Dar-ul-Uloom Deoband, the world-famous seminary is proud of its educational heritage since its inception. Its huge library plays an important role in attracting students and research scholars from all over the world. Dar-ul-Uloom is currently working on a project to digitize its colossal library containing rarest of the rare books and manuscripts with great zeal.
The man in charge of this overwhelming task is its librarian Maulana Shafique and his team of 13. They are going about their task with enthusiasm and passion. Even though they have no pressure of any deadline, they still realize the sheer enormity of their task which would leave an indelible mark in the pages of history and immortalize their names.
This prestigious library preserves Islamic History in the form of more than 2 lakhs books and around 1563 rare manuscripts including the Holy Quran written by the Moghul Emperor Aurangzeb and a 750-year-old handwritten book on botany by Imammuddin Zakaria. The age of these historical manuscripts is between 500 to 800 years. Most of this treasure trove is bequeathed to Dar-ul-Uloom as a gift or ‘Hadiya’.
Dar-ul-Uloom has taken enormous care in preserving and curating these rare books and manuscripts with great seriousness till now.
The library has an enormous collection of books on Sufism. According to Maulana Shafique, the library houses hundreds of handwritten books on Tasawwuf (Islamic mysticism). The latest amongst them being 300 years old. This vast collection of books was acquired during the last 150 years.
Pic credit -umair hashmi
The library which was established in 1866 has more than 2 lakh books. Apart from this mammoth collection, there are about 40 thousand books which are part of the Seminary’s syllabus. The most precious collection of this library is those 1563 manuscripts which were handwritten in Arabic, Persian, Urdu and Sanskrit. Out of these about 300 manuscripts have become extremely frail and its contents began to be hazy and illegible which requires immediate curative measures to arrest its further deterioration. This situation caused a great deal of concern amongst the seminary’s officials and its Vice-Chancellor Maulana Abdul Khalique Madrasi who decided to take immediate initiative to conserve these priceless books and manuscripts.
Since the library houses ancient books in addition to 1563 manuscripts which included a letter from the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) addressed to the Egyptian King, a Quran written by the Moghul Emperor Aurangzeb, another Quran written with golden ink, yet another one written completely on one page as well as handwritten copies of Towrah, Vedas, Geeta, Mahabharat and Ramayan and such other antique manuscripts of knowledge which are being conserved and curated by using modern technology.
According to Maulana Shafique, the scholars of Dar-ul-Uloom give utmost importance to conserve the treasure of knowledge of this seminary. He narrated the famous incident of the Late Shaikh-ul-Hadith Maulana Anzar Shah Kashmiri when he went to Egypt. He chanced upon a rare ancient book which he wanted to bring for the library. But the owner of the book declined to part with it. Maulana then borrowed this book for reading and he memorized the whole book in just one night. When he returned to India he re-wrote the book “Nurul Aza” which is part of the Seminary’s curriculum.
Pic credit -umair hashmi
Maulana Shafiq considers the books as the treasure trove of knowledge. These books are an important source of research work. “We have research students from all over the world. Hence, we had to protect these books. For this, the ‘Mohtamim’ (Vice-Chancellor) Maulana Abdul Khaliq Madrasi himself took me to the National Archives of India and got information from there,” he said, and added, “Later a team of three people attended a seminar organized on the same subject in Jammu. We contacted Iran Culture House in Delhi. The people of Iran Culture House were quite professional and knowledgeable. They agreed to cooperate and conserve the books and manuscripts by using the modern techniques but on a condition that they would retain a copy of each preserved book or manuscript as their fee. However, we did not accept their condition in this regard. Maulana Abdul Khaliq Madrasi Sahab’s seriousness reached to the extent of a zeal. We collected all the technical knowledge to undertake this mammoth task all by ourselves by relying on Allah. We commenced our task during the lockdown.”
Maulana Shafique says that the books are related to a great number of subjects such as Unani Medicine, Biology, Jurisprudence, Law, History, Theology, Culture and Astronomy.
He adds that hundreds of books were never opened since centuries because of its delicate and infirm nature to save it from damage.
