Her hard work paid off and she eventually clinched success on her third attempt. She cleared both her Prelims and Mains and went on to top the interview round as well.
IAS Zainab Sayeed
New Delhi:
Do you happen to know who holds the prestigious title for achieving the highest marks in the interview round of the UPSC exam over the last decade? If you’re guessing it’s Tina Dabi, Srushti Deshmukh, Kanishka Kataria, or Shruti Sharma, you might be surprised.
It’s none other than Zainab Sayeed who stands as the record-holder for securing the highest marks in the UPSC interview round. This remarkable individual from Kolkata attained an outstanding score of 220 out of 275 marks in the interview segment. Her remarkable achievement took place in 2014 when she successfully navigated the UPSC Civil Services Exam, amassing 731 marks in the main examination.
Zainab clinched the All-India Rank (AIR-107) and to this day remains unparalleled in terms of interview performance. However, Zainab’s journey with UPSC wasn’t without its challenges. She encountered setbacks in her initial two attempts, failing to clear even the Prelims in her first endeavours.
Despite these early setbacks, Zainab refused to be deterred and remained steadfast in her belief in herself. Her relentless dedication and perseverance eventually paid dividends, culminating in her triumphant success on her third attempt. She not only cleared both her Prelims and Mains but also emerged as the top performer in the interview round.
According to Zainab’s account, the interview lasted for approximately 25 minutes and revolved around a diverse array of topics, including current affairs, international affairs, foreign direct investments, and discussions on the European Union.
It’s noteworthy that Zainab hails from Kolkata and completed her graduation in English literature from St. Xavier’s College. Subsequently, she pursued her MA in mass communication at Jamia University, Delhi, graduating in 2011.
Following her post-graduate studies, Zainab made the decision to embark on the rigorous journey of UPSC exam preparation. Despite facing disappointments in 2012 and 2013, she persisted and ultimately tasted success in 2014.
source: http://www.zeenews.india.com / Zee News / Home> India> UPSC Success Story / by Zee Media Bureau, edited by Mahi Mishra / February 13th, 2024
Chhowsia, Islampur (Uttar Dinajpur District), WEST BENGAL :
Mohammad Masroor Alam during a campaign
Mohammad Masroor Alam’s life took him through a different route in Gujarat in 2001 when he was enrolled for a computer course and the horrific Bhuj Earthquake shook the state on 26 January at 08:46 in the morning killing 20,023 people, injuring about 167,000 while bringing about 340,000 buildings down to rubble.
As a young man, he was shaken by the massive devastation. Stirred by the voluminous urgent need for assisting hands, he rose out of compassion and got involved with a team of people to help the people ravaged by the wreckage. The victims were people from all communities – Hindus, Muslims, Christians, etc. living in makeshift tents.
They all received food, utensils, clothes, blankets, and many other provisions through the efforts of Masroor Alam and all the others in the busy team.
A group wedding organised by Masroor Alam’s group
In a turbulent world of survival of the fittest where each looks for their own, it’s hard to find people like Masroor Alam.
The 34-year-old social activist is the son of Md Rakimuddin and Najrun Nisha of Chhowsia, in the Uttar Dinajpur district in Islampur, West Bengal. He has five brothers and one sister and his parent’s deep values on humanity instilled an indelible root of compassion in him.
He held degrees of M.A. and LLB at the time of being in Gujarat to study computers at the time of the earthquake.
Md Masroor Alam shared, “It felt good not only to give and relieve them from their sufferings but also add a blanket of warmth to our hearts, and we also felt better and happier when we did good deeds for them.”
Victims of cylinder blast
The urge to start a proper Non-Government Organization to help the needy started churning in his heart. He said, “I saw people using NGOs for their benefits, just to meet their own needs without really helping the deprived people, I saw it as a sort of corruption in one way. I wanted to help the people desperately crying for help because I noticed they were overlooked many times. I also believe we must help all people equally, not looking at religion, caste, or race.”
In 2007, Md Masroor Alam became the President of the All India Raza Committee. They held a massive Blood Donation Camp in 2007 during April with a total of 152 blood donation camps and the work involved was stupendous.
During the time of the floods that engulfed the Kishanganj district, he and the team reached out to 26 villages serving them cooked hot khichdi (rice and lentils porridge) as well as giving them lentils, rice salt, wheat flour, sugar, tea leaves and other commodities.
Md Masroor Alam with members of his group at a health camp
It was a tenuous hard labour pushing through swarming waterlogged regions which threatened to sweep away anyone at a moment. The grateful victims called them messengers of good tidings. In another instance, during a gas cylinder blast in the Islampur area, where 37 families were burnt and two men were struggling to live, Masroor Alam and the crew gave them all the help and provided their requirements during that difficult time.
One particular defining time for Md Masroor Alam was working with politicians and understanding how much help they too give during times of disaster. At that time, they helped people to get their ration cards and gifted warm blankets and food to members of some caste communities.
