Police officers carry the coffin of SPO Bilal Ahmad in Baramulla. PTI
Srinagar :
In the first encounter between militants and security forces in Kashmir since the restrictions were imposed on August 5, a militant and a policeman were killed and a police officer injured while no major law and order situation was reported on Wednesday.
The encounter took place in Ganai Mohalla of Baramulla town in north Kashmir which concluded early this morning, DIG Police, Central Kashmir, VK Virdi said at media briefing here this evening. The militant has been identified as Momin Gojri of the Lashkar-e-Toiba. An SPO, Bilal Ahmad, was also killed in the encounter while SI Amardep Parihar was injured, who is undergoing treatment.
The police had declared Baramulla as a militant-free town in January this year.
“No major law and order situation was reported from any part of the Valley today while relaxations were further eased in many areas,” the DIG said. There were some minor incidents of stone pelting in some areas, he said, and added that the situation was being monitored closely by the authorities at the ground level.
A law and order situation was reported from the Telbal area on the outskirts of Srinagar late last night and dealt, he said.
On the functioning of other facilities, Director of Information, J&K Government, SyedSehrish Asghar said all hospitals, banks, ATMs and healthcare services were functioning normally in the Jammu region as there were adequate stocks of medicines and other supplies.
In view of the upcoming harvest season, the preparations for transportation of horticulture produce were reviewed at the Kashmir Divisional level, she said.
She urged people not to believe in rumours about unavailability of transport facilities.
source: http://www.tribuneindia.com / Tribune India / Home> J &K / by Ehsan Fazili / Tribune News Service / Srinagar, August 21st, 2019
While Haji gave the land for the new houses, Lokesh pledged his for an accessible road that can be built towards the plot.
In the face of terrible tragedy, the only glimmer of hope is often people coming together in solidarity and healing each other with love. Placing humanity ahead of religious differences, a Muslim man and his Hindu counterpart from Kodagu district have united to donate over 1.5 acres of agricultural land for the rehabilitation of flood victims.
According to Kodagu Deputy Commissioner Annies Kanmani Joy, the recent rains accompanied by flood in the Kodagu region have washed away over 5000 homes in several villages close to the Kaveri river, including Kondangeri.
It was then that 55-year-old Abdulla Haji came forward with an offer to part with 1.5 acres of his 6-acre agricultural land and donate it to the Kondangeri Masjid Committee, so that the government can put it to use.
“When a person sees the people around him suffering so much, it is only natural that he would go and help others. Although I’m a not a rich farmer, I’m in a position to help them. I hope that the bereaved people get some strength from God to overcome their losses and grief,” Haji said.
As per Haji’s proposal, the land is suitable for building permanent houses for the flood victims. But while the Masjid committee was considering the housing proposal, they soon realised that the construction site will face the problem of an inaccessible road.
“But without any hesitation, another Kondangeri resident, Lokesh, approached the Masjid committee and pledged that the Masjid may attach his part of land to the charitable cause and lay down a road towards the residential project,” said Yusuf Haji, President of Kondangeri Muslim Jamath.
According to the Masjid authorities, most of the flood victims are labourers who’ve lost whatever little they had.
“Almost all the flood victims whose houses have been destroyed are labourers from coffee plantations. They had to forcibly leave their homes as the water level rose and in the process, they also lost their possession and valuables along with their home,” said Yusuf.
While government authorities are engaged in the rehabilitation process, there is a lack of temporary relief centres built by the government at Kondangeri village. Hundreds of victims, including women and children, irrespective of their religious beliefs, have taken shelter in relief centres at the Kondangeri Masjid while mourning their losses.
“Haji was thoroughly involved in serving the needy at the Masjid when they had started coming to this shelter. We think he was overwhelmed by their losses and felt that it was necessary to look into providing the people with long-term solutions,” Yusuf said.
This duo’s decision was hailed by the local authorities who confided that the district was facing a shortage of land to rehabilitate the victims of floods and landslides.
