Category Archives: World Opinion

Amid Nagorno-Karabakh clashes, an Indian restaurant is helping displaced Armenians

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Parvez Ali Khan’s restaurant in Armenia’s capital Yerevan is delivering packages of cooked food to those forced to flee their homes in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Patiala (PUNJAB) INDIA / Yerevan, ARMENIA :

When fresh clashes erupted between Armenia and Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh in the South Caucasus approximately two weeks ago, Parvez Ali Khan knew that he had to do something for the country that he now calls home. Khan, a 47-year-old from Patiala, India, had moved to Armenia five years ago with his wife and two daughters, in the hope of economic prospects and now runs Indian Mehak Restaurant and Bar, a two-year-old establishment located in the heart of capital Yerevan, just minutes away from Republic Square.

Parvez Ali Khan runs Indian Mehak Restaurant and Bar in Yerevan, Armenia. (Photo credit: Aqsa Khan)

Since fighting broke out on September 27, Armenian officials have said that the total military death toll has gone up to 244 as of October 6, according to a Reuters report, making it one of the most violent clashes in the region since the 1990s. It is unclear how many people have been forced to leave Karabakh since the fighting began, but social media posts and witness reports suggest the numbers are high.

“I must have seen approximately 30,000 refugees in Yerevan,” Khan says. On October 4, on the restaurant’s Facebook page, the family announced that they were providing freshly-cooked Indian food to people who had fled the Nagorno-Karabakh region and were seeking refuge in the capital. “We are Punjabis and we help people wherever we are. We have always done it,” Khan says.

Since the clashes have intensified, Armenians across the country have stepped in to help in whatever way they can, and Khan says he wanted to do his bit. So he turned to the resources he had easy access to—his restaurant’s kitchen.  People from the Nagorno-Karabakh region who were seeking refuge in Yerevan were being given dry ingredients, with no access to facilities where they could cook, Khan says.

Overnight, he turned his kitchen into a space where his staff could prepare hundreds of food packages to distribute in the capital. “I had some savings that I had kept aside to open a restaurant in Prague. That didn’t materialise due to the coronavirus  outbreak. So I am using those funds for this.”

“We started on October 4, and it just blew up,” says 20-year-old Aqsa, Khan’s elder daughter. “We knew there were refugees, but we didn’t know there were so many.” Since then, Khan and his family, along with four employees, have been working 12-hour shifts to prepare boxes with rice and naan, chole-bhature, vegetable dishes with potatoes, brinjal etc., all cooked using less spice than what is customary in Punjabi cooking, to suit the preferences of Armenians.

Aqsa Khan (right) and her sister Alsa pack prepared food in their restaurant’s kitchen. (Photo: Aqsa Khan)

But the family doesn’t think they are doing anything unusual. “There is a lot of unity in Armenia,” Aqsa explains, pointing to citizens who have come together to donate whatever was possible—from money to essentials. “We were thinking about how we could help. So we first posted on the Facebook page about donating proceeds from delivery and take-out orders. But then we saw that the refugees didn’t have access to fresh food and we thought this was more impactful.”

Employees at Indian Mehak Restaurant and Bar in Yerevan, Armenia, work round the clock to prepare food packages. (Photo: Aqsa Khan)

Aqsa says that the family found inspiration for the initiative when a local resident approached the restaurant asking for dry ingredients that she could use to prepare food for children to whom she was providing shelter. The family offered cooked Indian food instead. “We thought that we would be doing it for 25 to 30 people only,” says Khan. But the family soon realised that there were many more who needed their assistance.

Aqsa and her sister Alsa, 18, then took to Facebook and announced that the restaurant was offering Indian food to whoever was coming in from Artsakh, another name for Nagorno-Karabakh. “On the first day, some 400 people asked for help,” says Khan. “It grew from there,” Aqsa adds.