Sometimes, a village would suddenly catch on fire either due to dry twigs or some sudden accident and the group would rush to those areas to help with food, plates, utensils, glasses, and even pressure cookers as some families had their entire homes burnt to ashes.
Masroor Alam (In white Kurta-Pajyama) with a volunteer
The time of COVID-19 pandemic heightened food insecurity in India, leading to a hunger crisis affecting extensive rural regions and certain urban areas with job losses and reduced incomes. Activists monitoring coronavirus-related fatalities have reported that over 300 individuals have lost their lives due to starvation, exhaustion, and accidents apart from dying from the pandemic.
During this time, Md Masroor Alam and the team visited the people in the village and advised them to stay indoors, taught them about masking and sanitation, and gave food to over 8000 families, mostly labourers and truck drivers.
Another help they rendered in 2014 was organising and funding ten poor Muslim girls’ mass weddings and in 2015, they assisted six girls, which was a big financial relief for their parents.
Masroor Alam expressed that ever since he was a child, he was deeply concerned about the suffering of others and always wanted to do something significant to make a difference.
While he was studying computers in Gujarat, after the Bhuj Earthquake, his life was steered in a new direction and he started to get more deeply involved in helping all people of all communities during times of distress giving dal, rice, atta, tea leaves, sugar and many such food commodities during famines and earthquakes as well.
Feeding those in need
The beautiful aspect of Md Masroor Alam’s life and help is his along with the team’s outreach to all people of all communities without ever thinking of the differences of religion or caste. This is the language of humanity.
All India Raza Committee runs an old people’s home where the very poor beggars, sick, and old people can live in dignity. Most of them are rescued from the grips of begging out on pavements, streets, and near garbage dumps.
He says that Islampur is still an impoverished region, underdeveloped and there are many poor people there. During the winter, it is very cold and the NGO started to give warm clothes and blankets to the poor families.
Masroor Alam (in the center) holding a meeting with his volunteers
As the president of All India Raza Committee which is a Sunni Muslim Islamist group based in Maharashtra, India formed in 1978 by Alhaj Mohammed Saeed Noori. Md Masroor has reached out to help people in all parts of India such as Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, West Bengal, and many other states.
Inspired by the Holy Quran which says in Surah 17:70, “Because everyone is created by God Almighty, the Maker of all, humans must treat one another with full honour, respect, and loving-kindness.” In another ayat, it is written, “Help one another in acts of piety and righteousness.”
Md Masroor Alam is inspired by this one line, “Be certain that you do not die without having done something wonderful for humanity.”— Maya Angelou. This is the philosophy by which he lives and those waves resound loudly wherever he goes sending out a good message.
Rita Farhat Mukand is an independent writer in West Bengal
source: http://www.awazthevoice.in / Awaz, The Voice / Home> Stories / by Rita Farhat Mukund / February 01st, 2024
Mohammed Imtiaz, right, and his nephew Mohammed Shahbaz Reyaz are seen at their Pen Hospital in Kolkata on Nov. 30, 2023. (Mohammed Shahbaz Reyaz)
Pen Hospital in Chowringhee Lane in Kolkata was established in 1940s
It is increasingly catering to young people rediscovering fine writing instruments
The nondescript facade with a fading nameplate misses the attention of passersby at Chowringhee Lane in Kolkata, remaining a go-to place only for connoisseurs who still cherish the old-fashioned art of handwriting.
In its quiet and quaint interior, a visitor can try thousands of vintage and high-end fountain pens from brands like Montblanc, Parker, Pilot, Visconti, Wilson, Waterman, Pelikan, or Sheaffer, and watch as Mohmmad Imtiaz brings them back to life.
The Pen Hospital represents a bygone era in an age of instant electronic messaging, but it still draws lawyers, academics and collectors from across India and, lately, also young people who have been increasingly attracted to fine writing instruments.
Established in the 1940s by Imtiaz’s great-grandfather Mohammed Shamsuddin, the shop has stayed in the family ever since. Imtiaz’s partner behind the counter is Mohammed Shahbaz Reyaz, the son of his late brother.
“Despite the popularity of high-tech laptops and iPads, pens are also getting popular and that’s the reason I have roped in my nephew into the business. My son will join, too,” Imtiaz told Arab News.
“There is a renewed interest in fountain pens among the new generation. Today, half of my customers are younger people and this gives me hope.”
Depending on the model, it costs between 25 cents and $60 to have a pen “treated” at the Pen Hospital. Sometimes, parts of older or rarer pens need to be procured from different sources.
Imtiaz repairs seven to eight pens a day on his “operation table” — the shop’s counter.
“Sometimes the workload is so high that some customers have to wait a week for an appointment,” he said.
There used to be many such shops during the time of Imtiaz’s great-grandfather and grandfather, but most ceased to exist in the 1990s, when cheap, disposable ball pens hit the mass market in India.