“There is already an ongoing process undertaken by the district administration to identify government land that has been encroached by a few agriculturists. The process of its recovery will commence. In the meanwhile, the generosity of people like Lokesh and Haji is really commendable,” Assistant Commissioner T Javare Gowda said.
This is not the first time that ordinary people in the flood and landslide prone coffee belt have rushed to help others. Last year, Abdul Latif of Suntikoppa had come forward and donated 2 acres of his estate land for the rehabilitation of victims.
Story by Story Infinity (Subs and Scribes Media Ventures LLP.)
source: http://www.thenewsminute.com / The News Minute / Home> Karnataka Rains 2019 / by Mubarak / August 20th, 2019
The AeroKLE team with their working models. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
They come first in regular class and third in micro class in national tournament
AeroKLE, a team of 17 students of KLE Technological University (KLETU), has secured the top place, in the regular class, at the national-level SAE India Aero Design 2019 competition held in Tamil Nadu.
In the recent competition, organised by SRM Institute of Science and Technology, they also secured the third rank in the micro class. As many as 146 teams from across the country took part in the competition.
The team comprised Vineet Anand Bedarman (captain), Amit Allimatti, Sayyed AhmedZuhair, Rohit Anvekar, Rahul Pattar, Shridhar Hadimani, Om Prakash Patel, Yajnesh Poojari, Koustubh Annigeri, Sujay C, Nilesh Bandekar, Mallikarjun Pattanshetty, Yeshwanth Kumar, Ajey Joshi, Alex Steven Dharmdas, Calvin Lobo, and G.V. Srikar.
The team was guided by Head of School of Mechanical Engineering, KLETU, B.B. Kotturshettar; Head of Centre of Material Sciences Nagaraj Banapurmath, and faculty coordinator G.M. Hiremath.
They were involved in designing and testing different prototypes in Hubballi.
They also optimised the final aircraft designs and submitted the technical design report at the event.
The report too was praised by judges and was has adjudged the ‘best technical design report’ at the event.
The students have bagged a purse of ₹1.35 lakh.
At the contest, the regular class demanded the highest payload to be lifted, whereas the micro class demanded the highest payload fraction.
The teams had to conform to the mechanical and electrical limitations as prescribed by Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), India.
Experts from the Indian Space and Research Organisation, the Defence Research and Development Organisation, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, and National Aerospace Laboratories were the judges for the event.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Hubballi – August 02nd, 2019
Syed Akbaruddin’s friends describe him as a thorough professional
India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Syed Akbaruddin, won accolades from Twitteratti after he extended his ‘hand of friendship’ to Pakistani journalists and reportedly asserted at the U.N. Security Council’s closed consultation on Kashmir that Article 370 was an internal matter of the country. But unbeknownst to many, the suave diplomat has a strong Hyderabadi connection, including that of serving as joint secretary of Nizam College Students’ Union.
#WATCH: Syed Akbaruddin, India’s Ambassador to UN says,”so, let me start by coming across to you and shaking hands. All three of you,” to a Pakistani journalist when asked,”when will you begin a dialogue with Pakistan?” pic.twitter.com/0s06XAaasl
Those who have been acquainted with Mr. Akbaruddin describe him as ‘focussed’, ‘articulate’, ‘soft spoken’ and with ‘no enemies’.
“He was a degree student at the Nizam College from 1977 to 1980. His father S. Bashiruddin was head of the Department of Journalism from the early 70s to the mid-80s and then moved to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar as its Vice-Chancellor. He also served as Ambassador to Qatar,” says his friend and journalist M. Somasekhar, who met the diplomat around six months ago. “He was active in student politics in the college and was very popular. He continues to be articulate and soft spoken.”
Mr. Akbaruddin’s school, Hyderabad Public School at Begumpet, tweeted its appreciation on Tuesday, “We are proud to recognize the man of the moment, Syed Akbaruddin who is the permanent representative of India at the United Nations, an alumnus of the HPS @IndiaUNNewYork @AkbaruddinIndia @UN #HPSBegumpet #HPS #Alumni #Hyderabad #Begumpet”.