As their social media post has spread, the Khans’ phones haven’t stopped ringing. While some callers have been requesting for food packages, many others have reached out to the restaurant to offer assistance in any way they can. “Women are calling us to ask if we need help in the kitchen. People are bringing their cars to help distribute the food,” says Khan.

Recently, a volunteer delivered food from the restaurant all the way to Hrazdan, a town some 50 kms away, where some residents of Nagorno-Karabakh have sought refuge. Another volunteer has helped deliver food to Tsaghkadzor, a town a little further away. While the Khans are cooking the dishes, four Armenians have stepped in to help package the food and deliver it across Yerevan.

“Now refugees are calling us directly, as are organisations who are helping them. Some hotels who have been hosting refugees have also asked us to provide (food packages) for one meal a day,” says Aqsa. “I have never seen anything like this.”

Parvez Ali Khan helps load food packages into a waiting van outside his restaurant in Yerevan, Armenia. (Photo: Aqsa Khan)

Since the initiative is only a few days old, for now, Khan is making use of his restaurant’s supplies to prepare these food packages. The restaurant has found an outpouring of support from people across Armenia and even those in the diaspora. Many have left them messages of gratitude, promising to visit the restaurant when they can. “After the war, I will visit your restaurant and celebrate our victory,” says one message on their Facebook page, with hundreds of others in a similar vein.

There aren’t too many Indians in Armenia, says Khan, and his establishment is among the few prominent Indian restaurants in the country. In Yerevan alone, he believes, there must be around 100 Indian families, with approximately 4,000 Indian students studying medicine, scattered in universities across the country. Following the Indian government’s operation of Vande Bharat flights to help citizens overseas return home during the coronavirus pandemic, many have temporarily left.

The Khan family and their employees pose with the Indian and Armenian national flags in their restaurant’s kitchen in Yerevan, Armenia. (Photo credit: Indian Mehak Restaurant and Bar)

Over the past five years, Khan says his daughters have developed a fondness for Armenia. During their years at school and college in the country, they have made friends, learnt the language and the culture and have adapted well here, while holding on to their Indian citizenship. “They like the country.” The family has been working non-stop to prepare the food packages and they don’t have too much time for more questions. For Aqsa, Nagorno-Karabakh is as much a cause as it is for her Armenian friends and she is doing whatever she and her family can to assist the country that is now home.

source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> World / by Neha Banka, Kolkata / October 07th, 2020

Designing change, one stitch at a time

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Karnataka (under research project), World Opinion, , , ,

Bengaluru, KARNATAKA :

Fashion, as we know it, is one of the most influential industries in the world.

Bengaluru : 

Fashion, as we know it, is one of the most influential industries in the world. And when brands not only make top quality products but also come full circle and give back to the community through their choices, they become good influencers of fashion.

Kulsum Shadab Wahab, based in Bengaluru, is a philanthropist recognised by Chime for Change, a global campaign founded by Gucci, which features 25 women activists from around the world working to advance gender equality.

A true fashion enthusiast, she believes in altering the perception of high fashion through inclusivity. Ara Lumiere, an initiative by her Hothur Foundation, works with acid attack survivors in making avant-garde head gears. Worn by the likes of pop star Katy Perry, Ara Lumiere’s head gears have won many international awards. They have also collaborated with Shah Rukh Khan’s Meer Foundation to create awareness on skin banking.

Ara Lumiere X Dhruv Kapoor bucket hat collection

The spring summer ’21 edition of Ara Lumiere, in collaboration with ace designer Dhruv Kapoor (Ara Lumiere X Dhruv Kapoor), which was made out of diligence, love and hope by the survivors, was recently unveiled at the first-ever digital Milan Fashion Week.

Showcased through a short film, the gender neutral collection features embroidered bucket hats in sheer organzas and taffetas, handcrafted and hand embroidered by the brave acid attack survivors. All proceeds have gone into the rehabilitation of the survivors, where fashion has acted as a powerful tool in empowering these women. 