Now, Imtiaz believes his Pen Hospital is the “only shop in eastern India” that still deals in the trade, which began to thrive again only a few years ago.
“Things started taking up after the COVID-19 pandemic. Long periods of lockdown forced many people to read and write, and people started coming with old fountain pens for repair,” he said. “Some people discovered vintage pens in their cupboards. They have not used them for decades.”
His shop has a special value for collectors like Sarthak Ganguly, a media professional, who has been visiting the Pen Hospital for almost 20 years.
“The Pen Hospital is the only place in Kolkata where you can look for some nice vintage pens,” he said.
“Here you will get a fountain pen that can cost you from $1.20 up to $1,200. Many fountain pen collectors, like me, have at least 1,000 old and new fountain pens. Most of my pens have been collected from the Pen Hospital.”
In a city like Kolkata, known as the cultural capital of India, writing with a pen brings together craftsmanship, style and a touch of nostalgia — something that younger people are increasingly fond of.
It is mostly the new generation of collectors that Ganguly sees at the shop in the morning.
“The young generation is buying fountain pens and that is really heartening,” he said.
“The Pen Hospital not only has nostalgic value, but also it is a pleasure to visit such an iconic shop. It reminds you of history.”
source: http://www.arabnews.com / Arab News / Home> World / by Sanjay Kumar / December 13th, 2023
Mamoon Akhtar with students at the Samaritan Mission School in Tikiapara
Innumerable NGOs are helping the needy across the country in different ways. What makes the Samaritan Help Mission in Howrah, which adjoins Kolkata across the Ganga, exceptional is the way in which people of different faiths, nationalities, private initiative, official assistance and corporate help have combined to nurture a vibrant island of hope.
The Samaritan Mission does its work in Tikiapara, a huge slum that runs alongside the railway tracks connecting Howrah Station. It is 80 percent Muslim, poor and intimidated by crime. The mission was founded and is led by Mamoon Akhtar, 46, its secretary, and most of its work is housed on land belonging to the Belilious Trust.
Mamoon’s (everybody calls him so) father was a skilled worker and keen that his son get a good education. So he put Mamoon in one of the area’s leading schools, St Thomas. But he had to leave after reaching Class 7 under humiliating circumstances because his father was out of a job and could not pay the school fees. Mamoon finished high school through open learning and, with his father departed, supported his family by doing odd jobs and offering private tuition. Not being able to complete his formal schooling, enabling others to do so and in the English medium became the driving passion of his life.
Two incidents shaped him. One day, he found a man beating up a woman because she refused to be a drug pusher. Mamoon tried to stop him and got beaten up himself. He was finally rescued by other locals who knew him and called him “Sir” because he taught children. The little boy whose mother Mamoon had tried to save caught up with him and simply said, “I want to study.” He asked the child to come to his house and soon he was running evening classes for 20 children in a spare room. To keep doing so, Mamoon went around the community seeking help and enlisted the services of local girls who had completed school as teachers at `100 per month.
Then, one day, he spotted a newspaper clipping which pictured a lady singing with a group of children. She was Lee Alison Sibley, Jewish wife of someone with the US consulate in Kolkata. Mamoon wrote to her, seeking help; she replied that he should ask the local community. Mamoon wrote again. Eventually, she came, saw what he was delivering from a single windowless room, was overwhelmed, wrote out a cheque for `10,000 and asked a local journalist friend to write about his work. It highlighted the fact that Mamoon taught children from all communities. The article roped in Ramesh Kacholia of Caring Friends Mumbai. Ramesh Uncle thereafter became a permanent mentor.
With what Mrs Sibley gave, Mamoon set up Samaritan Help Mission in 2001, the name inspired by the biblical story he had learnt in school. When Mamoon canvassed for additional help from the community around him he also reaped a bonus — a strong community connect. In 2007 the informal school became the Samaritan Mission School, accredited and recognised by the West Bengal government. Today it is a co-educational English-medium school, affiliated to the state board for secondary education, with an enrolment of 1,300. The big thing is ‘English medium’; Mamoon knows the difference that makes.
Now switch to I.R. Belilious Institution on Belilious Road, covering two acres of land bequeathed by a Jewish couple, Rebecca and Isaac Raphael Belilious (they both departed by 1910, childless), with a football field, basketball court, a water body, a two-storied school building and a bigger one coming up which will take classes up to Class 8. The whole complex comes under the Belilious Trust Estate. As a child Mamoon swam there, to later see the water body turned into a municipal garbage dump, the government school virtually defunct, the whole space gone derelict and a den of drug pushers.
In 2014 Mamoon and a small group of friends started canvassing the residents of Tikiapara and eventually, on 14 November, Children’s Day, a meeting of a thousand people was held at I.R. Belilious Institution. Also present were the trustees of the institution, the local MLA and the Howrah police commissioner, Ajay Mukund Ranade. The meeting decided to revive the institution, after some debate of course as to why a madrassa should not be started instead of an English-medium school. But Mamoon prevailed and from the next day began the physical clean-up job by the locals through shramdaan with help from the municipality. The police did their own kind of clean-up. In December the trustees and the police commissioner decided to start an English-medium school, also open an evening school, name the effort the Rebecca Belilious English Institution, and hand over its management to the Samaritan Mission.
