Rahmani-30: A school of hope
Kashif-ul-Huda, TwoCircles.net
The Muslims of North India for historical reasons have not had very friendly relations with the local police. I was in Patna visiting Rahmani-30 when Abhayanand, Additional Director General of Police makes a visit in his official car. Rahmani-30 is set up on the pattern of Bihar Super-30 which is a successful experiment to pick and train 30 students from poor economic background and prepare them for entrance exam of famous Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs).
Abhyanand waits while group of twenty odd Muslim students finish their afternoon prayers (Asr). These students have recently appeared for the class tenth exams and selected to Rahmani-30 after an entrance test and an interview. Entrance test was held in Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal – clearly a sign of increasing popularity of the institution that is barely a year old.
A year ago, Maulana Wali Rahmani, Sajjada Nasheen of Khanqah Rahmaniya, Munger and Secretary of All India Muslim Personal Law Board requested Abhayanand to help him set up Rahmani-30. Abhayanand was associated with Super-30 and readily agreed to the idea. The dearth of good quality students led them to start another batch of students who had just finished their tenth. So that they can be given quality education for two years and that way more students can be ready for the tough entrance exams of IITs (IIT-JEE).
I was visiting the institution just three days before the results of IIT-JEE were to be announced. No one could have imagined that all ten students would have qualified for India’s premier engineering institutions. At that time there were about twenty-five students who had arrived there from different districts of Bihar. A few students were from adjoining states of Jharkhand and West Bengal. These are the two years batch of Rahmani-30 that is preparing for IIT-JEE of 2011.
Abhayanand, who goes by only one name, arrived unannounced and a class was organized just after the Asr prayer. He went over some Physics problems for about 45 minutes. Students came out to see him off and he offered some words to inspire his young and eager students. Talks again turned to Physics and he continued the instructions on the back of his official car. This was a rare and a welcome sight to see police officers contributing towards the future of young Muslim students.
ADGP Abhayanand told me that he enjoys teaching and is now associated with five such experiments. Most of the students of these five institutions qualified for IIT. For economically and educationally backward state of Bihar this is very good news. And more than news, it is a hope that now even poor but meritorious students can achieve success with a bit of help. In Bihar, Rahmani-30 has given a new direction to Muslim students anxiously waiting for announcements of entrance exams and results.
Successful students of this year’s exam have already indicated that they will teach their juniors and once finished with their education will work for the benefit of the community. It costs Rs. 80,000 per year for each student’s expenses. Students are given free board, lodge and instructions. All expenses are met by Rahmani Foundation.
Rahmani-30 is a beacon of hope for Bihari Muslims not only because of the help it provides to meritorious students but also because a new generation of Muslims is taking up interest in the community affairs. Though Abhayanand and Wali Rahmani are the public face of Rahmani-30, volunteer team behind this institution consists of young Muslims in their 30s. These have jobs but volunteer their time to make sure that wheel of this coaching keeps turning. They make decisions for the day to day running to organizing exams.
With the successful result of this year’s IIT-JEE, Rahmani-30 and people associated with it have proved that they mean business and that with focused and sustained effort nothing is impossible.
Rahamani-30(Unit of Rahmani Foundation, Munger)
Address: Maulana Azad College of Business Management Campus,
Anisabad, Patna-2
Bihar
Contact: mdwalirahmani@gmail.com
Website: http://twocircles.net/rahmani30.html
Kashif-ul-Huda, TwoCircles.net
Showing posts with label Articles of Kashif-ul-Huda. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Articles of Kashif-ul-Huda. Show all posts
Recalling Jamshedpur riots of 1979
Recalling Jamshedpur riots of 1979
Kashif-ul-Huda
This month in the year 1979, the Hindu-Muslim violence in Jamshedpur took the lives of 108 people. The number of dead could have easily been 114, but as it turned out, my family and I survived the mayhem, to write about it thirty years later.