The government’s leather ban in 2015 destroyed jobs for leather work artisans, mainly from marginalised communities. A fight for justice against caste and ostracised communities got artist-activist Sudheer Rajbhar to develop a new recycled material – one that is made from waste but close to leather in its texture and durability – to celebrate and conserve crafts from a banned industry. This is how Mumbai-based Chamar Studio was conceived.

Says Rajbhar, “Chamar was once used as a slur and we have tried to end that. Our brand’s promoters in Germany, the USA and France tell us the name sounds like a mix of ‘Chanel’ and ‘Shalimar’ and associate it with luxury.” These bags, which come in striking bold colours, are high on functionality, design and skilled craftsmanship and proudly stand at par with any global luxury brand. These timeless pieces are waterproof, cruelty free and vegan as well. 

Brands with a cause make us believe that fashion can be something bigger, more than just a style statement. Along with creating high quality products that are recognised globally, fashion also puts out good into the world. Whether it is supporting a cause or sourcing sustainable material, these brands are definitely the game changers of fashion today.

(The writer is a lifestyle consultant and mindful fashion advocate)

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Sarayu Hegde / Express News Service / October 01st, 2020

100 Indian students join UK university’s new online diabetes course

Education, NRI's / PIO's, Science & Technology, World Opinion, , ,

UNITED KINGDOM:

Birmingham City University launched its new Master’s Degree in Advancing Diabetes Care in partnership with the University Hospitals Birmingham Diabetes Team this week.

Representational image.
Representational image.(Bloomberg file)

Around 100 Indian students have enrolled for a UK university’s newly-launched online course focussed on supporting people living with diabetes and leading new research into the condition.

Birmingham City University launched its new Master’s Degree in Advancing Diabetes Care in partnership with the University Hospitals Birmingham Diabetes Team this week. The course is aimed at helping healthcare professionals develop specialist skills and techniques to enhance the level of care provided to people living with diabetes. The first cohort of students taking up their places on the course are based in India and are sponsored by Mumbai-headquartered pharmaceutical company Lupin Pharmaceuticals.

“When I was an undergraduate student of medicine, at that point in time in India we used to read about diabetes in the subcategory of lifestyle diseases. Now we have seen the spread of this disease across all age groups, impacting people with different social backgrounds,” said Dr Shishank Vikram, Consul General of India, Birmingham.

“At this particular juncture the launch of the MSc is a very important step which will go a long way in not only providing quality training but in the exchange of best practice between the two sides. The students that are joining this course are all medical doctors and I wish them the best,” he said.

According to figures quoted by the university, India is home to nearly 77 million people with diabetes and the course has been designed to further research and development into diabetes care, particularly with COVID-19 causing a disproportionate mortality rate for people with diabetes. It is open to healthcare professionals including general practitioners (GPs), hospital-based doctors, specialist nurses and practice nurses, midwives, dietitians, podiatrists, pharmacists, psychologists and other roles across healthcare sectors.

“By providing training to medical doctors who specialise in diabetes care, we know what this is going to do, is to reach out to those communities who are most impacted by diabetes,” said Professor Philip Plowden, Vice-Chancellor at Birmingham City University. “The skills and knowledge that you develop on this course are going to result in evidenced-based effective diabetes care. We know the impact of this is going to be felt for generations,” said Plowden.

Professor Wasim Hanif, Professor of Diabetes & Endocrinology, Consultant Physician, & Head of Service in Diabetes at University Hospital Birmingham, said the reason the new course is important is that there are currently 463 million people living with diabetes globally.

“Globally every seven seconds somebody dies from diabetes, including in countries like India. To give you some perspective on these things, every day nearly 12,000 people die from diabetes. The aim of this course is to try and give the most advanced skills to healthcare professionals trying to manage diabetes,” he said.