“There is a manuscript of the 24th Section of the Holy Quran written by the Moghul Emperor with golden ink. Specialists are conserving the manuscripts at a rate of about 150 to 200 pages a day. They are being scanned, laminated and digitized. A new library has been constructed at Darul Uloom. After its completion, the books will be shifted over there. So far 1 lakh pages have been saved. Preservation of 50 lakh pages is yet to be done,” he said.
About the digitization process, Maulana Shafiq, in charge of the library, explains that the boys first separate the pages of the manuscripts by inserting a serial number with a pencil and applying a paste of transparent glue, then laminated with a special tissue glass cloth and dried. These pages are then saved sequentially. It is scanned before binding and preserving digitally. Our conservation project includes books of every religion written in about 20 languages.
The 95 per cent of books found in the library were acquired as a gift.
Darul Uloom’s library has an annual budget of Rs 50 lakhs which is included in Darul Uloom’s total budget.
Sameer Chaudhary of Deoband says that very few in the world know that Darul Uloom has such a wealth of valuable books. “The whole world will have a big surprise once our digitization project is completed,” he adds.
As of now the National Archives of India, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Iran have shown great interest in this project and offered help but according to sources, Darul Uloom does not want to accept any help in this regard.
Maulana Shafiq informs that earlier he was afraid to touch these ancient books as the paper was falling apart by a mere touch. Now, since the preservation process is being completed these books would come alive and benefit research scholars from around the world. After its digitization, these books would be safe to be handled for thousands of years.
The library which was built in 1907 would be considered among the most modern libraries of the country. A new library building is being built within Darul Uloom’s campus at a cost of Rs 20 crore. These digitally restored books would then be shifted in the new building.
There is a large stock of old books at the library. These include letters written by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to the Emperor of Egypt, Quran written by Aurangzeb’s hand, another one written with gold ink, yet another one completely written on one page as well as an amazing collection of books like Towrah, Vedas, Geeta, Mahabharata and Ramayana.
source: http://www.twocircles.net / TwoCircles.net / Home> Indian Muslim> Lead Story> TCN Positive / by Aas Mohammed Kaif / TwoCircles.net / September 04th, 2020
RIDING ON TOP, TWO MAVERICKS KEEP THEIR GAMES ON POINT. LA POLO GETS IN CONVERSATION WITH ARJUNA AWARDEE, SIMRAN SINGH SHERGILL AND SHAMSHEER ALI
They could very well be professional archenemies on the field, but off the field, Syed Shamsheer Ali and Simran Singh Shergill are remarkably comparable as they both would make for perfect Indian polo poster boys.
Though the two have a similar passion for the sport, they both have a very different approach towards life – while one comes across as a simpleton the other one balances the mood with his flamboyance. At LA POLO, when we spent an entire day with the two highly proficient players to discover their stories and, we couldn’t help but wonder how the two peas in a pod were just the right personalities to grace the cover of our first edition.
Syed Shamsheer Ali, +5 (current) handicap player He has played polo for more than 25 years now, and if his memory serves him correctly he played his first tournament at the age of 11. At a very young age, Syed Shamsheer Ali along with his brothers Bashir and Hamza were trained by Nawab Syed Shujat Ali to become polo champs and, till date, the discipline and dedication instilled by his abba (father) are his biggest strength.
Mr Ali recalls his early days and says, “We had a very strict upbringing, I still hit the bed by 9 pm to wake up early the next day. I fell from the horseback at the age of 10, when my father told me not to stop and keep playing. I had a pony named Biscuit and while growing up we never allowed any late nights. Our childhood was spent in stables, practising the game and I have never touched alcohol or cigarettes in my life because we followed a strict diet to stay fit. Polo is a demanding game and requires a lot of discipline, which was taught to us by our father. I started playing when I was 11. In the year 2000, I played at the Jaipur zonal playoff for India against Singapore, Pakistan, New Zealand and we won the three games. We won against Pakistan and it was a crucial game for us because winners qualified for the main event at the World Cup. It was a turning point in my life as I became a 4 goal player that time, and around 80,000 people watched that game and cheered us till the end. I was 12 when I played my first international tournament in Columbia with my brother. For the 2003 World Cup, we were taken to Argentina by the Indian Polo Association for the match and the exposure changed a lot in me as a player. I still remember my first salary as a polo player was from Sehgal Studs; and it was INR 30,000 for the first week and I was just 17 at that time. That was also the year I got married to my wife Nazia.”