As you enter, to the left is a prominent sign indicating it is a banking kiosk of the State Bank of India. The place is filled with women, 7,500 of whom from the adjoining slum have accounts there. A biometric point of sale device enables cash dispensation for those who have Aadhaar registration. Along with education, financial inclusion is also taking place right there. The Samaritan Mission also works as a banking correspondent of Indian Overseas Bank.
Right after the bank outreach is the Rebecca Belilious Charitable Dispensary which treats over 200,000 outpatients a year with help from Howrah government hospital doctors. In it there are well-equipped rooms for ophthalmology, dentistry, cardiac care, gynaecology and general medicine. Why is the place not teeming with people and why is it a bit dark? The reality of non-metropolitan India catches up. There is a power cut on.
All the facilities and construction are fairly new and don’t seem heavily used. The grants are coming but how accessible is the entire facility? The question is answered when I spot in another corner a door marked Jan Aushadhi, an initiative by the Indian government to make available cheap essential generic drugs to all. Inside, the shelves are stacked with medicines and two staffers busily fill prescriptions. All the elements that make up a complete out patient facility are present. Too few people overall? It is a hot midday during Ramzan fasting.
In another corner of the complex is a narrow hall with two rows of sewing and embroidery machines with girls working on them. An instructor is explaining to one of the girls how to work on what looks like a pocket which has to be fixed onto the garment. This is the vocational training centre.
Another doorway bears a key message, a skill development centre facilitated by two police commissioners, Ranade and D.P. Singh. It captures the active and supportive role that the local police played in the work of the Mission.
Next to it is being built a drinking water plant which will use the reverse osmosis process and ration daily entitlements through smart cards. No service is rendered free, explains Mamoon. A token fee is levied to make people realise the value of what they are getting.
After these facilities there is a clean water body (it has been snatched back from extinction) and beyond it is an astro turf football pitch, enabled by the CSR programme of Chevrolet GM. At a second campus 10 km away in Bankra, Ambuja Cement helps run a vocational training centre and the Tata Trust a centre to facilitate the integrated use of technology in education to revive government schools.
You realise CSR funding helps but it is an additionality. The Mission’s lifeblood comes from its community ownership, aided by faceless philanthropy, all explained to you by a balding, energetic Mamoon, despite undergoing Ramzan fasting, who is fluent in English and Bengali but prefers Hindi if you have it too.
As my tour ends Mamoon makes a critical point. At one stage an Islamic organisation was ready to help but wanted the project to have an Islamic character. Mamoon declined. He says his Mission knows no creed and he is trying to bring about active give-and-take between the two main communities in Tikiapara which live peacefully but separately, a bit aloof from each other. Twenty percent of the slum-dwellers are Hindus but they make up 30 percent of the students of the Mission. That additional 10 percent is a badge that Mamoon can wear with pride.
source: http://www.civilsocietyonline.com / Civil Society / Home> Spotlight / by Subir Roy, Kolkata / July 03rd, 2017
In a conversation with FII, Moumita Alam discusses how she began writing poetry, and what it is like being a Muslim woman in a Hindu majoritarian state and how the voices of certain minorities have been silenced throughout Indian history.
Moumita Alam is a teacher based in West Bengal whose political poetry, over the past few years, has gained incredible popularity in South Asia due to its powerful messages and themes. As a Muslim woman, through her poems, essays and opinion pieces, she attempts to bring out the atrocities faced by the women of her community alongside critiquing the larger issue of rising Islamophobia in India. Her first and only book, The Musings of the Dark was published in 2020.
In a conversation with FII, Moumita Alam discusses how she began writing poetry, what it is like being a Muslim woman in a Hindu majoritarian state and how the voices of certain minorities have been silenced throughout Indian history, particularly in West Bengal ever since the 1947 partition.
FII: You have, over the past few years, used your poetry to both raise awareness about and protest against the Islamophobia propagated by the ring wing in our country. Would you like to shed some light on what your writing journey has been like?
Moumita: I began my poetic journey after 2019. In 2019, on the 5th of August, the abrogation of Article 370 happened. I had a friend who lived in Kashmir, so I lost connection with him. He was an aspiring advocate who would regularly speak with me. I, as a teacher and a single mother, would share my life journey with him in return. But in 2019, when I could no longer talk to him, a sense of guilt began haunting me — how could a land become a prison where the people couldn’t even make a phone call to the ones in the outside world?
At some point in time, I thought of writing a letter to him, but receiving a letter from here could land him in trouble. He was much younger than me but was my only friend who would listen to my feelings, my happiness, my sorrows. So, I began writing.