This unfortunate event occurred when I was at the tender age of five, however the memory of it is etched in my mind and it is one of the clearest early memories that I have. Thirty whole years later, and the images of the violence that occurred are still extremely vivid for me.
Earlier that day on April 11th, the tension in the air was heavy with anticipation of something horrible to come. Somehow my mother was able to sense it and on the morning of Ramnawami she went with her brother and my two little sisters to a nearby Muslim neighbourhood (Golmuri). My father being the idealist was confident that nothing would happen. In case something did happen, he had formed a group of Hindus and Muslims to defend the houses against any mob attacks whether they be Hindus or Muslims.
I and my brother, who was two years older than me, stayed behind though my mother and sisters had left early that morning. As the day went on, the small crowd that was outside on the streets talking amongst themselves began to grow. My brother started getting uncomfortable and by lunch time we convinced our father to take us to Golmuri where my mother had gone earlier. While we were there, eating lunch at Uncle Kamaal's house, we heard shouts that the rioting had started.
We went out quickly to see what was happening and saw smoke rising in the air in the distance. My memories after that are vivid but in pieces. I remember that we were staying in a house full of women and children. I remember not wanting to eat the food as it was only half-cooked. This was my introduction to life as a refugee at a very tender age. I remember going on the roof at night to see what appeared to be the whole city burning up in flames. I also remember someone warning us not to go up there and stand there to avoid the risk of being an easy target for someone to shoot at. I remember that I was not able to see my father much and being very scared the entire time.
Years later I would find out that our house in the Tinplate area of Jamshedpur was a refuge for all the local Muslims after all the Hindus of the joint front slowly left. My father, who was back in Golmuri the next day to drop off some supplies, got stuck there as the curfew was clamped. He couldn't go back and Muslims of Tinplate feeling besieged went to the Tinplate factory to ask for help but instead they were brutally murdered by their own colleagues. My father survived this tragedy by not being able to leave the area.
Our house was looted but we were one of the lucky ones. Others had all their belongings burnt. Months later, we moved to a new area called Agrico colony, across the street from another Muslim neighbourhood of Bhalubasa. These freshly white-washed houses failed to hide the black soot of the fires that was set in them. We didn't know if anyone had died in those houses but signs of loot and plunder were clearly visible.
Over the years, I met many people with their own tales of that horrible time. I will meet a woman with burn marks on her body, a survivor of the ambulance that was doused in flames with the intention to kill all inside. Everyday on our way to school, we will see the charred ambulance parked outside the Police Station.
Of the 108 dead, 79 were Muslims and 25 Hindus. There were many injured and many who lost everything. Jamshedpur is an industrial town dominated by Tata factories where many residents of the town are employed. Most of the city is company property and people of all faiths live together in company quarters.
It is difficult to understand why this tragic event occured in a city so young where and with such a diverse population. Most of the residents are from different parts of undivided Bihar or other parts of India, and all were blue-collar workers trying to make a decent and honest living. Muslims werent the only ones who lost their lives, Hindus did too, so who really benefitted from this tragedy?
The person who single handedly took the entire city hostage that day in Jamshedpur, thirty years ago, was local legislator, Dinanath Pandey. Pandey, the person responsible for the riots, was awarded a seat in the Bihar assembly, twice after the incident. As BJP candidate he won elections as late as 1990. He made his seat a safe BJP seat. In the last two assembly elections, BJP won from there with over 50% of the total votes polled.
India goes to the polls to elect its representatives and decides who will run the country for the next five years. When we complain that the government doesn't do anything for us, or when we complain of goondas and criminals in politics, remember that we as voters put them there in the first place. People like Dinanath Pandey, with blood on their hands, have no place in any legislative body. Congress has done well by taking away party tickets from Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler, but it is the same party that ruled Andhra Pradesh when the Muslim youth of Hyderabad were illegally detained and tortured by the state police. They will not take any action until the public shows them how upset they are.
If the parties fail to take any action and continue to field these criminals, we the people have take the stand and refuse to vote in those with hate-filled agendas or a criminal history.