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“On the field, you have to fight it out, but off the field, you have to be a gentleman,” says the Hyderabadi top notch as he mentions that he would like to pass on the lesson of sportsmanship to the next generation of players who aspire to take this professionally. “Polo is a very competitive sport and could be very dangerous. My advice to youngsters is that they shouldn’t be attached to the sport so much that it affects their well-being – winning and losing is a part of this game and it shouldn’t get to their heads.”
The biggest challenge for a polo professional in India is to source the right kind of horses as 70 to 80 percent of the game depends on the horses. Mr Ali says, “Polo in India has changed over the years and people have bought horses from abroad. It started with Major Adiraj Singh getting horses for McDowell’s and Jindals and Sahara followed suit. Whereas, we still buy Indian horses and groom them to play against these horses. On an average, it takes at least two to three years to train a horse depending on the temperament of the horse. There aren’t many horse trainers in India, and some of the best horses are trained by the 61st cavalry of Indian Army. I have around 10 home bred horses. I had a mare named Triveni that stayed with me for the longest time and it was an excellent Indian breed. We were in Argentina for six years and returned sometime back.”
A typical polo season in India is for six months, and during summers the horses are fed and trained well for the next season. Mr Ali adds, “We need more publicity for polo, as people don’t know about the game. It is not covered on TV and people in South India are hardly aware of it. We need more sponsors coming in to support polo, so people can maintain the stables without selling their horses. The discussions of a Champions Polo League is on right now and all the players have come forward to support Mr Chirag Pariekh as he is trying to get the arena polo format on TV. The new format could be the T 20 version of polo, with a smaller ground, bigger balls and people can watch it closely. Aspirants and professionals playing right now need money to survive, and even though there are a handful of teams like Jindal, Sahara, Sona etc doing very well we need more attention.” In his free time, Mr Ali plays tennis with his daughter and travels with this family. He also claims to be a foodie and loves to eat sushi, fish, biryani and haleem.
Simran Singh Shergill, +6 (current) handicap player His love for horses as a kid brought him closer to the world of polo, and today the 6 feet 2 inches Simran Shergill Singh is one of the finest players in the country with 6 handicaps. He has also received the prestigious Arjuna Award in 2019 from India’s President, Mr. Ram Nath Kovind. The passion for polo started as a hobby and turned into a profession for this happy-go-lucky man, and he has no qualms about how his life shaped up. He says, “My father was in the army and he was posted in the President’s Bodyguard regiment, which is a horse regiment. As a kid, I was very fond of horses and I started going there to ride, then started with show jumping and later got interested in playing polo. Then I stopped for a bit and finished my school. I went to Hansraj college in Delhi and finished my MBA at IMT. As soon as I finished my school, I met mister Jindal at a cinema hall and asked him if I could come and ride in the summer. Once the polo season started, there was a team short of a player and I played a game that time. My game was noticed by someone and then I was asked to play somewhere else and so it started for me. A year later, in 2003 we were sent to Argentina for training in polo and that was very beneficial for me and there I played my first international tournament. I got 2 goals in a year, which was considered very good and I started getting job offers.”
Mr Shergill considers buying his first set of horses as a memorable incident in his life, and he says that in the past years of playing polo he has developed an unconditional love for horses. “In polo, every player has to develop a rapport with the pony and one of my favourites is a mare called Pines from New Zealand. It belongs to Mr Jindal and it’s one of the finest horses in India right now.
Also, two horses that have played with me for a very long time were named Jimmy and Carrot, and I was extremely fond of them. Around 70 to 75 per cent game of polo revolves around horses, so the team with better horses has a higher chance of winning. Horses like athletes need to be trained properly, fed properly and exercised properly. They get hurt too, so they have to be treated well.”