I am against the use of the term “migrant labourers,” because India is our own country, so how can its citizens be called migrants? — to come on the grounds and walk for miles and miles to reach their homes.
Moumita Alam
That same year, in December 2019, the Anti-CAA-NRC movement started and we suddenly became aware of our religious identities. Everyone around me would ask me, “Are you legal? Are you a Bangladeshi?” But, believe me, I was born and raised in West Bengal. I have never even seen or visited Bangladesh. Every Muslim I know — whether practising or non-practising — was being asked this question. So, after my Kashmiri friend, I lost my other friends too because their questions would hurt me. I wrote about those feelings too.
Source: Moumita Alam’s FB
And then again in March 2020, we saw how the unplanned lockdown forced the workers of the unorganised sector — I am against the use of the term “migrant labourers,” because India is our own country, so how can its citizens be called migrants? — to come on the grounds and walk for miles and miles to reach their homes. I could not sleep for days because I live in a village and many of my relatives and fellow villagers used to work in Kerala and Delhi as labourers. So, I also started to write poems about their plights and sufferings.
One of my friends asked me to send my poems for publication, which had never crossed my mind because I stay far away from Delhi and its so-called “English literary circle.” But I still emailed a publisher who agreed to publish and then, my first and only book, The Musings of the Dark came out in August 2020.
FII: Since your poems usually focus on the theme of gendered Islamophobia or the issues that Muslim women face in our country, what is it like being a Muslim woman in a country governed by the right-wing?
Moumita: In 2021, I got to know that a few right-wing fanatics had created an app to sell Muslim women and had named it ‘Bulli Bai.’ I was so disturbed after reading the news about this because this is such a heinous thing to do — how can anyone do this in a democratic country like India?
So, I wrote this poem, “I am a Muslim woman and I am not for sale.” This poem was translated into many languages — in Telugu, Assamese, Bengali, Tamil, Kannada, and others — and was also published on various platforms.
If you follow the news, you would know that in 2022, hijab was banned in schools across the country. Even if I don’t wear hijab, you can’t ban other women who do from getting an education. As women, we are a minority in many ways — first, as Muslims in this country and then, because of our gender. We have to bargain our choices and sometimes, we have to compromise in front of our families by saying, “I will work hard, I will wear a hijab, please let me go to the doors of education.”
When a man is interpreting religious scriptures for you, he will — whether consciously or unconsciously — view religion through a patriarchal lens. They might not allow us to gain an understanding of the equal rights that Islam gives to Muslim women.
Moumita Alam
After becoming independent, I, as a Muslim woman, can decide for myself whether or not I wish to wear a hijab. But, you can’t put a blanket ban on hijab like that.
While I do write poems on the rising Islamophobia in our country, I also write about the oppression we Muslim women face within our own communities. Look, our society is based on patriarchal notions which means that even a lot of religious preachers are men. When a man is interpreting religious scriptures for you, he will — whether consciously or unconsciously — view religion through a patriarchal lens. They might not allow us to gain an understanding of the equal rights that Islam gives to Muslim women.
FII: Have you ever faced censorship for having political themes and highlighting the various injustices particularly on the basis of religion, in your work?
Moumita: Thankfully, we still have some platforms that provide a space to people like me where we can raise our voices. I am thankful to the Editor of LiveWire, who recently resigned. She was an immense pillar of support for me because she never censored my work — she either accepted it or denied it from being published, but never censored it. Even the Editor of Outlook is brilliant that way.
Source: Moumita Alam’s FB
Sometimes, however, my poems get rejected by other platforms because they say my work is too political, but I think we are living in a time during which one can’t be apolitical. If you are, then you are indirectly standing with people who are unleashing injustice towards minorities.
FII: As a poet who writes in both English and Bengali, you have often talked about how the voices of certain minorities have been neglected even within Bengali literature and poetry — an example of which can be the Marichjhapi massacre in 1979. Is there anything that you would like to discuss about the domination of certain elite classes and castes in Bengal?
Moumita: You might have noticed that for the non-Bengalis, West Bengal is equal to Kolkata — all of Bengal is just Kolkata for most people who aren’t from Bengal. This suggests a very Kolkata-centric attitude that most people have about Bengal. The literary world is, of course, not an exception — it’s so Kolkata-centric that people like me who are living in the margins find it almost impossible to reach the centre that is Kolkata.
Also, the Bengali literary world has been dominated by upper-class, upper-caste people for a very long time. So, they write about only those issues that they know about and that suit their narrative. Things are changing, some voices are getting spaces. However, we still have a long way to go. »
FII: When we usually talk about the India-Pakistan partition, the discussion inevitably gets centred around the division of what is present-day Punjab with little being said about how the refugees of Bengal, particularly the oppressed even among the displaced, were impacted. As someone who has written articles on this theme for both English and Bengali publications, can you tell us a little about your understanding of the same?