The university says it hopes the brand new course will meet the needs of interdisciplinary healthcare practitioners working in partnership with people living with diabetes. 

source: http://www.hindustantimes.com / Hindustan Times / Home> Education / by Press Trust of India / posted by Akhilesh Nagari / October 04th, 2020

Freedom fighter Capt Abbas Ali passes away

Amazing Feats, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Freedom Fighters (under research project), Leaders, World Opinion, , , , , , , , , , ,

Aligarh, UTTAR PRADESH :

Aligarh (UP):

Freedom fighter Captain Abbas Ali who was part of the Indian National Army (INA) died of a cardiac arrest today at the Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College here.He was 94 and is survived by son Qurban Ali and two daughters.

freedom fighter capt abbas ali passes away

Aligarh (UP): 

Freedom fighter Captain Abbas Ali who was part of the Indian National Army (INA) died of a cardiac arrest today at the Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College here.

He was 94 and is survived by son Qurban Ali and two daughters.

“He will be laid to rest later this evening at Qila Road graveyard,” a family member said.

An alumnus of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Ali had joined the British Indian Army in 1939, shortly before the outbreak of World War II. In 1945, when Subhash Chandra Bose raised the banner of armed revolt, Abbas left the British army and joined the INA.

Shortly thereafter, he was arrested, court marshaled and sentenced to death. When India gained independence, he was released from prison before the death sentence was meted out.  Abbas Ali joined politics under the influence of socialist party leaders including Ram Manohar Lohia, Acharya Narendra Dev and Jai Prakash Narain.  In 1966, he was appointed State General Secretary of Sanyukt Socialist Party.

He was appointed as a member of the national executive of the Socialist Party.  He was arrested again during the national Emergency under the Defence of India Rule (DIR) and remained behind bars during the entire period of emergency.  In 1977, when emergency was lifted and his party merged with the Janata Party, he was elected to Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council and was appointed as the first President of Uttar Pradesh Unit of the Janata Party.

Shortly before his death, while attending a public function at Aligarh on the eve of 15th August, Captain Ali had said, “There is only one unfulfilled wish of my life and that is that the true story behind the last few days of my leader Subhash Chandra Bose should see the light of the day.  “West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamta Banerjee has assured me that she will leave no stone unturned to unravel the mystery behind his death”, he had said.

source: http://www.indiatvnews.com / India TV / Home> English News> India / by PTI / October 11th, 2014

Jobless Kerala anthropologist goes down history lane

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Books (incl.Biographies - w.e.f.01 jan 2018 ), Community Involvement / Social Issues, Freedom Fighters (under research project), Leaders, Martyrs of the Nation, Travel & Tourism, World Opinion, , , , , ,

Vatakara (Kozhikode District), KERALA :

Illustrated book on legendary hero Kunjali Marakkar brought out for children

The popular witticism – when the going gets tough, the tough get going – has literally set off a young anthropologist- cum- archaeologist to author a book for children on Kunjali Marakkar, the legendary hero of the 16th century.

For N.K. Ramesh, a guide at the Kunjali Marakkar Memorial Museum at Vadakara, it was an opportunity to trace the history of the four Kunjali Marakkars, when his contract was terminated after the museum was closed to the public from March.

“Certainly a difference existed between writing for children and for adults. So I put down a simple narration and included illustrations based on important events during the period of Kunjali Marakkar and also a picture of a mural painting of a sea war,” he says.

Kunjali Marakkar was a honorific title given to the Muslim naval chief of the erstwhile Zamorin of Calicut. “The four Kunjali Marakkars who were the naval commanders of Zamorin fought against the Portuguese from 1507 to 1600. In fact, the Kunjali Marakkars were maritime merchants and supporters of Arab trade who lived in the coastal regions of Kayalpattinam, Kilakarai, Thoothukudi, and Karaikal. But they shifted their trade to Kochi and then migrated to Ponnani after Portuguese trade interference,” Mr. Ramesh says.

He took about four months to pen the book with 104 pages. The book has already hit the stands although the official launch has been deferred in view of the COVID-19 protocol.