“When I play polo I don’t feel like I’m going to work, it’s not a 9 to 5 job but more like a lifestyle for us,” mentions Mr Shergill, adding, “My first salary was 12,000 and after that I started saving money to play it seriously. I feel I am still young, and I could get better at playing so that’s what I would like to do. I am not a stressful person by nature and I try to lead my life as simple as possible. My biggest fears are injuries and bankruptcy. I am not a very ambitious person by nature and I am very content at my work, although I am very competitive and I would like to get better at my game.” The skilled rider highlights some of the most challenging aspects of the game and says, “It is an expensive game, it’s not accessible to everyone. It is a very dangerous sport; the main concern is not to get injuries. Most of us have got injuries while playing — broken bones, concussions and other issues are quite common with players. Even in summers, when horses are not playing we have to take care of them and our lives revolve around horses. The only misconception people have about polo is the glamour aspect of the game, which is good for the publicity but there are a lot of things that need to reach out to people. In cities like Jaipur the game is covered in sports pages, but in Delhi and other cities it is getting more coverage on the party page, so the seriousness of the game shouldn’t be mixed with the social aspect of it.” Mr Shergill is married to a lovely lady named Francesca and has a son named Veer, who loves to spend time with him at the polo farms. He claims to be a foodie and tells us that he does wonders with eggs, but to keep a check on his weight he has to run around a lot.
TWO HORSEMEN
A self made and a meant to be made. Two different backgrounds playing on the same ground. A reigning member of the team Jindal Panthers – Simran Singh Shergill and a player backed up by the game of polo – Shamsheer Syed Ali. Speaking less and rich of the journey that goes beyond play and sway off the field. Of hidden quest and dramas that lie behind their cloaked masks. They put it on in public. The spotlight follows and then goes in dark. Thrilled hearts cheer and in time they disappear. The mallets swing on horses with wings. The trophy commemorates and victory celebrates. And hidden are the gaps and phases of the all attractive ubiquitous sport. Those inner workings which remain untold. The nights spent in stables remain as fables. Unheard. A conjugation of uncommon species. The outcome is?
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“Horses are my teachers of both theory and practical classes of psychology,” says Simran, wearing a modest mask this time. “Our lives are on the line each time we ride on fine horses in the rectangular field.” Shamsheer Ali- Artistry and horse riding have little in common unless you are Shamseer Syed Ali. His mornings starts with the tapping of balls on the mallet while jogging in his farm at Hyderabad. Growing among the brothers carrying the same profession, he is the eldest of all three. His grandmother kept his name “Chamma” and some people call him “Shama” too. He says the horses want your devotion to them and “I give all my time to them, playing or practising.”
The time for sitting on the saddle and playing polo arrived very early in his life. He was 11 when he first played his polo match for India against New zealand, South Africa, Singapore and Pakistan. Qualifying all of them he ascended India to the finals of the world cup in 2000. At 12 when he played the game on international grounds in Columbia.
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Emphasizing on the hardships of his journey, he has seen things shattering in daylight. “Owning and breeding horses for 6 years which are born for polo in Argentina and losing everything on a gunpoint left us with no choice than to return to India with no establishment.” He expresses melancholy.
Now he has grown responsible and humble, may be marrying at 17 has inculcated one of the things in him “ On the field you fight it out. Off the field, you are a gentleman.”
Simran Singh Shergill
When life gives Simran Singh Shergill fascination turned into reality, he becomes unstoppable until he squeezes everything out of it. The commentator mentions his name repeatedly as he gallops with his horse after the ball to send it into the goal post and he misses the shot for a few moments, the tapping sound of horseshoe stops and the crowd shifts its expression to quietness. And Simran screeches his own name gazing at the skies. He has been more harsh on himself than the cacophonous times in the journey of his life. People might expect the highest handicap (+6) polo player in the whole of Asia to be drifting off success money and laurels. But he is riding off for a long game, watching life beyond the fields.