Managing editor of Siasat Daily, Zaheeruddin Ali Khan, who was the diplomat’s junior in Nizam College, describes Mr. Akbaruddin as ‘truly secular’ and ‘highly efficient’ with a deep understanding of not just diplomatic issues, but also those connected to the culture of the country.
“We had organised an exhibition of Indian calligraphy exhibits in Delhi in 2013. It was there that he understood its potential and wanted to project it as India’s contribution to global Islamic culture. A thorough professional, one can never find him in controversies and has always maintained a clean record,” Mr. Khan says.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Syed Mohammed / Hyderabad – August 22nd, 2019
Gaush Alam, an IPS probationer allotted to Telangana cadre, has been adjudged the best all-round probationer.
An alma mater of IIT-Bombay, Mr. Alam would receive the Prime Minister’s Baton, Home Ministry’s Revolver and the Vice President of India’s Trophy for exemplary performance, apart from six other trophies during the Dikshant Samaro.
A native of Gaya district in Bihar, Mr. Alam was brought up in New Delhi. He worked with a multinational company in Bengaluru after completing his B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering from IIT-Bombay. “A year after working with a private company, I started preparing for civil services examination and got selected in my first attempt. Soon, I joined the academy in 2017,” he said. His father served in the Indian Army as Subedar.
“I have completed two years of training at the NPA and will join the Telangana cadre soon. I am quite excited about my new posting,” he said adding that he would miss the training days. Another IPS probationer Richa Tomar, who bagged 1973 Batch IPS Officers’ Trophy for the Best All-round Lady IPS probationer, was a nursing mother when she got selected for the services and joined the premier police academy.
“Shivansh (her son) was one year old when I joined the academy. I have struggled a lot to fulfil my dream of joining the civil services,” she said.
Hailing from Hassanjiwani, a small village near Baghpat in Uttar Pradesh, Ms. Tomar completed her M.Sc (microbiology). “Before clearing the UPSC examination, I worked in DANIPS (Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Police Service) and my husband is also an ACP in New Delhi,” said Ms. Tomar, who has been allocated to Rajasthan cadre.
“The training here is rigorous and challenging and my major focus after joining the cadre would be to prevent crime against women and children,” she said.
The Second Best All-round IPS Probationer of 2017 batch, Palash Chandra Dhali, is still wondering how his parents got the courage to enrol him in English-medium school, even being daily-wage labourers.
“My father, Pravhas Dhali, was a construction worker, and we used to live in Odisha. He enrolled me in an English-medium private school, which I believe has helped me in completing my engineering and clearing the civil services examination,” he said.
The IPS probationer hails from West Bengal and has been allotted home cadre. He worked with the NTPC and Indian Telecom Service before joining the NPA.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / by Abhinay Deshpande / Hyderabad – August 22nd, 2019
How two rulers with a common name left a rich history and culture for its people but one is more renowned than the other.
Taj-ul-Masajid, Bhopal (Photo: SNS/Aena Thakur)
In the heart of Madhya Pradesh’s capital city, Bhopal, resides Taj-ul-Masajid which literally translates to the ‘crown of mosques’. The mosque was intended to be the largest mosque in the country and was based on the design of Delhi’s Jama Masjid. In a town called Woking in England stands a mosque called Shah Jahan.
The common denominator between these three mosques is the name Shah Jahan. The fifth Mughal emperor Shah Jahan built the Jama Masjid in Delhi and the third female ruler of Bhopal, Shah Jahan Begum built Taj-ul-Masajid of Bhopal. The Bhopal’s matriarch went a step ahead as she also funded the construction of England’s first Mosque in 1889.
Taj-ul-Masajid (Image: SNS/Aena Thakur)
In the 19th century when India was a British colony, the princely state of Bhopal had a string of female rulers for roughly 107 years. The city was founded in 1707 by Afghan ruler Dost Muhammad Khan. Surrounded by Rajputs in Rajasthan and Marathas in Maharashtra, Bhopal was a vulnerable state yet the female rulers with their loyal allegiance to the British rule survived the turbulent times.
