Stepping into the real world: KU honours two pioneer doctors

Raana Khan is Pakistan’s first woman to do a PhD in law.

KARACHI:

Dr Basit Ansari and Dr Raana Khan’s seven years of hard work finally paid off on Wednesday when they were recognised by the University of Karachi (KU) for being pioneers.

At the university’s 23rd convocation, the two doctors were given degrees for being the first PhDs of their respective departments. Dr Ansari, who is currently the head of department of health and physical education at KU, is the first person to have completed his research since the department was established in 1996.

Hoping to decrease the mortality rate among patients who go through heart transplantation, Dr Ansari’s research focuses on the effects of exercise therapy on cardiac rehabilitation. “Heart patients will get rid of medicine to a large extent and they would be able to live a normal life,” he said.

The country’s female lawyer to complete a PhD in law, Dr Khan, is currently a lawyer at the Supreme Court. She said that being a prosecutor at the district and high courts for over 10 years she felt that the absence of forensic laboratories lead a case to a dead end. “There are numerous problems in the trials, especially in murder trials,” she said. “I have tried my best to solve them through my research and findings.”

Dr Khan’s research focuses the importance of forensic investigation in trials of murders caused by firearm injuries. She is aiming to publish a book on this next month.

Apart from the two pioneers, as many as 771 students of 75 departments were awarded academic degrees at KU’s convocation on Wednesday. This included 312 students of MPhil, MS and PhD.

The excitement was visible on the faces of the graduating students. At least 155 students were awarded gold medals.

Vice chancellor Prof. Dr Muhammad Qaiser said that KU has introduced a number of academic disciplines, as well as, first degrees in many subjects. He advised the students to “keep moving forward”.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 31^st, 2013.