Tag Archives: Iqbal Ahmad

Mamata gives Kolkata its first Muslim mayor since independence

Kolkata, WEST BENGAL :

Firhard Hakim, a state minister, is all set to take up the additional role.

Firhard Hakim and Atin Ghosh along with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee | Salil Bera
Firhard Hakim and Atin Ghosh along with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee | Salil Bera

For the first time since independence, a Muslim face is all set to become the mayor of Kolkata. Firhard Hakim, the municipal affairs and urban development minister of West Bengal, is all set to take up the additional role of the mayor of the 94-years-old corporation. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has also decided to change the deputy mayor by replacing incumbent Iqbal Ahmad with Atin Ghosh, a Member Mayor-in-Council (MMiC).

It was a role reversal in Kolkata corporation as Banerjee had earlier chosen a Hindu mayor and a  Muslim deputy mayor. Syed Muhammad Usman, a Bengal Praja Party member, was the last Muslim mayor of Kolkata in undivided Bengal which had comprised of West Bengal and East Bengal (now Bangladesh). The party was formed by A.K. Fazlul Huqe, who later became the home minister of Pakistan and then the governor of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh)

Hakim is known to be very close to Banerjee and her nephew Abhishek.

A meeting of the corporation councilors was called on Wednesday evening to get Hakim elected. Interestingly, Sovan Chatterjee, who resigned as mayor earlier in the day, has not been invited despite being a councilor.

Chatterjee was very careful while addressing the media shortly after sending his resignation to the corporation chairperson through his personal security staffers. He did not lash out at Banerjee, but hinted at many things

Terming his association with Banerjee for last 40 years as an emotional one, Chatterjee said, “That full moon looks like a burnt chapati today.”

When asked about his future plan of action in politics, Chatterjee said that he continues to be a member and MLA of Trinamool Congress.

“But I would have no hesitation if Mamata di asked me to resign from both,” said he. Replying to a question on whether he would be joining the Bharatiya Janata Party, as such speculation is in the air, Chatterjee said he would not respond to every other rumour.

“You would come to know what would be my future course of action at an appropriate moment,” he said.

Differences between Banerjee and Chatterjee were evident from the words of the latter, who said that instead of resigning on his own, “an instruction was sent to me to resign from the state cabinet”.

“For the last 40 years, whatever she asked me to do, I did all of them even without applying my mind. I am such a follower of her,” Chatterjee said.

After Mukul Roy, he is the second political heavyweight in Trinamool Congress who has distanced himself from Banerjee.

Chatterjee also denied reports that his relation with a college teacher was the reason behind his resignation from the ministry and as the mayor.

“In fact, I am totally in the dark on what the reason was,” said he.

Sources, however, said that Chatterjee would not jump off the TMC boat immediately. He will wait and watch before finalising the future course of action.

source: http://www.theweek.in / The Week / Home> News / by Rabi Banerjee / November 22nd, 2018

DM & doctor: IAS officer to attend to poor patients in Uttarakhand’s Champawat

Kanpur, UTTAR PRADESH / Champawat, UTTARAKHAND :

Dr Iqbal Ahmad had in 2009 completed his MBBS from Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore in Karnataka. A year later, he was selected for Indian Administrative Service (IAS).

When Iqbal Ahmad, now the district magistrate of Champawat district in Uttarakhand, joined the civil services in 2010, he did not just have the aim of serving the nation, but wanted to go the extra mile.

The young officer had in 2009 completed his MBBS from Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore in Karnataka. A year later, he was selected for Indian Administrative Service (IAS).

However, the Kanpur-born Ahmad had to wait for another seven years to fulfil his “old wish” — to give free medical consultancy to the poor — as he had “no formal registration”.

“On September 15, the Uttarakhand medical council cleared the registration and now I can serve,” Dr Iqbal told HT.

On Friday, he walked into the district hospital and started his medical practice for the first time.

The district magistrate will serve for one hour every morning at district hospital. During tours, he will give consultancy to the locals

Dr MS Bora, chief medical officer of Champawat, welcomed the move, saying, “DM Dr Iqbal’s dececison would motivate our health department and the needy of the district would definitely benfit from his one-hour medical consultancy.”

Champawat has only 42 doctors out of the 95 sanctioned. It has one district hospital and 21 other hospitals besides about 1,500 OPDs.

Uttarakhand has almost 60% shortfall of doctors. Against a requirement of 2,700 doctors state has just 1,000 doctors.

Kumaon commission, Chadra Shekhar also welcomed the decision, saying “If an IAS like him wants to utlize his specialization for the common public, it will benefit the state.”

Shekhar recalled that earlier, a senior IAS officer from Uttarakhand, Dr Rakesh Kumar, also an MBBS holder, had served the people by providing free medical consultancy.

Another officer to have done the same is Sadanand Date, a senior superintendent of police (SSP) posted in Uttarakhand, who is also a qualified surgeon.

source: http://www.hindustantimes.com / Hindustan Times / Home> Cities> Dehradun / by Mohan Rajput, Hindustant Times. Champawat / September 23rd, 2017