“I would always want to be an untamed child”, Simran says as he sits in a polo field that appears alone and silent as the visitors make their way to the royal after party sitting against the red sun which is about to disappear too. He looks ban and slightly dark. “I have hated losing, on the fields, and in life”. Probably it’s why he has won most of his matches playing for Jindal Panthers in his 23 ( and counting) years career. As the dusk starts to cover him inch by inch, he is filled with a variety of expressions on remembering tales of his childhood days, “For four years, I was left with a bike and few mallets and no horses. So I used them on my bike and rode all the way to Jindal Forms in Noida after my schooling hours.” Now he rides on one of the finest horses and his favourite-from New Zealand pines. Playing a royal dream which has always demanded thoroughbred horses and huge expense to feed and buy accessories for the game, it’s been a memorable journey that uncovers the story of a student of class 11th with limited resources covering a desolated way that made him one the most celebrated players in the history of Indian polo .
Born into a family dedicated to Indian Army, gained him access to ride horses and embrace them as his father was posted to a regiment called president’s bodyguard. Little he has started learning and loving the ponies, that he was restricted to ride them anymore because his father was posted outside Delhi. Ever since he was a slightly chubby new rides horse, he has been allured to swing mallets and control horses in every possible manner. But this fascination of his had to wait. At an early age of 13, he started with show jumping and eventually secured 2nd place in the nationals. But that never appealed to him. “Luck can be mustered with passion and dedication ”. He says imploringly almost childlike, “It has happened to me. And it got me far.” There’s A charming side to disclose , if you`re for it, in his confident demeanor. He faced a sudden encounter with Naveen Jindal in his school days cinema hall. He had always knew of his polo farm, and the very next moment, he didn’t stop himself of enquiring if he can come and ride in his summer vacations. The nostalgia for whipping and riding had just taken a step closer to the far end. And his game started getting bigger and noticeable with every passing month.
A year later, he was sent to Argentina for training in polo. A professional polo player took command of his horse and his team.
Of their toughest time and recovery
Shamsheer: We never knew it was coming. To shatter everything. One good day turned bad when my brother and I were robbed of everything on a gunpoint in Argentina. And the universe conspired against us. We left for India without any horses and resources. But you see, these thighs have got an endless rigidity riding horses, so kneeling was hard for us. All the three brothers unitedly brought horses to make a fresh and tough start.
Simran: Injuries are what really ties you down. There was a big international match in Delhi and I was selected to play for the Indian team. But I was injured a week before that. Someone hit me with the mallet and I tried to play a match but the pain became irresistible after the half time. And the recovery time kept me off the field for long.
Rivals of each other or someone else
Shamsheer: Simran and I both were at the same handicap. We like to compete but he is far better mounted than me with the horse power he has. Playing for the Jindals opens the gate of a stable that shelters the best horses in the country.
Simran: In the past few years, I have seen rivalry and competence both. There is Chamma (Shamsheer) who possesses an unique and useful talent of tapping the ball on a mallet and riding across the polo field keeping it in the air. When I was at -2 handicap, he was already at +1 handicap (number line in polo goes from -2 to +10). When I reached +2, Chamma was at number 5. There is competence but speaking of rivalry, it is with my best ally Abhimanyu Pathak. Playing together and against at times has inculcated a deep insight of each other’s skill and strength.
A fear more than the opponents on field
Shamsheer: In this most aggressive and contact sport I see two things coming when the sport gets personal sometimes. With horse- At parallel speeds you can push or hit each other to the sides. With Body – You can go and hit another player with your shoulders. Both the tricks don’t make you liable for a foul.
Simran: It’s only when everyone leaves the field safely, I am relieved.
The age when first salary came into pocket
Shamsheer : I was 17 when a patron paid me 30,000 after playing for a week for them.
Simran : The winters or season of polo gave me an opportunity to play in some tournaments and they used to pay me 12000 with the completion of every series, helping me to buy horses gradually.
Who should become a polo player
Shamsheer : People who love horses. I wouldn’t say it’s expensive, it’s quite affordable if you visit a polo club. You just have to pay a nominal fee to ride along with a mallet and ball and make a head start for polo.
Simran : There is no place in sports or otherwise for mediocrity. Anyone who wants to make sports a profession must strive for excellence. It’s important to chase your passion and not the things that come along with it. A polo player is playing the most royal game and he must be fixed on his game. A polo player seeing his life without polo.