The female dynasty of Bhopal started with the death of young Nawab Nazar Muhammad Khan. His 18-year-old wife Qudsia Begum decided that the legacy of her family shall continue and declared her 15-month-old daughter Sikandar as the rightful heir of the state. In 1819, Qudsia Begum became the first Muslim female who defied the veil and became the ruler of Bhopal. Her rule was legitimised by the British and the clergy.
Both Qudsia (1819-37) and Sikandar (1847-68) were known to be tough rulers who strengthened Bhopal’s military and trained themselves to fight. However, it was the third matriarch of Bhopal, Shah Jahan Begum who brought in the period of flourishing art and culture just like her male Mughal namesake.
Unlike Qudsia and Sikandar, Shah Jahan was not known for her tough training for battles. Shah Jahan followed the system of veil and was more interested in literature, poetry, and arts.
Shah Jahan Begam of Bhopal (Image: Wikimedia Commons)
Interested in Urdu and Persian poetry, Shah Jahan Begum also offered state pensions to poets like Amir Minai, a contemporary of Mirza Ghalib.
Shah Jahan Begum ordered that a dictionary of select terms in Hindustani, Persian, Arabic, Sanskrit, English, and Turkish was compiled to facilitate translation of literature between these languages. A poet herself, Shah Jahan Begum also patronized a group of female poets. According to Siobhan Lambert-Hurley’s book Muslim women, Reform and PrincelyPatronage, these gifted women included “Hasanara Begam ‘Namkeen,’ author of a diwan and two prose publications, Munawwar Jahan Begam and Musharraf Jahan Begam, the daughters of Nawab Mustafa Khan ‘Shefta,’ and several others.”
In her book, Siobhan Lambert-Hurley also mentions, “Shah Jahan’s interest in this area was so great that she charged a male poet at her court, Abul Qasim ‘Muhtasham’, to devote himself to collecting an anthology of female poets writing in Persian. Entitled Akhtar-i-taban, it publicized the work of 81 poetesses when it was printed in Bhopal in 1881 in dedication to the ruling Begam.”
Her ambitions for grand architecture is evident from the fact that her daughter Sultan Begum in her biography mentioned that she has lost count of the number of palaces and buildings, her mother made. Some of the prominent buildings that still remain are Taj-ul-Masajid, Taj Mahal, Ali Manzil, and Benazir.
Taj Mahal, Bhopal (Image: Wikimedia Commons)
Unlike Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan’s Taj Mahal which is a tomb, Bhopal’s Taj Mahal was a palace for the Begum. Shah Jahan Begum also helped orientalist and scholar Dr Gottlieb Wilhelm Leitner in constructing England’s first mosque which is also called the Shah Jahan mosque.
The similarities do not stop here. Just like the Mughal emperor built a planned city named Shahjahanabad, the Begum too built a neighbourhood with the same name. Hurley mentions in her book, “Shah Jahan was also responsible for building an entirely new neighbourhood of homes and offices within her capital that was predictably named Shahjahanabad. Unlike the version at Delhi, however, it was laid out on a uniform plan in-keeping with the latest ideas of town planning in Britain.”
Taj-ul-Masajid, Bhopal (Image: SNS/Aena Thakur)
Shah Jahan Begum of Bhopal encouraged female participation in education, religion, and culture. She was responsible for setting up institutions for female education, she reserved areas in mosques for veiled women to pray on special occasions, she also constructed a Pakka bazaar exclusively for women.
Shah Jahan Begum’s daughter Sultan Jahan Begum was the last Begum of Bhopal whose reign ended in 1926. The reign of female rulers in Bhopal broke stereotypes and brought in various reforms in the princely state. Even though women still continue to fight for their rights it should not be forgotten that the Begums did assert their authority in the 19th century and it can be done again.
source: http://www.thestatesman.com / The Statesman / Home> Features / by Aena Thakur, New Delhi / August 20th, 2019
Torch bearer Syed Husain Bilgrami, Special arrangement
Apart from holding high ranking positions in Nizam’s dominion, Syed Husain Bilgrami was also made a member of the Secretary of State’s Council, in London.
