Former KU VC Dr Tirmizi passes away
In recognition of his services to education, he was awarded the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz
Dr Masoom Ali Tirmizi
KARACHI:
Former vice-chancellor of the University of Karachi (KU) Dr Masoom Ali Tirmizi passed away after prolonged illness, in Karachi on Wednesday morning.
Born in 1923, in Budaun, India, Dr Tirmizi studied at the Aligarh Muslim University and acquired a degree in Physics from the institution. He moved to Karachi after the partition and joined KU in 1952. He was awarded a doctorate degree from Oxford University in 1957.
Before being appointed as the vice-chancellor of KU, Dr Tirmizi also served as the chairman of the Department of Physics from 1968 to 1972 and as the dean of the Faculty of Science from 1976 to 1979. In recognition of his services to the education in Pakistan, he was awarded the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz by the government of Pakistan. He was married to renowned Urdu writer, Dr Nasima Tirmizi, who wrote under the pen name of Nasima Binte Siraj.
Dr Tirmizi was entrusted with the leadership of KU at a critical time when Dr Ehsan Rasheed had left the office of vice-chancellor in an unceremonious way. During his tenure, in 1981, the first terrorist attack took place at KU, which rocked the entire nation. A few months later, during the student union elections, another unprecedented incident took place when the vice-chancellor and a number of teachers and students were taken as hostages by an armed group of criminals. The armed men used hostages as human shield to escape when military raided the university. Dr Tirmizi led the university in that period of turmoil and violence with grace and determination.
After his tenure as the vice-chancellor ended, he continued to serve as a professor at KU till 1986 and also taught at the Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology for a short period.
Dr Tirmizi also authored a couple of books on Physics and wrote numerous research papers which were published in national and international research journals. He was among the pioneers of research and teaching in the field of Physics, in Pakistan, and his research was particularly focused on Cryogenics and Physical Oceanography.
His funeral prayers will be offered today, June 13, 2019, at Jama Masjid Ibrahim, KU, at 1:30pm. He will be laid to rest in the university's graveyard. The KU Vice-Chancellor Dr Khalid Mahmood Iraqi has extended condolence on Dr Tirmizi's demise.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 13th, 2019.
Former vice-chancellor of the University of Karachi (KU) Dr Masoom Ali Tirmizi passed away after prolonged illness, in Karachi on Wednesday morning.
Born in 1923, in Budaun, India, Dr Tirmizi studied at the Aligarh Muslim University and acquired a degree in Physics from the institution. He moved to Karachi after the partition and joined KU in 1952. He was awarded a doctorate degree from Oxford University in 1957.
Before being appointed as the vice-chancellor of KU, Dr Tirmizi also served as the chairman of the Department of Physics from 1968 to 1972 and as the dean of the Faculty of Science from 1976 to 1979. In recognition of his services to the education in Pakistan, he was awarded the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz by the government of Pakistan. He was married to renowned Urdu writer, Dr Nasima Tirmizi, who wrote under the pen name of Nasima Binte Siraj.
Dr Tirmizi was entrusted with the leadership of KU at a critical time when Dr Ehsan Rasheed had left the office of vice-chancellor in an unceremonious way. During his tenure, in 1981, the first terrorist attack took place at KU, which rocked the entire nation. A few months later, during the student union elections, another unprecedented incident took place when the vice-chancellor and a number of teachers and students were taken as hostages by an armed group of criminals. The armed men used hostages as human shield to escape when military raided the university. Dr Tirmizi led the university in that period of turmoil and violence with grace and determination.
After his tenure as the vice-chancellor ended, he continued to serve as a professor at KU till 1986 and also taught at the Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology for a short period.
Dr Tirmizi also authored a couple of books on Physics and wrote numerous research papers which were published in national and international research journals. He was among the pioneers of research and teaching in the field of Physics, in Pakistan, and his research was particularly focused on Cryogenics and Physical Oceanography.
His funeral prayers will be offered today, June 13, 2019, at Jama Masjid Ibrahim, KU, at 1:30pm. He will be laid to rest in the university's graveyard. The KU Vice-Chancellor Dr Khalid Mahmood Iraqi has extended condolence on Dr Tirmizi's demise.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 13th, 2019.