Historian M.G.S. Narayanan has given an introduction to the book on Kunjali Marakkar, whose battles against the Portuguese were portrayed as a symbolic national movement.

The book also delves into the objective of the construction of a fort by Pattu Marakkar, the third Kunjali Marakkar, at Iringal (Kottakkal) in 1571 and the political dispute between his nephew Mohammed Marakkar, who became the fourth Kunjali Marakkar, and the Zamorin.

Later, the Zamorin joined hands with the Portuguese to defeat the last Kunjali Marakkar. The fort was also demolished and Kunjali executed by the Portuguese. The decline of Kunjali Marakkar, he says, led to establishment of Dutch Dominion and later British rule in India.

Mr. Ramesh, who holds a postgraduate degree in anthropology from Kannur university and Post M.Sc. Diploma in Museology from Aligarh Muslim University, has been credited with numerous discoveries, including the unearthing of Palaeolithic tools from north Malabar.

For a living, the 34-year-old is now engaged in de-husking at farms and odd jobs at Nadapuram and adjoining areas.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Kerala / by Biju Govind / Kozhikode – September 15th, 2020

Jamia Researchers Develop Fastest Molecular Docking Tool for Drug Discovery Pipeline

Education, Science & Technology, World Opinion, , , , , ,

NEW DELHI :

Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi.

Drug discovery is a complex and long-drawn process that requires an interdisciplinary approach to discover new drug-like molecules called leads

Clarion India

New Delhi :

A team of researchers, led by Dr. Md. Imtiaz Hassan at the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Basic Sciences, Jamia Millia Islamia(JMI), has developed a molecular docking-based high-throughput virtual screening tool as freeware named InstaDock.

Molecular docking is an in-silico method used for exploring protein-ligand interactions of therapeutic interest and is one of the most widely used approaches in drug development and discovery. Drug discovery is a complex and long-drawn process that requires an interdisciplinary approach to discover new drug-like molecules called leads.

In-silico approaches such as molecular docking are used in “virtual high-throughput screening” of chemical libraries containing millions of compounds to find potential leads in drug design and discovery.

Dr. Hassan and his students Taj Mohammad and Yash Mathur developed InstaDock, a free and open-access Graphical User Interface programme that uses standard tools to perform molecular docking and virtual high-throughput screening efficiently.

An InstaDock suite is a single-click executable, specially made for the convenience of non-bioinformatician and for people who are not experts in using computers. It is the easiest and more interactive interface than ever existing software that facilitates on-board visualisation and docking analysis in just a single click.

InstaDock has been accepted for publication by the Briefings in Bioinformatics, a reputed journal of the Oxford University Press with an Impact Factor of 9.1. InstaDock is freely available for academic and industrial research purposes at www.hassanlab.org/instadock.

“It is quite challenging for non-expert users to perform molecular docking and high-throughput virtual screening directly at a universal platform, as the process involves a large number of steps. We have presented InstaDock in such a way that it can be used by even non-bioinformaticians and people with very little knowledge of computers, which greatly enhances its scope of usefulness”, Taj Mohammad, Senior Research Fellow at Dr. Hassan’s Lab, said.

Yash Mathur said “we developed InstaDock with an aim to provide a simple and interactive drug-discovery platform to help curious minds and professionals alike, experiment and understand proteins in-silico with just a single click”

“The fields of molecular docking and high-throughput virtual screening are the much-needed areas of drug discovery and thus deployment of InstaDock is bound to greatly enhance the pre-existing procedures. It is a novel method that gives non-expert users the freedom and efficiency that is not provided by existing programs”, said Dr. Hassan.

Dr. Hassan said this work is a great effort of his students Taj Mohammad and Yash Mathur who worked constantly for a long time even in the lockdown situation. They are dedicatedly working in the field of structural biology, machine learning, drug discovery, and NGS analytics to contribute towards modern medical science.