Nawab Imad-ul Mulk is a familiar name in the annals of Hyderabad’s 19th century history. He was a noted educationalist, civil servant, prominent administrator and a noted scholar in the Nizam’s dominions. He was private secretary to Salar Jung I, the then Prime Minister of Hyderabad State; also a tutor and conscience keeper of the Nizam — Mahboob Ali Pasha — whose government he served with great distinction. For his dedication for work, strength of character and extraordinary mastery over English language and literature, the British government also utilised his services on many occasions. He had the rare honour of having served as member in the Secretary of State’s Council .He also had the distinction of having met along with Salar Jung I, Queen Victoria at Buckingham Palace in London.
Nawab Imad ul Mulk was the title that the Nizam bestowed in recognition of the services he rendered, with which he was well known in Hyderabadi circles; but his actual name was Syed Husain Bilgrami.
Syed Husain Bilgrami was born in 1844 at Gaya, where his father held high position under the East India Company administration. He was educated at the Presidency College, Calcutta from where he graduated in English literature. In 1868 he became a Professor at the Canning College in Lucknow before joining the service of the Nizam of Hyderabad in 1873. It was the time when Salar Jung I the Prime Minister of Hyderabad state was looking for English educated young men to be appointed in Hyderabad to modernise the administration and to improve educational facilities in the dominions. In 1872, Salar Jung while on a visit to Lucknow, met young Syed and was attracted to his intelligence and demeanour. He was invited to join the Hyderabad service, which he did the next year. For his impeccable English, both spoken and written, Syed Husain was taken as the private secretary to Salar Jung. The rest of his long career was irrevocably bound with Hyderabad.
The story goes that when Salar Jung asked Syed where his family originally hailed from, he answered, ‘Bilgrami’ (in the then United Provinces). The Prime Minister in a lighter vein suggested that Bilgrami could as well be added to his name and thus he became Syed Husain Bilgrami.
Bilgrami’s rise to prominence in Hyderabad was due to his sheer work as an educationalist. As the first Director of Public Instruction (1875- 1902) he initiated several reforms to improve the educational set up in the state. He was instrumental in the establishment of the Nizam College with English medium, with Dr Aghoranath Chattopadhyay, (father of Sarojini Naidu) as its first Principal. It is said that Bilgrami was the person who discovered the genius in Chattopadhyay, the first Indian to obtain D. Sc in Biochemistry from Edinburgh University. The College was affiliated to Madras University as there was no University in the Hyderabad dominions by then. Bilgrami was for some years taken by the government of India, as a member of the Universities Commission, a forerunner of the present UGC. In Hyderabad, he established Madarsa- i- Aizza, a school exclusively for the children of the nobles with a view to make them cultured and more responsible towards society. A crowning achievement of Bilgrami in the furthering of education in Hyderabad was the establishment of a girls school in 1885 with his personal funds. This was hailed as one of its kind in the country as the girls were taught besides usual subjects, needle work, household duties etc. English, besides Urdu and Arabic, was made the medium of instruction. To make girls from traditional families attend school, bullock carts with curtains were arranged to fetch them to school and back home.
In Hyderabad state, with a view to foster industrial growth, Bilgrami established three Industrial Schools at three important towns in the state, Aurangabad, Warangal and Hyderabad, which later grew to be Engineering Colleges. The State Central Library in Hyderabad also owes its establishment to the untiring efforts of Syed Husain Bilgrami.
Bilgrami was also a prolific writer in English and his books include Historical and Descriptive Sketches of His Highness, the Nizam’s Dominions, in 2 volumes, and A Memoir of Sir Salar Jung I. Besides, he had also composed several poems.
Lord Morely, the Secretary of State for India, who took Bilgrami as a member of his council.