Shamsheer: The imagination is all black at this stage. But I would have invested in real estate or have started a company. Would have done something big only.
Simran: Every tradition has its own beginning and my family followed one – joining Indian Army. I always think it’s a great way of earning a living. I could have joined it too. A disciplinary fascination is there in me.
As a messenger of polo
Shamsheer: They say, the dog is the best friend of a man but I would say that even horses can be the same. You run vigorously on them, turn in any direction, stop at any instant. They listen to us. One should come and witness the blend of understanding between a man and an animal.
Simran: This is a game you play more off the field. Playing for self grooming. I meet my groom more than my parents. Knowing him for more than 15 years. And that keeps me grounded. If his daughter is getting married and my horse falls sick, I spend the whole night in the stable. We work in the dark to perform in light.
source: http://www.lapolo.in / La Polo / Home> Polo-Tournaments
Social workers today, repatriated the mortal remains of prominent social worker Nandi Nazar, from UAE to India, a free service that he provided to hundreds during his lifetime.
Nandi Nazar, aged 61, passed away early Sunday morning due to a heart attack, according to community sources. Born on January 1, 1958 in Kozhikode, Nandi Nazar would’ve turned 62 this New Year.
Fondly called Nandi ‘Ikka’ meaning big brother, he came from Koyilandi in Kozhikode district in Kerala, India and had been in UAE since 1992. Photo Courtesy: Nandi Nazar FB
Musliyar Kandy Abdul Nazar popularly known as Nandi Nazar, offered voluntary services through a community welfare group called Change a Life, Save a Life for this, through which he touched the lives of people in UAE as well as in India.
Hundreds of Indian community members, businessmen and friends and family members came together to pay final respects to the veteran businessman and social worker, fondly called Nandi ‘ikka’, meaning older brother among Malayali Muslims.
Well respected in the community, the prominent social worker supported various community activities of Dubai Police and the Indian Consulate in Dubai. Phot Courtesy: Nandi Nazri/ FB
Nazri helped several people who sought visa amnesty or were in any kind of distress. He was very vocal in his support of the provision of free repatriation services of mortal remains and of bedridden patients.
During the devastating Kerala floods in 2018, Nandi and his associates sent tonnes of relief materials to victims in his home state.
Community members and Indian social workers shocked at his untimely passing, gathered together and held a special memorial prayer for the deceased who is survived by his wife, two daughters and a son.
source: http://www.connectedtoindia.com / Connected to India / Home> News> UAE / Ctol News Desk / Decemeber 30th, 2019
A three-day workshop on research and writing, essay writing and journalism under the pen section of FikroKhabar came to an end at Alhaj Mohiddin Muniri Hall of Maulana Abul Hassan Ali Nadvi Islamic Academy.
The concluding session taught how to make journalism and the media a means of publishing the message of religion and how to work in the practical field. The meeting also decided on the strategy of the Bazm-e-Kalam, which includes the federation of the most important Muslim media. It also includes mentoring them with various workshops for those involved in the field of Bazm-e-Kalam. Bazm-e-Qalam membership forms were also distributed at the meeting, which the participants filled out and expressed their commitment to develop the sector and make it a source of Islamic da’wah . Participants in their written comments said that the establishment of such sectors is the most important need of the present era.
Among the guests on the stage, Jamia Islamia Bhatkal Superintendent Maulana Maqbool Ahmed Kobatte Nadvi said that media is a great way to get people on the right track. It can do things we can’t imagine. The same means of communication include Friday sermons, the benefits of which we can see in society today. Maulana congratulated the officials of Fakro Khabar and his entire team for organizing this workshop and also expressed his happiness to present it in a good and unique way. At the same time, the audience urged the audience to use mobile phones in the right direction.
Mr. Mohsin Shabandari, founder of Bhatkallys.com and Urdu Audio.com, the first website of Juma Bayanat, said that any news should be researched before it is made. Nowadays, it is very important to be careful about the news that is sent to WhatsApp without any research. He also expressed his desire to make the best use of mobile phones and create a platform for all media.