Kashif-ul-Huda
[The author is the editor of news website www.TwoCircles.net and can be reached at kashif@urdustan.com]
Kashif-ul-Huda
This month in the year 1979, the Hindu-Muslim violence in Jamshedpur took the lives of 108 people. The number of dead could have easily been 114, but as it turned out, my family and I survived the mayhem, to write about it thirty years later.
This unfortunate event occurred when I was at the tender age of five, however the memory of it is etched in my mind and it is one of the clearest early memories that I have. Thirty whole years later, and the images of the violence that occurred are still extremely vivid for me.
Earlier that day on April 11th, the tension in the air was heavy with anticipation of something horrible to come. Somehow my mother was able to sense it and on the morning of Ramnawami she went with her brother and my two little sisters to a nearby Muslim neighbourhood (Golmuri). My father being the idealist was confident that nothing would happen. In case something did happen, he had formed a group of Hindus and Muslims to defend the houses against any mob attacks whether they be Hindus or Muslims.
I and my brother, who was two years older than me, stayed behind though my mother and sisters had left early that morning. As the day went on, the small crowd that was outside on the streets talking amongst themselves began to grow. My brother started getting uncomfortable and by lunch time we convinced our father to take us to Golmuri where my mother had gone earlier. While we were there, eating lunch at Uncle Kamaal's house, we heard shouts that the rioting had started.
We went out quickly to see what was happening and saw smoke rising in the air in the distance. My memories after that are vivid but in pieces. I remember that we were staying in a house full of women and children. I remember not wanting to eat the food as it was only half-cooked. This was my introduction to life as a refugee at a very tender age. I remember going on the roof at night to see what appeared to be the whole city burning up in flames. I also remember someone warning us not to go up there and stand there to avoid the risk of being an easy target for someone to shoot at. I remember that I was not able to see my father much and being very scared the entire time.
Years later I would find out that our house in the Tinplate area of Jamshedpur was a refuge for all the local Muslims after all the Hindus of the joint front slowly left. My father, who was back in Golmuri the next day to drop off some supplies, got stuck there as the curfew was clamped. He couldn't go back and Muslims of Tinplate feeling besieged went to the Tinplate factory to ask for help but instead they were brutally murdered by their own colleagues. My father survived this tragedy by not being able to leave the area.
Our house was looted but we were one of the lucky ones. Others had all their belongings burnt. Months later, we moved to a new area called Agrico colony, across the street from another Muslim neighbourhood of Bhalubasa. These freshly white-washed houses failed to hide the black soot of the fires that was set in them. We didn't know if anyone had died in those houses but signs of loot and plunder were clearly visible.
Over the years, I met many people with their own tales of that horrible time. I will meet a woman with burn marks on her body, a survivor of the ambulance that was doused in flames with the intention to kill all inside. Everyday on our way to school, we will see the charred ambulance parked outside the Police Station.
Of the 108 dead, 79 were Muslims and 25 Hindus. There were many injured and many who lost everything. Jamshedpur is an industrial town dominated by Tata factories where many residents of the town are employed. Most of the city is company property and people of all faiths live together in company quarters.
It is difficult to understand why this tragic event occured in a city so young where and with such a diverse population. Most of the residents are from different parts of undivided Bihar or other parts of India, and all were blue-collar workers trying to make a decent and honest living. Muslims werent the only ones who lost their lives, Hindus did too, so who really benefitted from this tragedy?
The person who single handedly took the entire city hostage that day in Jamshedpur, thirty years ago, was local legislator, Dinanath Pandey. Pandey, the person responsible for the riots, was awarded a seat in the Bihar assembly, twice after the incident. As BJP candidate he won elections as late as 1990. He made his seat a safe BJP seat. In the last two assembly elections, BJP won from there with over 50% of the total votes polled.