The career graph of Syed Husain Bilgrami reached its zenith when he was made a member of the Secretary of State’s Council, in London. After the Liberal Party came to power in Great Britain in 1906, the new Secretary of State for India, Lord Morley, along with Lord Minto, the Viceroy of India wanted to initiate certain administrative and legislative reforms which ultimately resulted in the passing of India Councils Act of 1909 ( popularly known as Morley-Minto Reforms). For the task of formulating the reforms, Morley took two Indians as members to his council. The first was Syed Husain Bilgrami, who from the days of his first visit to England accompanying Salar Jung way back in 1876, had maintained friendship with several high ranking British political leaders of his time like Disraeli, Lord Salisbury, Gladstone etc. The other Indian appointed to the council by Morley was Krishna G Gupta, a senior ICS officer. Bilgrami thus played a key role in the passing of the first ever Constitutional Act of 1909.
Indian ayahs
As a member of the Council of the Secretary of State for India, Bilgrami once made history by protesting the pitiable and callous attitude to Indian ayahs and other caretaker women who had been abandoned by their British employers. Many British officials in those days, employed Indian ayahs to look after their children on the long voyage from India to Britain and the employer was to provide for their passage home. But many a time those ayahs were dismissed once they reach Britain and left to fend for themselves. Such conditions led even to the founding of a ‘Ayahs Home in East London’, where such abandoned destitute ayahs were temporarily provided with food and shelter.
Ayas House / special arrangement
In May 1908, an Indian ayah Meera Sayal from Bombay arrived in London with a British family that was returning home. But she was abandoned by the family on the busy Kings Cross road in Central London, with a mere one pound in hand. The matter was brought to the notice of the India Office in London by the manager at Ayahs Home. The British authorities were of the opinion that Indian ayahs had no legal remedy in the absence of any written agreements that they would be taken back to India and quoted a precedent when the India Office in London in a similar case in 1890 had declined to take any action.
The protest note Bilgrami wrote as a member of the council of Secretary of State for India.
But Syed Husain Bilgrami, as a member of the Secretary of State’s Council felt hugely outraged and immediately wrote a strongly worded resentment on “the dishonest and cruel European employers inveighing Indian servants to travel with them and abandoning them on arrival in Britain”. This bold stand of Syed Husain Bilgrami reflected how he was a man of lofty principles and high ideals with a strong sense of duty and impeccable uprightness. This letter dated July 14, 1908, had been quoted in many future complaints of the Asian caretakers against British employers that ultimately led to the betterment of Indian ayahs going with British families to London.
After returning from England in 1909, Bilgrami spent his retirement in Hyderabad in a villa on the slopes of the iconic Naubath Pahad, overlooking the waters of Hussain Sagar and died in 1926, aged 82. Bilgrami had four sons and all of them were brilliant as they excelled in their different chosen fields. Nawab Sir Mehdi Yar Jung Bahadur, the Education and Finance member in Nizam’s administration and who led a delegation to the Round Table Conference in London in 1930 -31, as a representative of the Nizam, was one of Bilgrami’s sons. Yar Jung as the Vice-Chancellor of Osmania University, had hosted the 5th session of the Indian History Congress (IHC) in 1941. Today Bilgrami’s progeny has a network that is spread across all the continents. Prof. Akeel Bilgrami, the California=based renowned academic intellectual, is one among the high-profile, large Bilgrami family.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Society> History & Culture> Hyderabad Heritage / by K S S Seshan / August 19th, 2019
A member of India’s Davis Cup teams from the late 1950s to the mid 1960s, Ali holds an enviable 9-2 win-loss record in the tourney – rated as the World Cup of the sport.
Akhtar Ali (R) at a club event in Kolkata. (Photo | Twitter)
Kolkata :
Notwithstanding his failing health and advanced age, India’s celebrated tennis player and legendary coach Akhtar Ali still keeps a keen eye on the courts of the eastern metropolis to spot and guide budding talent. Now a 80-plus veteran, Ali leads a simple life, spending time with his grandchildren and has little hesitation in saying: “I have no regrets”.