Maulana Ayub Barmawar Nadvi, Maulana Shoaib Nadvi, Maulana Irshad Africa Nadvi, Maulana Muhammad Ali Sharif Nadvi, Maulana Saud Nadvi, Maulana Rehmatullah Nadvi and others were present on the occasion.
source: http://www.bhatkallys.com / Bhatkallys.com / Home> Bhatkal News / by Bhatkal News Bureau / September 04th, 2020
The women and child centre at the mosque has an all-women team comprising a senior general physician and other staff
[Image for representation.]
Hyderabad:
Proving that mosques can play a larger role beyond merely serving as places of worship, a Hyderabad-based NGO has opened a community healthcare centre at a mosque in the city to specifically cater to the health needs of women and children in the slums.
Helping Hand Foundation (HHF), in collaboration with US-based Support for Education and Economic Development (SEED), has opened the clinic at Masjid Mohammed-e-Mustafa, in Wadi-e-Mahmood, a slum area in Rajendranagar mandal.
The exclusive women and child centre located on the first floor is catering to a cluster of 31 odd slums in Rajendranagar Mandal, covering a population of about five lakh.
This is the second community health centre to be opened in a mosque by the HHF. It is already running one in the old city of Hyderabad.
The NGO embarked on the new initiative realising the need to focus on the healthcare needs of women and children, especially during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, which has made things worse for women and children’s health.
Covid, lockdown induced joblessness, loss of income, coupled with closure of schools which serve mid-day meals and anganwadis, which provide supplementary nutrition, has only added to lack of adequate nutrition in children and women and more so pregnant women in the last few months, says the HHF.
Apart from hunger and malnutrition, lack of access to basic health care services in the public and private health care domain has made health care inaccessible and expensive for the weaker sections, particularly maternal health for pregnant women, consequently health issues like anaemia in women, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Women and immunisation services for children have been majorly compromised in the past few months.
The NGOs choose Wadi-e-Mahmood as the area lacks basic healthcare facilities.
The women and child centre at the mosque has an all-women team comprising a senior general physician, a child specialist, obstetrics and gynaecology specialist, a dental surgeon, dietician, nurses, counsellors and front desk support staff.
The centre, named Rabia Clinic in the memory of the mother of one of the principal donors, provides basic primary care in which women and children can approach for seasonal illness and for health services like nebulisation, IV fluid replacement, wound dressings etc. Free third-party lab services including TIFA scans will be provided to pregnant women from weaker sections during ante-natal period.
All patients coming to the clinic will be assessed in a triage, which has trained counsellors, who are doing thermal screening and checking oxygen saturation levels, and entering the details in an ICMR-developed risk assessment form which gives scores on a scale of 1-10.
A dental chair with state-of-the-art features has been installed to carry out simple to medium level procedures in women and children like removing dental carries, root canal procedures etc.
Apart from curative aspects, the focus is on preventive health to check for non-communicable diseases among women, anaemia during the ante- and post-natal periods and malnutrition in children.
Counsellors and dieticians use a WHO recommended template to check blood pressure, height, weight, waist circumference and family history to assess the overall NCD score on a scale of 10. Those who score above 4 will be counselled for weight loss, diet and physical exercise along with early diagnosis and treatment of NCDs like diabetes, hypertension, obesity, thyroid problems and other chronic health issues.
Similarly, children will be also assessed using WHO recommended form to determine the extent of stunting and wasting and the ones who are chronically malnourished will be provided protein supplements and mid-day meal will be provided to 100 school going children under 10 years at the mosque three times in a week to fill in the gap.
Children will be checked for immunisation and will be vaccinated in due course if found not compliant. Iron supplements to women found anaemic and nutritional supplements along with vitamins will be provided to children found stunted and wasted through an exclusive Nutri Rehab Programme.
Mujtaba Hasan Askari of the Helping Hand Foundation said the clinic was catering to women and children, irrespective of their religion, caste and creed.
“Most of the health issues faced by women and children are being neglected in the current pandemic plus there is no focus on preventive health which we intend to focus on through this clinic at the masjid,” he said.