India goes to the polls to elect its representatives and decides who will run the country for the next five years. When we complain that the government doesn't do anything for us, or when we complain of goondas and criminals in politics, remember that we as voters put them there in the first place. People like Dinanath Pandey, with blood on their hands, have no place in any legislative body. Congress has done well by taking away party tickets from Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler, but it is the same party that ruled Andhra Pradesh when the Muslim youth of Hyderabad were illegally detained and tortured by the state police. They will not take any action until the public shows them how upset they are.
If the parties fail to take any action and continue to field these criminals, we the people have take the stand and refuse to vote in those with hate-filled agendas or a criminal history.
Kashif-ul-Huda
[The author is the editor of news website www.TwoCircles.net and can be reached at kashif@urdustan.com]
Psychological impact of violence on Kashmiris in India
Psychological impact of violence on Kashmiris in India Kashif-ul-Huda
Twenty years of violence between Indian Army and Kashmiri militants has resulted in at least 20,000 deaths and 4,000 displaced, according to the government figures. But the toll is even greater in terms of psychological damage to the population. A recent study that looked at the psychological health found that a third of the study participants had contemplated suicide, a sign of extreme psychological distress.
The study published in the latest issue of peer reviewed journal "Conflict and Health" was conducted by organization Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF)'s, Simon Fraser University of Canada, and Utrecht University of Netherlands.
Study interviewed 510 Kashmiris living in Indian Kashmir. It found over one-third of respondents have symptoms of psychological distress and women show significantly higher level of distress. Feeling of insecurity was a major reason for the higher levels of psychological distress.
Survey was conducted in 2005 and includes 270 males and 240 females. The most striking finding of the study is that one-third of those surveyed had thought about ending their life in the past 30 days of the survey. The survey found that there was a difference in the reasons of psychological distress between males and females. Males who had self-experienced i.e. if they had been arrested, tortured, or abused show higher level of distress. Kashimiri women, on the other hand displayed psychological problem by just witnessing the events.
In the scientific paper the authors explain that "for males, violation of modesty, forced displacement, and disability were all associated with a significantly increased likelihood (three times the odds) of suffering from psychological distress. For women, the witnessing of people being killed or tortured or dependency on outside assistance doubled the odds of suffering psychological distress."
The data tabulated in the paper is very shocking when you consider that 63% of the respondents have seen wounded people. 40% have witnessed people being killed, 67% have seen other being tortured and 13% have witnessed rape.
44% of the respondents experienced being abused and 11% claimed that their modesty was violated.
The level of psychological problem was found to be much higher than similar studies done elsewhere in India and even when the cutoff score was set to a conservative standard. When the cutoff score was lowered to the Indian study the psychological distress was found to be over 71%.
Though one-third reported having suicidal thoughts, it does not always result in a suicide attempt. But according to one estimate about 60,000 Kashmiris did commit suicide, last year.
Withdrawing themselves or isolating themselves was the most preferred way of coping with the psychological problem. About half of them showed aggressive behavior. Many turned to religion as a source of support and finding peace.
Even though Kashmir lacks proper mental health care facility, still, over 60% of the respondents visited the health clinic to seek help. Some visited more than once in the 30 days immediately before the study interview, and women found to be visiting health facilities more than men.
The impact of violence, threat, and alertness has adversely affected armed forces too. Elevated level of psychological problem is seen among Indian Army personnel deployed in Kashmir. Past January, Indian Army hired 400 psychiatrists to help control the high numbers of suicides in its ranks.
Government should spend more money in improving mental health care facilities for the people and the soldiers. Those fighting this battle for Kashmir should stop and see what this battle for land is doing to the people living on this land.