Dr. Hassan’s lab is running several research projects related to drug design and discovery which can be accessed via www.hassanlab.org.

source: http://www.clarionindia.net / Clarion / Home> Editor’s Pick> India> Indian Muslims / September 25th, 2020

Sons stitch together Kerala tailor’s dream of ‘longest’ Quran copy

Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Books - Holy Quran, Koran / Translations, Commentaries / by Indian Muslims (wef. February 11th, 2025), Community Involvement / Social Issues, World Opinion, , , , , , , , , ,

Eruva (near Kayamkulam), KERALA :

The dream of a tailor at Eruva near Kayamkulam was fulfilled by his four sons who created the 3.1-kilometre-long handwritten copy of the Quran in the world.

Noushad and his sons with the box in which the collar cloth rolls of handwritten Quran are fixed on a rotator | Express

Alappuzha :

The dream of a tailor at Eruva near Kayamkulam was fulfilled by his four sons who created the 3.1-kilometre-long handwritten copy of the Quran in the world. Kadharsha Moulavi, son of M K Noushad, said his father’s dream was to create the holy text on a cloth canvas as a handwritten copy.

The Quran teacher of Tharbiyya Madrasa at Palluruthy in Ernakulam said, “He had expressed his wish a few years ago, but the lack of time did not allow us to complete the task. In the Covid lockdown period, we decided to undertake it. We etched the text on the stiff collar rolls of 1.5-inch width stitched together. It took us around 111 hours to complete the writing. Ten green marker pens and 40 bottles of ink were used and  and the whole project cost us Rs 20,000.” 

Noushad himself had created records by stitching a huge shirt joining the flags of 54 nations and made the Indian Tricolour using buttons. When the then president, APJ Abdul Kalam, came to Kochi in 2003, Noushad was called there and felicitated by him.

His four sons are educated in the Quran and Arabic studies and all are teaching in different institutions. Muhammad Shafi, a teacher of KIT School, Kayamkulam, said the siblings started the work on June 8 and completed it by July 26.

“As many as 155 collar canvas rolls were used to create the long strip. One collar canvas is 20m long. The copy was written using marker pens in neat handwriting. The special box to fix the canvass roll was designed by our father. People can read from Volumes 1 to 30 without any difficulty. If the reader turns the rotator fixed in the box, the text starts unrolling for easy reading,” Shafi said. “As per our knowledge, such a long handwritten copy of the holy text does not exist in the world,” he added. 

Noushad said the national flag with buttons was a novel idea and he got several accolades for it. He had tried to get these recognised by the Guinness World Records but could not pursue it  then. “President Abdul Kalam felicitated me after hearing about the flag. I had stitched it using 20,454 buttons and presented it during the official Independence Day celebrations in Kayamkulam on August 15, 2003.

Another initiative was a shirt that was stitched together with the flags of 54 countries. Each flag was stitched in my shop and the shirt in the end had a height of 10 feet. It was released on the 54th Republic Day in 2003.

I had also created a floral arrangement using small pieces of clothes on the Thiruvonam day in 2004,” Noushad said.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Good News / by Biju E. Paul / Express News Service / September 26th, 2020

Adil Hussain-starrer Netflix drama ‘Delhi Crime’ gets nominated for Emmy

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, World Opinion, , ,

ASSAM / NEW DELHI :

‘Delhi Crime’ is also set for the second season. The first season was based on 2012 Delhi rape survivor Nirbhaya

The show that stars Adil Hussain, Shefali Shah and Rasika Duggal in the lead roles, is based upon the real-life incident of 2012 Delhi rape of a medical student|Twitter

The nominations for the best drama are revealed, after Emmys 2020 for the comic category concluded. In the list of nominations is Netflix’s popular show ‘Delhi Crime’. The show that stars Adil Hussain, Shefali Shah and Rasika Duggal in the lead roles, is based upon the real-life incident of 2012 Delhi rape of a medical student.

