February 2012.indd - World Memon Organization Pakistan Chapter

IMMORTAL PERSONALITIESPaper Mills Limited and KarnaphuliRayon and Chemicals Limited, whichutilized bamboo as raw material for alltheir products. Karnaphuli Jute MillsLtd was established in East Pakistan.With the nationalization fever in theearly seventies, when Mr. Zulfiqar AliBhutto took over the reins of Pakistan,Dawood Petroleum Limited and CentralLife were taken over by the State.Finally, when this industrial empire wasdivided among the brothers, Seth AhmadDawood, Mr. Suleman Dawood, Mr. SiddiqDawood and late Mr. Ali MohammadDawood, the industrial ventures, mentionedearlier, were amicably distributedand are being owned and managed byeach one of the brothers or descendants.ABDUL WAHIDADAMJEEEldest son of Sir Adamjee, Abdul Wahidwas born in 1908. He was educatedin a convent school in Rangoon. Heacquired deep knowledge of businesscorrespondence from his office staff tomake up for the deficiency of highereducation. He learned business managementin a systematic manner from hisfather, who appointed him to various departmentsin his large business empire.He established the largest jute mill inthe world near Dacca, which was visitedby foreign visitors including rulingPresidents and the queen of England. Inthis jute mill, all facilities were providedfor thousands of workers. The assets ofthe jute mill then were estimated to bearound Rs. 110 million. He also startedAdamjee Particles and Boards Mill,Magna Textile Mills, Aroma Tea, etc.The Adamjees became the owners of thebiggest tea gardens in the world. In WestPakistan, in 1952, Adamjee Cotton Millwas established. He also established AdamjeeChemicals and paper Board units.Adamjee Insurance was established in1960. He remained Chairman of theAdamjee Group of Industries. Almostevery regime in Pakistan sought hisco-operation in the field of business andindustrial development. He was offeredministerial post but he always refused.He became the Chairman of PakistanIndustrial Credit Investment Corporation(PICIC) and rendered valuableservices for the industrialization of thecountry. He also established AdamjeeInsurance Company, which is the largestin Pakistan.In recognition of his valuable services,he was awarded “Hilal-e-Pakistan”. He10was Chairman and Director of many publiccompanies including Pakistan RefineryLimited, Zeal Pak Cement and othercompanies. According to a report publishedin those days in New York Times,the industrial assets of Adamjees were tothe tune of 60 million US Dollars, halfof which were invested in East Pakistan.He became the President of All PakistanMemon Educational and Welfare Societywhen its offices were shifted to Karachifrom Calcutta. His services in managingand increasing the assets of the societyare worthy of note. The Federal ‘B’ AreaMemon Colony was built by the Societyunder his leadership. So did the Adamjeefamily build the Adamjee Science Collegewith their generous donations towardsconstruction and maintenance of the college.His family constructed Adamjee HajiDawood Public School in Dacca, also establishedthe Adamjee Foundation, whichis contributing towards general welfareof the masses without any discriminationand without any publicity.ABDUL LATIFEBRAHIM BAWANIAL-Haj Abdul Latif Bawany was one ofthe most popular leaders of the communityHe was known as Kaka Bawany (Uncle Bawany)among Memons and Non-Memonsalike. He is remembered for his dedicatedservices not only for the community butalso for humanity as a whole. His public lifestarted in Burma where he was a leadingmember of Rangoon Memon Jamat andfounder member of the local chamber ofcommerce.Even before the partition of India,he was known for his philanthropy, theorganizations that benefited from his generosityinclude Darul-Anjuman-e-Himayat-e-Islam,Islamic Economic Institute,Aligarh University, Jetpur High Schooland Jetpur Gymkhana. He served JetpurMemon Association for three years. Healso played a great role in the workingof the Memon Conference as well as theMemon Educational & Welfare Societyand contributed much towards the formationof Memon Relief Committee inPakistan.He also played a vital role in the establishmentof the All Pakistan Memon Federationand remained its president for twoyears. His contribution is also countable indeveloping the Memon Colony under theauspices of the Pakistan Memon Educational& Welfare Society at Federal ‘B’ Area,Karachi.ABDUL SATTAR EDHIServices rendered by Abdul Sattar Edhiand his Foundations, which are spread allover Pakistan and are innumerable, areonly too well known. The work, has beendone on an ever-increasing scale for the lastforty years. The services rendered duringthe Afghanistan-USSR war, at the risk tohis person, cannot be ignored. Mr. Edhiwent personally to the war zone to do andsupervise relief work. Similarly, his servicesin Lebanon during Israel occupation of theWest Bank and Gaza strip are also unforgettable.He also went to Palestine to help therefugees. He also arranged to send ten thousandtones of rice, worth Rs. 30 millions,to Eriteria in Ethiopia, Sudan, Somalia andother African countries that were torn anddevastated by famine, hunger, and civil war.To Bangladesh also, he sent volunteers withambulances and an amount of US Dollar10,000/- for relief to the needy people there.In 1986, anti-social elements brought aboutSri Lankan girls to Pakistan by luring them tosecure good and lucrative jobs for them andlater on tried to involve them in 112 immoralprofessions. Maulana Edhi came to their rescue,arranged for their return journey to Sri Lankaand in the meantime kept them in the securityof his institutions. He always came to the rescueof such destitute people including fishermenor other foreigners who either crossed theborder illegally or sea front or who over stayedin Pakistan. Such people are provided shelter,food and care before they are sent back to theirrespective countries. The account of his servicesneeds volumes. However, it must be said tohis credit that a single individual, sleeping on aMEMON ALAM FEBRUARY 2012