Patna: The scene was very impressive but rare. Dozens of young Muslim girl students of a private school, in a naqab-like school uniform, were curiously looking at antiques at Patna Museum on Friday. Keeping Islamic dress rule close to their chest, they had ventured out on an educational tour to see the outer world – to have a close encounter with history and present.
“We are here to see old historic items, and learn lessons,” said Darakhshan Javed, VIIIth class student of Hazrat Ali Academy, a prominent Muslim private school in Muzaffarpur.
My next question obviously was about her naqab. Don’t you feel odd or face any difficulty when you come out in naqab? “Not at all. I don’t feel odd. This is our tehzeeb (culture) and a best means to keep ourselves from the evils of the society,” said a confident Darakhshan whose ambition is to become an engineer.
Marwa Iba of Class IX sounded equally confident about her dress. “I feel good when I come out in naqab. I feel safe from bad eyes. As most of women today do not wear naqab, so people think it is bad. In fact, it’s good,” said Iba. She wants to become a doctor.
About 30 students of Classes VIII, IX and X had come along with their teachers in the school bus. Besides Patna Museum, they visited Indira Gandhi Planetarium (popularly known as Tara Mandal) and Sanjay Gandhi Botanical and Zoological Garden (Zoo).
Highlighting the purpose of the visit, their principal Mr. Ehraz Ahmed said: “Quran asks us to move on earth and learn lessons from the fate of past nations and history. It is in our curriculum to take out students on educational tour of historic places so that our children could see the wider world.”
Meraj Ahmed, 24, living in Betiah, a backward district in Bihar, has won several awards for his innovations – the recent one from President of India. Nowadays he is working on a rail engine like that of bullet train. But his bullet train engine will run on the normal railway track. Talking to Mudassir Rizwan of TwoCircles.net Meraj gives detail about his innovations, his life and problems, and his future plans.
Mr Meraj, please tell us about you and your background.
I am Meraj Ahmad. I am from a lower class family in Betiah district in West Champaran. We are 3 brothers and a youngest sister. My father is in Revenue department where he works as a clerk. Economic problems have always been with my family. I have done I.Sc. (Mathematics) by doing tuition. I started doing innovation from class VII. I have done so many innovations, some very new. I want to do something big in future. I want to be a big scientist and serve the society and the country.
What is your first innovation?
Firstly I have created a “Picture tube charger”. When TV becomes old then its picture is not shown clearly. With my charger the picture tube can be charged again. After that we will get new quality picture tube that can run up to 4 years. It costs only Rs 150. You can charge your home battery of 12 volts also with this charger.
I heard that you got award for this innovation.
Yes, President of India Pratibha Devisingh Patil gave me a prestigious national award for the grassroot innovation.
Tell me about your other innovations that you have done.
I have done 20 inventions. They include “Rat trapping machine” and “Magnetic weighing balance”. This magnetic weighing balance ensures exact weight and there is no need of mass or weight and it’s not costly either. Secondly, I made a new type of “Cycle”. Without pedalling it will run up to 10 minutes. It has some other features also. If there is crowd on your way, you can pull brake and after crossing the crowd when you leave clutch the cycle will start running automatically.
Have you got any support from govt.?
No, I did not get any support from the government. Some media persons came here and told me that they will try to provide me some help, they also told me to do marketing of what I innovate, but I don’t want how to do marketing and I don’t want to stop at the President award. I want to become a scientist. If anybody wants to help me then I want to continue my education. I want to do B.Tech. from a good institution.
On which projects are you working nowadays?
Nowadays I am working on 2-3 things. One is train. I am working on a fast train engine that will take only half the time of a fast train that takes 16-17 hours to cover 2000 kmss. Among fast trains there is train called bullet train. For bullet train, there is a special track, special engine and special configuration. But I am making a structure of an engine that will run on the same track but will cover 16-17 hours journey in only 8-9 hours.
Are you getting any support for your train project?
Till now I am not getting any support but one of my relatives who is a railway staff is giving me some monetary support. He encourages me to work on the project.
In future what do you want to do?
I want to do B.Tech. from a good university and also want to work on new innovations. If I am given chance I want to put before people what is in my mind.
Meraj's first innovation
Your message to Muslim youngsters and youth?
At this program of Rahmani 30, their successful candidates of IIT-JEE said that they had support of their teachers and parents but I want to say that I have got President Award without any support. I did not take any tuition as I could not afford. What I am today is the result of my own hard work. I want to tell the youngsters that if they are getting any economic or physical or any problem they should fact it. They will get success one day and everyone will know them.
Patna: He comes from a humble family and studies about 16-18 hours a day. The result must not be unexpected. Hammad Ali of Rajender High School in Siwan has got sixth position in Bihar board examination 2010 for class X. With 90.4% marks, he has created history for the Muslim community in the state.
Ali, in fact, is among 11 students in entire state who have got 90% or above marks this year, first time in the history of Bihar School Examination Board. And he is only Muslim among them. The highest marks getter among the Muslim students last year was Muhammad Shah Jahan. He had got rank 9 with 86.6% marks. The results for Bihar board examination 2010 were declared on May 22.
“I feel good,” says Ali expressing his feeling on this achievement. Eldest son of a high school teacher and part time homeopathy doctor, Ali (14.5 years old) gives credit for his success to his father and homemaker mother.
“I did hard work. I study about 16-18 hours a day,” says Hammad Ali.
About his ambition, he tells TCN: “I want to crack IIT-JEE and become an engineer.”
Out of total marks of 500, Ali has got 452: Urdu (90) Hindi (87) Maths (86), Natural Science (93), Social Science (96) and English (60).
Ali’s father Khursheed Anwar spends most of what he earns on the education of his four children. He has high dreams about them. Ali’s elder sister is doing IA from Islamia College, Siwan. His two younger brothers are also studying in schools.
Topper in Bihar board exam this year is Anupam Neha (92.8%) of SS Girls High School, Biharsharif. In top five there are four girls and one boy.
