Academic, writer Ghulam Ali Allana passes away

Former SU vice-chancellor authored over two dozen books in Sindhi over his lifetime

HYDERABAD:

Eminent educationist and writer Prof Dr Ghulam Ali Allana passed away in a hospital in Karachi late on Saturday night. He was 90.

Dr Allana, who authored more than two dozen books in Sindhi language and was regarded as one of the authorities on linguistics, was laid to rest in a graveyard near New Sabzi Mandi in Hyderabad on Sunday.

Meanwhile, tributes and expressions of grief came pouring in from literary circles, educationists and intellectuals.

"His services for the Sindhi language and literature will always be remembered," said Sindh Culture Minister Syed Sardar Ali Shah in a condolence statement. Meanwhile, Dr Allana's contemporaries Taj Joyo, Naseer Mirza, Marnak Mallah and other writers remembered him as a towering figure in Sindhi literature.

Born in a peasant family on March 15, 1930, in Tarh Khuwaja village in Jati taluka of Sujawal district, Dr Allana obtained his early education in Sujawal and Tando Muhammad Khan districts. He passed his matriculation from NJV School, Karachi, and later passed his undergraduate and postgraduate exams in Sindhi disciplines from the University of Sindh (SU) in 1953 and 1955, respectively.

He obtained another Masters degree from a university in the United Kingdom in 1963, and later emerged as the first PhD-qualified scholar in the Sindhi language from SU in 1971.

He then joined his alma mater - SU - as a lecturer in 1958 and was elevated to the posts of dean of the arts faculty and the vice chancellor in 1981 and 1993, respectively.

He also headed Allama Iqbal Open University from 1983 and 1989, later serving as the chairperson of the Sindhi Language Authority from 1998 to 2001.

His first works, 'Chaur' [Thief] and 'Laash' [Corpse], were published in 1954. His last book, 'Origin of Sindhi Language,' was published in 2007.

Three more works by the late literary figure are in the process of publication.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, November 30^th, 2020.