chairman of the Reception
Committee. In the late thirties and early forties he was distressed
by the growing alienation between the two major communities in
India
. He urged the leaders of the two communities to work for political
understanding and communal harmony.
Sheikh Abdullah
combined in himself the qualities of a man of action, philosopher
and humanitarian. He fought all his life for a good cause viz., the
emancipation of Muslim women. The task bristled with great
difficulties because of the conservatism of the Muslims and their
hatred for every thing associated with the name of the British. He
faced the opposition of the orthodox section of his community and
bore their vilification campaign calmly, and in the long run
overcame all opposition.
The Federation of
Aligarh Alumni Associations has instituted the Papa Mian Award
to recognize the best high school students (one female student) from
the Children of AMU Alumni or members of the AMU Alumni
Associations in North America.
ZAFAR IQBAL
Zafar
Iqbal, the mercurial
left-winger and Olympic gold medalist, known for his searing runs
during his playing days had done his civil engineering from
Aligarh
Muslim
University
in 1978.
Zafar Iqbal represented
India
in field hockey from 1977 to 1986. From 1982 to 1984, he was also
India
's skipper, leading the national team in the 1982 Asian Games (
New Delhi
), 1982 Champions Trophy (
Amsterdam
), 1983 Champions Trophy (
Karachi
) and 1984 Olympic Games (
Los Angeles
).
From early 1993 to October 1994, Zafar was the national
hockey coach. New players like Rajnish Mishra, Anil Aldrin, Dilip
Tirkey and Sabu Varkey were discovered during his reign.
Zafar Iqbal who has received many awards, including
prestigious Arjun Award currently works as Director (Civil) in
Indian Airlines.
AWARDEES
CONVENTION 2009 AWARDS
Dr. Zakir Husain Award
For self-less service towards the upliftment of the poor and
the oppressed members of the society in
India
TBA
To be Presented in July 17-19, 2009
Sir Ziauddin Ahmed Award
For excelling in education.
Best male
high school student (from the graduating class of 2009) amongst the
children of AMU Alumni or members of the AMU Alumni
Associations in North America
TBA
To be
Presented in on July 17-19, 2009
Shaikh Abdullah (Papa Mian) Award
For excelling in education.
Best female
high school student (from the graduating class of 2009) amongst the
children of AMU Alumni or members of the AMU Alumni
Associations in North America
TBA
To be Presented on July 17-19, 2009
Zafar Iqbal Award
For excelling in soptrs.
Best sports person of the year
(12-18 years of age) from the Children of AMU Alumni or members
of the Alumni Associations in
North America
.
TBA
To be Presented on July 17-19, 2009