A member of India’s Davis Cup teams from the late 1950s to the mid 1960s, Ali holds an enviable 9-2 win-loss record in the tourney – rated as the World Cup of the sport. Proficient in both singles and doubles, he has played alongside the country’s legends like Ramanathan Krishnan, Naresh Kumar, Premjit Lall and Jaidip Mukerjea.
Later, as a coach, he guided the creme de la creme of Indian tennis — Ramesh Krishnan, Vijay Amritraj, Anand Amritraj and Leander Paes. Even Sania Mirza once publicly expressed her indebtedness to Ali for having set her on the right track during her formative years.
As a player, Ali grabbed the limelight in 1955, when he first claimed the Junior national title, and continued his wonderful show to reach the semi-finals of the Junior Wimbledon.
The Davis Cup stints till bring tears to his eyes as Ali turns emotional and nostalgic.
“In 1964, I went to Lahore to play the Davis Cup. Myself, S.P. Misra and Gaurav Misra. Four matches we won, one match could not be completed due to bad weather,” he recalled during an interview with IANS.
But it is India’s 3-2 victory over Brazil in 1966 on his South Club home ground that Ali cherishes the most, though he did not get to play any of the matches.
“The Davis Cup was a big thing in those days. I was a member of the Davis Cup squad. When India beat Brazil, that was a big moment and that is the lasting memory I have. That was the first big tie we won and we reached the final,” he said.
The Brazil victory and his son Zeeshan Ali’s success as both a tennis player and coach keeps coming back as one converses with him.
“I have no regrets. I am very attached with the 1966 Brazil win. My son is also a national champion and Davis Cup coach. There is no other family in the world which has a father-son duo to have played and also coached Davis Cup teams”.
In fact, the International Tennis Federation confirmed this in 2013.
Talking about his success as a coach, Ali said: “I enjoy coaching and I work hard. I have produced the maximum national champions and Davis Cup players. I also coached Belgium and Malaysia. I went to the best coaches to learn,” said Ali, who got the coveted Arjuna Award in 2000.
He leads a disciplined and routine life in a nicely done-up South Kolkata flat.
“After I wake up, I do my namaaz. Then I go to the club (South Club). I go to the Saturday Club also. Then I come home, have my lunch and if there is bank work, I do that.
“I lead a simple life. I go to South Club again and help the players. I am not coaching anybody at the moment because I am not well. But I help BTA (Bengal Tennis Association) in finding promising players. That keeps me busy. I love coaching. I enjoy it.
“I go to bed early. Sometimes my grandchildren come over and I spend time with them. It’s good fun,” he recalled, satisfaction ringing in his voice.
However, notwithstanding his high spirits, Ali has recently had his bouts of illness.
“I had lost eight kilos. My hand was shaking and it was tough for me. I took a lot of medicine. I saw the doctor. Doctor told me this was due to old age.
“I am much better now. I am pulling on. I am fit. I train light and can run a little bit” he said.
India’s recent performance in Davis Cup, a tournament in which the country finished runners-up thrice in the past, may not be that noteworthy, but Ali is optimistic.
“We have talented youngsters, but they have to work very hard,” he maintained.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Sport> Tennis / by IANS / August 18th, 2019
An old, white building located in Unchwa area and a road named after him are just a few markers left to remind posterity of justice Mohammad Ismail, who agreed to serve as Pakistan’s first high commissioner in India but on the condition that he would discharge his duties as an Indian citizen.
Pakistan PM Liaquat Ali Khan insisted that justice Ismail serve as high commissioner but the offer was only accepted when Indian PM Jawahar Lal Nehru and his Pakistan counterpart agreed to accept the condition, which showed the immense love of justice Ismail towards his country.
Born in Gorakhpur in 1844, justice Ismail, also held several eminent posts including Chairman of Gorakhpur Municipal Board between 1915 to 1932, besides acting as government pleader.
“Yes, justice Ismail was the first High commissioner of Pakistan in India. Those days, instead of embassies there were offices of the high commissioner in all Commonwealth countries,” explained DDU Gorakhpur University Modern History professor Chandra Bhushan Ankur.
