Today, the land of the pure is seriously deficient in human fibre. The All-India Muslim League, the founding party of Pakistan, was launched in 1906 at Decca which later moved its headquarters to Lucknow. The Aligarh Muslim University provided the required human resource that remained at the forefront of the movement and then provided the talent to run the state once it came into being. Unfortunately, the decade of the 1980s experienced a massive leap backwards. The bureaucracy experienced a major decline after the retirement of the founding generation. In order to neutralize the political gains of the 1970s, the partyless elections in 1985 proved to be deadly. Ideology was knocked out of the political arena to be replaced with vested personal interests which resulted in massive corruption.
It is the human fibre that makes the real difference. Historically speaking, it was Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib who guided Sir Syed Ahmed Khan to focus on modern education. There was a brief period of overlap after the War of Independence in 1857 between the two great men of the Indian Subcontinent. Sir Syed, after retiring from the East India Company at the age of 55, wrote a book to raise the morale of his community about the Muslim Heritage of Delhi with focus on the Historical Buildings built by them. When Mirza Sahib was requested to write the foreword, he responded with a forewarning. Ghalib’s advice was, “Educate them, build schools and colleges to bring them into the mainstream. ”
Syed Sahib responded by opening the MAO (Mohammadian Anglo Oriental ) School followed by College and then the Aligarh Muslim University which prepared the generation that not only won freedom but also consolidated it by building vital institutions. The Pundits had given six months to the new country before its fall and return into the Indian Union. Lord Mountbatten wanted to be the Governor-General of both the new states which Jinnah declined, deciding to pursue an independent course. Human Development remained high on the agenda till the first Martial Law in October 1958 when it was replaced with ‘ Empire Building ‘.
At the time of Partition, the new nation started from scratch. The North Western part of the massive Indian Railway network was handed over to Pakistan. A handful of officers were tasked to run the operation. Tariff calculations were done mostly by the Hindu officers who kept the calculations secret. A clandestine operation was launched through the night watchmen, who were mostly Pathan Muslims, to get the required information. Then there were very few engine drivers and technicians to keep the trains rolling. It was through the dedication and hard work of the founders that Pakistan Railways (PR) provided inexpensive transportation to the people. PR remained profitable till the decade of the 1970s when it was decided to hand over the freight business to the newly formed entity, the National Logistics Cell (NLC). Since then, PR has been in the red.
Education is a basic building block. The crusade was launched through a single university in Aligarh, now we have hundreds of them spread all over the republic, but unfortunately the combined output does not meet the challenges faced by the nation. A serious review of, and reflection on, the dire situation is called for.
Sir Syed brought spirit to education which has now faded into very lucrative business. Higher seats of learning are in total disarray. A few years back I wanted to apply for the post of Vice Chancellor of Punjab University, my Alma Mater. Before formally applying, I checked on the credentials of the Search Committee. Though the minimum requirement for the post of VC is PhD, yet there was not single person in the selection team with this qualification. Despite protests the same people selected the VCs and Principals of all public sector institutions. Professor Hassan Shah was not shortlisted to head the Government College University where he had taught Physics. He filed a writ petition which was not decided during the term of the selected VC. He applied afresh when the post was re-advertiised, but this time he was selected and headed the institution for a single term before returning back to teaching.
After about a decade, finally a member with a doctoral degree was inducted into the committee. The quality of research has declined over a period of time with lack of academia-industry linkages. Finally the Higher Education Commission (HEC) launched a programme called ORIC (Organization for Research Innovation and Commercialization), but with limited success. Dr Tariq Banuri, Chairman HEC, decided to review the research output of the heavily funded programmes. His term was shortened and he was removed from the position. He has challenged his illegal removal in the Sindh High Court where decision has been reserved.
Merit is an essential ingredient for human fibre strengthening. Its absence promotes mediocrity. The Islamic Republic of Pakistan can only march forward with able ‘Change Managers’ who understand the technological challenges of the 21st century. It was Ghalib, Sir Syed, Iqbal and the Quaid-e-Azam who delivered a homeland for the Muslims of the Indian Subcontinent. Now we need a roadmap for the future which has been missing for the last several decades.
Education is a basic building block. The crusade was launched through a single university in Aligarh, now we have hundreds of them spread all over the republic, but unfortunately the combined output does not meet the challenges faced by the nation. A serious review of, and reflection on, the dire situation is called for.