Kashif-ul-Huda
(The author is the Editor of news website: www.TwoCircles.net)
Published in
Asian Tribune, Bangkok, Thailand
Ghana News, Accra, Ghana
The Guatemala Times, Guatemala
Citizen News Service (CNS)
Bihar Times, Patna, Bihar
Zim News, Harare, Zimbabwe
Defence - Pakistan
My News, Delhi
News from Bangladesh, Dhaka, Bangladesh
The Bangladesh Today, Dhaka, Bangladesh
The New Nation, Dhaka, Bangladesh
News Blaze, USA
Pakistan Post, Karachi, Pakistan
Bihar and Jharkhand News Service (BJNS)
Op-Ed News (OEN)
News Track India, Delhi
Media for Freedom, Kathmandu, Nepal
Howrah News Service (HNS), West Bengal
Twenty years of violence between Indian Army and Kashmiri militants has resulted in at least 20,000 deaths and 4,000 displaced, according to the government figures. But the toll is even greater in terms of psychological damage to the population. A recent study that looked at the psychological health found that a third of the study participants had contemplated suicide, a sign of extreme psychological distress.
The study published in the latest issue of peer reviewed journal "Conflict and Health" was conducted by organization Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF)'s, Simon Fraser University of Canada, and Utrecht University of Netherlands.
Study interviewed 510 Kashmiris living in Indian Kashmir. It found over one-third of respondents have symptoms of psychological distress and women show significantly higher level of distress. Feeling of insecurity was a major reason for the higher levels of psychological distress.
Survey was conducted in 2005 and includes 270 males and 240 females. The most striking finding of the study is that one-third of those surveyed had thought about ending their life in the past 30 days of the survey. The survey found that there was a difference in the reasons of psychological distress between males and females. Males who had self-experienced i.e. if they had been arrested, tortured, or abused show higher level of distress. Kashimiri women, on the other hand displayed psychological problem by just witnessing the events.
In the scientific paper the authors explain that "for males, violation of modesty, forced displacement, and disability were all associated with a significantly increased likelihood (three times the odds) of suffering from psychological distress. For women, the witnessing of people being killed or tortured or dependency on outside assistance doubled the odds of suffering psychological distress."
The data tabulated in the paper is very shocking when you consider that 63% of the respondents have seen wounded people. 40% have witnessed people being killed, 67% have seen other being tortured and 13% have witnessed rape.
44% of the respondents experienced being abused and 11% claimed that their modesty was violated.
The level of psychological problem was found to be much higher than similar studies done elsewhere in India and even when the cutoff score was set to a conservative standard. When the cutoff score was lowered to the Indian study the psychological distress was found to be over 71%.
Though one-third reported having suicidal thoughts, it does not always result in a suicide attempt. But according to one estimate about 60,000 Kashmiris did commit suicide, last year.
Withdrawing themselves or isolating themselves was the most preferred way of coping with the psychological problem. About half of them showed aggressive behavior. Many turned to religion as a source of support and finding peace.
Even though Kashmir lacks proper mental health care facility, still, over 60% of the respondents visited the health clinic to seek help. Some visited more than once in the 30 days immediately before the study interview, and women found to be visiting health facilities more than men.
The impact of violence, threat, and alertness has adversely affected armed forces too. Elevated level of psychological problem is seen among Indian Army personnel deployed in Kashmir. Past January, Indian Army hired 400 psychiatrists to help control the high numbers of suicides in its ranks.
Government should spend more money in improving mental health care facilities for the people and the soldiers. Those fighting this battle for Kashmir should stop and see what this battle for land is doing to the people living on this land.
Kashif-ul-Huda
(The author is the Editor of news website: www.TwoCircles.net)
Published in
Asian Tribune, Bangkok, Thailand
Ghana News, Accra, Ghana
The Guatemala Times, Guatemala
Citizen News Service (CNS)
Bihar Times, Patna, Bihar
Zim News, Harare, Zimbabwe
Defence - Pakistan
My News, Delhi
News from Bangladesh, Dhaka, Bangladesh
The Bangladesh Today, Dhaka, Bangladesh
The New Nation, Dhaka, Bangladesh
News Blaze, USA
Pakistan Post, Karachi, Pakistan
Bihar and Jharkhand News Service (BJNS)
Op-Ed News (OEN)
News Track India, Delhi
Media for Freedom, Kathmandu, Nepal
Howrah News Service (HNS), West Bengal
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