The women and child clinic is fully Covid-compliant with special cabins for doctors protected with plastic curtains, glass mounted tables to protect front desk staff, a triage at the entry point, pedestal-mounted sanitisers stands and large exhaust fans for free flow of air across the entire space of the clinic and a separate waiting area for patients coming to the clinic.
HHF has already been running a community health centre at Masjid-e-Ishaq at Nawab Saheb Kunta in the old city since November 2018.
The health centre last year introduced yoga to help people fight non-communicable diseases. The organization said since yoga was found to be effective in tackling non-communicable diseases, they made it part of the prescription.
The counsellors at the clinic teach various asanas to the patients every alternate day besides giving them YouTube links to follow yoga on their mobile phones.
source: http://www.ummid.com / Ummid.com / Home> India> Health / by IANS / September 02nd, 2020
Bahrain based Dakshina Kannada Muslim welfare association distributed food kits to Covid-19 victims at Kote mansion, Valencia here on Sunday, August 30.
Karnataka NRI forum Bahrain president Leeladhar Bykampady was the chief guest for the programme. Food kits were distributed to about 100 people.
World Kannada cultural conference committee founder president K P Manjunath Sagar said that the Dakshina Kannada Muslim welfare association has been relentlessly indulged in social work since its inception.
Former MCC deputy mayor Saleem, Dakshina Kannada Muslim welfare association vice president Ummar and founder member Moidin were the guests of honor. Former MCC mayor Ashraf who presided over the programme said that the welfare association has continuously helped poor people and is a model organization.
Programme convenor Mubarak was on the dais. Port trader Mohsin Bava welcomed the gathering while author Dr Kasargod Ashok Kumar compeered the programme. Sayyed Bahrain rendered the vote of thanks.
source: http://www.daijiworld.com / DaijiWorld.com / Home> Karnataka / by Rons Bantwal / Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru (EP) – September 01st, 2020
The late former British secret agent Noor Inayat Khan plays a Veena.(File/AFP)
English Heritage described her as “Britain’s first Muslim war heroine in Europe”
Khan was the first female wireless operator sent to Nazi-occupied France but was captured, tortured and shot dead
London :
A woman of Indian-origin dubbed “the spy princess” on Friday gets a new memorial in Britain honoring her espionage work and refusal to betray secrets in World War II.
English Heritage is putting up a Blue Plaque honoring Noor Inayat Khan outside 4 Taviton Street in the Bloomsbury area of central London where she lived from 1942-43.
In 2012, Queen Elizabeth II’s daughter Princess Anne unveiled a bronze bust of Khan in nearby Gordon Square Gardens.
Her biographer, Shrabani Basu, said Khan, born into a princely Indian Sufi family and descended from Tipu Sultan, the 18th century ruler of Mysore, was an “unlikely spy.”
She believed in non-violence and religious harmony but gave her life in the fight against fascism when her adopted country needed her, she said. “It is fitting that Noor Inayat Khan is the first woman of Indian origin to be remembered with a Blue Plaque,” said Basu, who wrote “Spy Princess: The Life of Noor Inayat Khan.”
“As people walk by, Noor’s story will continue to inspire future generations. In today’s world, her vision of unity and freedom is more important than ever.”
Khan was the first female wireless operator sent to Nazi-occupied France but was captured, tortured and shot dead aged 30 at the Dachau concentration camp in September 1944.
English Heritage described her as “Britain’s first Muslim war heroine in Europe.” She was killed after refusing to give away secrets under repeated torture by the Gestapo.
Khan was posthumously awarded the George Cross and is one of only four women to have directly received Britain’s highest non-combat award for gallantry.
English Heritage has acknowledged that the proportion of women celebrated by its blue plaque scheme remains “unacceptably low.” It is planning to unveil tributes to the secret agent Christine Granville at a west London hotel where she lived and the sculptor Barbara Hepworth in north London.
Another is planned for the headquarters of the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies, which campaigned successfully for women to be allowed to vote.
source: http://www.arabnews.com / Arab News / Home> World / by AFP / August 29th, 2020