Moumita: Yes, I agree with you that the pains and sufferings of the Bengali refugees haven’t found expression in the so-called mainstream literature, particularly English literature. When I’m talking about “Bengali,” I mean both Hindus and Muslims. The plights of the oppressed class like the Namasudra community who were forced to migrate to West Bengal from the then East Pakistan is missing from the literary narrative. Equally, even the traumas and voices of the Muslims who stayed back while the other members migrated to East Pakistan are missing from the literary imagination.
Source: Moumita Alam’s FB
Most importantly, after partition, no political establishment tried to heal the wounds of the refugees. We all understand how the various European governments attempted to heal the wounds of the holocaust survivors after the second world war, but the same did not happen in India, even though the partition is often compared to the Holocaust.
Instead, every political party tried to gain political mileage from the religious fault lines. If I am not mistaken, nothing much has yet been written about internal migration. How many partition museums do we have?
FII: Every time your poems about the Babri Masjid demolition or about Kashmir get published, there are a lot of derogatory things that are often said by right-wing people— such as a lot of Kashmiri Pandits who end up claiming that their own stories need to be heard over yours. Since you have been doing what you believe in for so many years, is there any advice that you’d like to give to the young girls of our country about how they can voice their thoughts fearlessly even when they are intimidated?
Moumita: We are living in a critical juncture of time. As witnesses of this time, we can’t let the fascists win. How are they winning? They are winning through their narrative — a narrative of hatred towards minorities, towards women. We have to tell our own stories, we have to counter their narrative by our narrative.
So, here is my message for all women:
I wish you,
Oh women,
A savage fury
To throw all the
Dos and don’ts
Under a ravaging bus.
And begin from the beginning
All-new, all equal.»
FII: You write and publish your creative works and political thoughts as a freelancer, which means there is very little for you to gain from it as a poet. If anything, your poems and articles have mostly just led people to threaten you. What is it that motivates you to continue writing even when things don’t entirely work in your favour?
Moumita: Silence is not an option. The hatred that engulfed my friends still haunts me. I am a villager and I know how common people are suffering every day. The silence of the intellectual people saddens me. I want to jolt them, wake them up from their hibernation.
I am a villager and I know how common people are suffering every day. The silence of the intellectual people saddens me. I want to jolt them, wake them up from their hibernation.
Moumita Alam
You know, potatoes are the only profitable crop in my village. This year, the poor farmers incurred a heavy loss and couldn’t repay the loans they had to take from private microfinance companies at heavy interest rates. I asked a very old farmer how they plan to survive after this loss? And he replied, “Next year we will get some profit.” I was just amazed at his belief and relentlessness. I believe we can bring a change. We have to hope because we don’t have any other option.
The interview has been paraphrased and condensed for clarity.
source: http://www.feminisminindia.com / Feminism In India / Home> Interview / by Upasana Dandano / June 09th, 2023
We are happy to announce that TCN’s SEED Fellow Sufi Parween has won the 13th Laadli Media Award for her exceptional contribution to gender-sensitive reporting.
Mursalin’s act went viral on social media platforms and hundreds turned up at his residence to praise him.
Mursalin with members of his family (Photo | Special arrangement)
Kolkata :
When Class V student Mursalin left his Malda home on Thursday afternoon to fish in a ditch beside the railway tracks, all his concentration was focused on the water. But as he looked around for a few seconds, his attention shifted to a large crater under the railway track, which was caused by heavy rainfall in the north Bengal region in the past few days.
Seeing part of the track having no support beneath it, Mursalin sensed danger. On hearing the whistle of the speeding Silchar-bound Kanchanjungha Express as it was skipping the nearby Bhaluka Road railway station, the 11-year-old boy took off his red T-shirt and started waving it as fast as he could to draw the attention of the train driver.
Spotting the boy on the track waving his red T-shirt, the motorman applied the brakes and the train came to a halt. The driver examined the crater, sent an SOS and railway officials arrived. Repair work was carried out to fill up the crater and the train left.
Mursalin’s act went viral on social media platforms and hundreds turned up at his residence to praise him.
“It was drizzling and I crossed the railway track and came to the ditch for fishing. I was busy catching fish but after a few minutes, when I could not catch a single one, I just looked around. I saw the soil and stones under the railway track were washed away because of rain, I felt it could pose a threat to a train. At the same time, I heard the train’s whistle. I did not spare a moment. I took off my red T-shirt and started waving it standing on the railway track,” said the boy.
Mursalin’s mother Marzina Bibi said her son returned home and narrated what he did. “I feel proud of him. His act saved a train mishap. Railway officers also praised him,” she said.
Railway officers said the crater under the tracks had not been noticed. “After examining the crater, the railway officers from nearby Bhaluka Road station took steps to fill it up as early as possible. We appreciate the boy’s presence of mind and his bravery,” said a railway official.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Good News / by Express News Service / September 27th, 2023
Muslim coaching institutes have witnessed remarkable triumph in facilitating students’ admission to Government Medical Colleges in the NEET (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test) 2023 examination. Notable among these institutions are the Association of Muslim Doctors and Talent Zone Academy, Shaheen Group, Rahmani 30, and Al Ameen Mission.