The news was shared by Adil Hussain on his Twitter handle . He wrote, “As we speak. Just now I came to know that #DelhiCrime, that I am a part of, has been nominated for Best drama series at @iemmys International #emmyawards #Emmys.”

‘Delhi Crime’ is also set for the second season. The first season was based upon Nirbhaya (the name given by the government), who was gang-raped in 2012 in a moving bus in the capital of India.

Recently, Schitts Creek sweeped all the awards as being the best comedy show.

source: http://www.eastmojo.com / EastMojo / Home> National / by Pratisha Borthakur / September 24th, 2020

Community icon presented with Australian award

Amazing Feats, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Leaders, NRI's / PIO's, Science & Technology, World Opinion, , , , , ,

JAMMU & KASHMIR / AUSTRALIA :

Reflections on half a century of community service in Australia: Dr Qazi Ashfaq Ahmad after the award ceremony on Tuesday 8 September 2020 at the front lawns of Government House in Sydney.

Dr Qazi Ashfaq Ahmad OAM, 90, a retired professor of mechanical engineering and a Quranic scholar and long time community leader was presented with his Order of Australia medals on Tuesday 8 September 2020 by Her Excellency the Honourable Margaret Beazley, AC, QC, the Governor of NSW.

Watch video of Investiture Ceremony and citation for Dr Ahmad for the award.

The award was announced on Australia Day 26 January earlier this year but the investiture ceremony was much delayed due to the pandemic and was held in September at the Government House in Sydney under COVID-19 restrictions.

Dr Ahmad, professor and head of department of mechanical engineering in Kashmir was forced to leave his job and arrived in Australia in 1971 and has been in the forefront of building Islamic institutions, founding community organisations and promoting interfaith harmony for almost half a century.

Dr Qazi Ashfaq Ahmad receiving the Award Medals from the Governor of NSW, Her Excellency the Honourable Margaret Beazley, AC, QC on Tuesday 8 September 2020 at Government House, Sydney.

This was the first of a number of investiture ceremonies to be held in stages for the recipients of Order of Australia medals this year in compliance with COVID-19 regulations and health advice.

Dr Ahmad was accompanied by his eldest son Zia Ahmad and and daughters Fauzia Siddiqui and Najia Khalil at the award ceremony at Government House in Sydney.

Dr Ahmad with his daughter Fauzia Siddiqui (left), son Zia Ahmad and daughter Najia Khalil after the investiture ceremony at the Government House front lawn in Sydney on Tuesday 8 September 2020.

The Order of Australia was bestowed upon Dr Ahmad in recognition of his services to the Muslim community and for promoting interfaith harmony.

By profession, a retired engineer and academic having earned his major qualifications at Aligarh Muslim University, India, University of Wisconsin, USA and University of Sydney, Australia, he taught at various universities in India, Australia and Papua New Guinea.

A Quranic scholar of international standing, having obtained his Islamic education from original sources after mastering English, Urdu, Arabic and Farsi languages, his major passion in life is, and has been for most of his life, the application of Islam in the daily life of mankind, both for Muslims and people of other faiths and beliefs.

Dr Ahmad lives in Sydney with his wife Jamal Ara Ahmad surrounded by 70+ strong extended family and is a father, grandfather and great grandfather.

With the Governor of NSW at the front lawn of  Government House, Sydney.

The citation announced at the event for the award included a long list of services that he has been rendered by him to the Australian community during the last 50 years.