The road named after justice Ismail
Justice Ismail’s nephew and city-based physician, Aziz, who has preserved rare photographs of justice Ismail with dignitaries including Nehru, Sarojni Naidu, and others, said “Since Ismail was well known to leaders of both countries, the Pakistan government approached him to take charge as Pakistan’s high commissioner in Delhi. Considering the prevailing situation in the subcontinent after partition, he agreed to function as their high commissioner on condition that he shall not relinquish his Indian citizenship and the proposal was accepted by both countries and he remained the sole example in international diplomatic history to have acted as High commissioner of one country while being the citizen of another.
“It’s important to note that after his tenure came to end, Pakistan further proposed his name as its representative in the United Nations but justice Ismail declined the offer as it would again require him accept Pakistani citizenship, which he didn’t like. He loved his motherland so he declined the offer and came back to Gorakhpur in 1953. He died in Unnao and was buried in Gorakhpur.”
Justice Imail , Pt Jawahar Lal Nehru and Pakistan PM Liaquat Ali Khan
Aziz further said: “It was then during this period that Ismail managed the affairs of refugees for the safe passage and was instrumental in bringing together the PMs of both countries to pen the Nehru-Liaquat Pact, a bilateral treaty which allowed refugees to return and dispose of their property, abducted women and looted property to be returned and most importantly guaranteeing the rights of minorities.
In 1922, during the freedom movement, when Nehru was arrested from Gorakhpur, justice Ismail as government prosecutor politely refused to pursue the case against the latter, citing his close relationship with the Nehru family. Years later, when Nehru Became PM, he proposed to name Lal Diggi Park after justice Ismail but that couldn’t happen.
Justice Ismail completed his graduation from Anglo Oriental College, which later become Aligarh Muslim University, before moving to England to earn a degree of Barrister from Lincoln’s Inc. On returning to India around 1915, he started practising in court and later rose to become government advocate in the Allahabad high court and then acted as Chief Judge in central India with headquarters in Raigarh.
source: http://www.hindustantimes.com / HindustanTimes / Home> India> Cities / by Abdul Jadid / August 14th, 2019
Khadi flag was specially made in 1947 after it was clear that the British were leaving
Nurul Hussain had intended to display his father’s most prized possession — a khadi Tricolour of 1947 vintage — to mark India’s 75th Independence Day.
But friends and neighbours in Sivasagar district’s Demow town, about 380 km east of Guwahati, advised him not to wait that long. He agreed to unfurl the National Flag on Thursday.
“They have a point. I am 78 and the only survivor among Mohammed Hussain’s five sons,” he said.
Mohammed Hussain spent the later part of his life as a cleric. Locals, however, knew him more as Commander Sahib than a maulvi. “He had sown the seeds of revolt against the British in this part. People gradually began to call him Commander Sahib. The British were so angry with his rebellion that they confiscated 47 ‘bighas’ of land he owned,” Mr. Hussain told The Hindu from Demow.
After Commander Sahib died in 1971, his youngest son took over the responsibility of preserving what his father referred to as his treasure box.
More than a flag
“The box contains much more than the spotless khadi flag. There are records pertaining to his joining the freedom movement under Mahatma Gandhi, his joining the Indian National Congress and assorted items associated with many a great leader,” said Mr. Hussain, who was the founder-teacher of the Demow Town High School in 1970.
The flag was specially made in 1947 after it became clear that the British were leaving India. The records, Mr. Hussain said, trace the history of the movement in eastern Assam from 1938 to 1947, including the Quit India movement.
Many among the town’s 30,000 people will turn up at the courtyard of the Hussain house for the unfurling of the flag at 7 a.m.
“Everybody knows Commander Sahib’s house. Many of us will be there for the unfurling to see a 72-year-old National Flag, neatly preserved, being hoisted for the first time since 1947,” said Umesh Chetia, a local resident.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Other States / by Rahul Karmakar / Guwahati – August 15th, 2019