Through a joint initiative led by the Talent Zone Academy in New Delhi and the Association of Muslim Doctors, a commendable achievement was accomplished. Out of the total 31 students enrolled in the program, an impressive count of 19 students successfully secured their admission in government medical colleges.
The primary objective of forming this association was to unite Muslim doctors and create an organized body that adhered to moral values and the fundamental teachings of Islam.
As part of their initiatives, the Association of Muslim Doctors (AMD) collaborated with Talent Zone Academy to launch the AMD 40 program. This educational initiative provided education and support to students aspiring to pursue a medical career.
The Association of Muslim Doctors is an organization comprising individuals who share a common purpose. In 2009, a group of young Muslim doctors from Bihar, India, came together with the aim of establishing a registered body. Their inaugural meeting took place on February 20th, 2009, in Hajipur. Approximately 35 doctors participated in this gathering, operating under the banner of the Islamic Medical Association of India (IMAI)
Waseem Javed, founder and director of the Talent Zone Academy, while talking to Muslim Mirror said that the academy’s “focus is on guiding students towards a successful future in the fields of medicine and engineering, by providing a comprehensive curriculum that is designed to help them develop the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in competitive environments.”
“Moving forward, there are plans to sustain the program and expand its reach to benefit more deserving students. The experience gained from this program will serve as a foundation for future endeavors in providing quality education and support to aspiring medical professionals,” he said.
Ashhar Ehtesham, manager of the academy called the program a successful “collaboration between the Association of Muslim Doctors and Talent Zone Academy”
“The students received food and accommodation from AMD, while TZA focused on providing education. The campus located in Delhi served as the teaching venue for the students,” he said.
“Although the majority of participants were Muslims the program was inclusive and not specific to any particular religious group,” Ehtesham added.
The Shaheen Group of Institutions, situated in Bidar, Karnataka, has celebrated the achievement of having more than 500 students qualifying for admission this year.
Dr Abdul Qadeer, founder of Shaheen Group of Institutions, said “In the upcoming NEET 2023, we anticipate over 500 MBBS seats for the students. I extend my heartfelt congratulations to the successful candidates and their parents on this remarkable achievement.”
“Additionally, our attention is directed towards facilitating the integration of Hafiz individuals into contemporary education. We have established centres that offer lodging, meals, and excellent educational opportunities to support them,” Dr Qadeer said.
Dr Qadeer added that “an impressive number of 80 Huffaz have successfully cleared the NEET 2022 examination, and we have high hopes for even more qualifying in future exams.”
Maulana Mohammad Wali Rahmani’s coaching institute, Rahmani 30, experienced impressive results with 41 students achieving outstanding scores surpassing 600 marks in the NEET 2023 exam.
Likewise, the Al Ameen Mission, a residential educational institute based in Kolkata, has seen more than 600 of its students securing admissions in diverse courses this year.
These outstanding results underscore the effectiveness and dedication of these Muslim coaching institutes in preparing students for their medical aspirations, paving the way for a bright future in the field of healthcare.
source: http://www.muslimmirror.com / Muslim Mirror / Home> Education> Indian Muslim> Positive Story / by Ubair Ul Hameed / June 15th, 2023
Earlier, Mohammed Faizan Ahmed and Mohammed Haris Sumair, who secured All India Rank 58 and 270, respectively were also students of MS IAS Academy.
The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) today announced the Civil Services Examination (CSE) 2022 results. Among the successful candidates, Mohammed Burhan Zaman, a student of MS IAS Academy, has achieved an All India Rank (AIR) of 768.
Mohammed Burhan Zaman who hails from Kolkata is the third student of MS IAS Academy who cleared the UPSC civil service examination in the past three years.
Stages in UPSC CSE 2022
The Civil Services Examination is one of the most challenging and prestigious competitive exams in India. It consists of multiple stages, and candidates need to excel in each phase to secure a coveted position in the civil services.
The journey began with the preliminary examination held on June 5, 2022. Serving as a screening test, the preliminary exam determines the eligibility of candidates to proceed to the subsequent stages of the selection process. The results of the preliminary examination were declared on June 22, opening the doors for qualified candidates to move forward.
The main examination, conducted from September 16 to 25, forms the second stage of the UPSC CSE. It comprises a comprehensive written examination that evaluates candidates’ knowledge and understanding of various subjects.
After the evaluation of the main examination papers, the results were announced on December 6. Candidates who successfully cleared the main examination became eligible for the final stage – the interview round.
Following the interview process, which concluded on May 18, the Union Public Service Commission has finally released the final results of the Civil Services Examination 2022 today. This year, a total of 933 candidates have made it to the final list. Among these candidates, Mohammed Burhan Zaman from MS IAS Academy has secured a place in the final merit list.