Citation for the award read at the Investiture ceremony

Below are some of Dr Ahmad’s community achievements:

  • Founding Secretary, Australian Islamic Mission (AIM) 1972.
  • Founding President, Muslims Australia (also known as Australian Federation of Islamic Councils AFIC) 1976-77.
  • Editor-in-Chief, Australian Muslim Times 1991; Chief Advisor, Australasian Muslim Times AMUST, 2014-current.
  • Member, Board of Trustees, International Council of Islamic Information (United Kingdom), since 1993.
  • Founder and Patron, Islamic Forum for Australian Muslims (IFAM) 1993.
  • Founder, Member and Patron, Aligarh Muslim University Alumni of Australia (AMUAA), since 1992.
  • Member, Association for Indian Muslims (United States), 1992.
  • Founder and Patron, Islamic Foundation for Education and Welfare, since 1986.
  • Co-Founder and Chief Organiser, Multicultural Eid Festival and Fair (MEFF), since 1985.
  • Founder and Member, Council of Islamic Affairs New South Wales (now ICNSW), 1974-1976.
  • Founding President, Sydney University Muslim Students Association, 1972-1974.
  • Assembly Member, Council of Parliament of World Religions, USA, since 1993.
  • Establishment of the Interfaith Youth Friendship Centre, 2006.

Awards and recognition of Dr Ahmad’s contribution include:

  • Lifetime Achievement Award, Australian Muslim Achievement Awards, 2011.
  • Sir Syed Award, AMU Alumni of Australia, 2003.
  • Centenary Medal for contribution to Australian society, 2001.
  • Services to Islam Award, Australian Muslim Professionals (FAMP), 1994.
  • Community Service Award in recognition of a valuable contribution to the Bicentenary, 1988.

Read more about Dr Qazi Ashfaq Ahmad’s life and achievements.

source: http://www.amust.com.au / AMUST (Australian Muslim Times) / Home> News> Top News / by Zia Ahmed / September 11th, 2020

Explained: Who is Bilkis, the Shaheen Bagh ‘dadi’ listed among TIME’s most influential people of 2020?

Amazing Feats, Community Involvement / Social Issues, World Opinion, , , , , ,

NEW DELHI :

TIME’s 100 most influential people 2020: In January, Bilkis had told The Indian Express from Shaheen Bagh, “We are old and we are not doing this for ourselves… This is for our children.”

Bilkis (right) at Shaheen Bagh on January 14, 2020. (Express Photo: Somya Lakhani)

Even as Delhi braved its coldest winter in over a century, 82-year-old Bilkis — with a smile on her face and a shawl around her shoulders — sat with hundreds of women under a canopied tent at the national capital’s Shaheen Bagh anti-CAA/NRC sit-in protest for over three months. Within days, Bilkis and the other elderly women who participated in the protest became the symbol of resistance and hope, and came to be fondly known as the “Dadis of Shaheen Bagh.”

TIME magazine has now included Bilkis in its list of “The 100 Most Influential People of 2020.”

Journalist and author Rana Ayyub, who has penned the piece for TIME magazine, says, “Bilkis became the voice of the marginalised… Became the symbol of resistance in a nation where the voices of women and minorities were being systematically drowned out by the majoritarian politics of the Modi regime.”

The Shaheen Bagh protest went on for 101 days and was cleared by the Delhi Police on March 24 in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic .

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Graffiti of the ‘dadis’ of Shaheen Bagh. (Express Photo)

In January, as the Shaheen Bagh sit-in inspired similar protests across the country, Bilkis had told The Indian Express , “We are old and we are not doing this for ourselves… This is for our children. Why else will we spend our days and nights during the coldest winter of our lives in the open?”

On January 26, Bilkis, along with the mothers of Rohith Vemula and Junaid Khan, hoisted the national flag at Shaheen Bagh as hundreds of people showed up there for Republic Day  celebrations. At the time, the resilience of the “Dadis of Shaheen Bagh” was captured in songs, poems, slogans and graffiti as well.

In February, when an armed assailant fired at least two shots barely 50 metres away from the stage at Shaheen Bagh, Bilkis was at her spot near the stage. At the time, she told The Indian Express, “There was panic inside the tent but people eventually calmed down. We walked till the point where cartridges were found and offered prayers… These bullets don’t scare us.”

source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> Explained / by Somya Lakhani / New Delhi – September 24th, 2020