MS IAS Academy’s performance
It is worth noting that MS IAS Academy has consistently produced successful candidates in the UPSC CSE in recent years. In the 2022 examination, nine students from the academy passed the preliminary exam. Out of these, three students successfully cleared the main examination and progressed to the interview stage. Among them, Mohammed Burhan Zaman secured a position in the final merit list.
On this momentous occasion, Mohammed Lateef Khan, the Chairman of MS Education Academy expressed his happiness.
Earlier, Mohammed Faizan Ahmed and Mohammed Haris Sumair, who secured All India Rank 58 and 270, respectively were also students of MS IAS Academy. Both of them have been selected for the Indian Administrative Service (IAS)
source: http://www.siasat.com / The Siasat Daily / Home> News> India / by News Desk / May 23rd, 2023
Mohammed Salim, the first Indian footballer to play for a foreign club. In this photograph from 1936, due to playing in bare feet, he is having them bandaged by Jimmy McMenemy the Celtic FC trainer. Photo: Wikipedia
Who was the first Indian footballer to play for a European football club? Very few people in India will be able to answer this question correctly.
He was a Kolkata-based football player Mohammed Salim who was selected by the well-known Celtic Football Club in Scotland in 1936. He carved out a brief but glorious career before returning to his hometown.
An interesting story was once told by his son Rashid Ahmed. After his father had grown old, the son decided to see if the famous Celtic Club of Scotland still remembered his father. He wrote to Celtic Club introducing himself as the son of their former player Mohammed Salim and stated that his father was facing financial difficulty in his old age.
Rashid Ahmed was not really expecting any reply from the club authorities after so many years. He had simply taken a chance. However, he got the biggest surprise of his life when the Celtic football club replied with a letter of sympathy and a bank draft of 100 pounds enclosed.
“I really had no need for the money. It was just a ploy to find out if Mohammed Salim was still alive in their memory. To my amazement, I received a letter from the club. Inside was a bank draft for £100. I was delighted, not because I received the money but because my father still he had a place of pride in Celtic. I have not encashed the draft and will preserve it till I die. I just want my father’s name to be remembered as the first Indian footballer to play abroad,” Rashid told the media.
The reason why Salim returned to India was that he was uncomfortable with the food and the climate of Scotland. He had been born and brought up in Kolkata and therefore was not used to the foreign conditions. Celtic Club pleaded with him to remain in Scotland and even offered to organise a charity match on his behalf. Salim refused and asked that the money be donated to local orphans.
Thereafter German clubs also became interested in retaining Salim. He was offered a professional contract to play in Germany. But he was resolute that he would return to India. So he traveled back to India to rejoin Mohammedan Sporting Club for the beginning of the 1937 Calcutta Football League.
To trace his life back to the starting point, he was born to a middle-class family in Metiaburj in Bengal in 1904. He was studying to be a chemist but football was his first love. His skills were soon spotted by the Mohammedan Sporting club and he was recruited in 1927.
After a brief stint with other clubs, Salim rejoined Mohammedan Sporting in 1934 and ensured that it reached the very top. It was the golden period of this club with Salim spearheading the attacks. He won thousands of hearts with his ball control, dribbling and accurate passes.
A Chinese football official Dr. Chi Chao Yung who saw Salim and his teammates in action said: “Allow me to congratulate the members of the Indian team for their wonderful display. In the course of the game, they showed perfect understanding and exceptional speed. The forwards, Salim, Rahim, Bhattacharjee and Abbas were outstanding in their game.”
Soon after this, Salim departed for Scotland to try his luck there. The well-known Scottish manager Willie Mayley was surprised at the skills that Salim displayed and took him in the Celtic side. On 28 August 1936, he helped Celtic win 7–1 against Galston. The Scottish Daily Express carried the headline: “Indian Juggler – A New Style”, along with a description of Salim that read: “Ten twinkling toes of Salim, Celtic FC’s player from India, hypnotised the crowd last night. Three of Celtic’s seven goals came from his moves.” Another newspaper, The Glasgow Observer wrote: “Salim tickled the crowd at Celtic Park on Friday with his magnificent ball manipulation despite playing barefooted.”
But even after the praise and success, Salim decided to return to India because he missed his home country. In 1940 Mohammedan Sporting became the first Indian club to win the Durand Cup in front of one lakh spectators. The British Viceroy at that time Lord Linlithgow, witnessed the match against the Royal Warwickshire regiment.
In 1980, at the age of 76, Salim passed away in Kolkata.
Before independence, challenging the might of the British rulers was a Herculean task. Salim achieved this seemingly impossible feat with his football. That was his greatest glory. He demonstrated that even barefooted Indian players, with determination and skill, could overcome the strongest of British teams.
source: http://www.siasat.com / The Siasat Daily / Home> Featured News / by Abhijit Sent Gupta / November 26th, 2022
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