Kazi Zulkader Siddiqui

Kazi Zulkader Siddiqui
Born 21 June 1952
Hyderabad
Citizenship Pakistani
Occupation Educator, businessman
Spouse(s) Ayesha

Kazi Zulkader Siddiqui (Urdu: قاضی ذوالقدر صدیقی‎) (born 21 June 1952) is Pakistani businessman, academician and social worker. His contributions towards social sector development, academics and business leadership have been recognised in Pakistan and other countries. He has been successful in establishing businesses in different areas of technology, and is recognised as a leading entrepreneur in the field of alternate energy technologies in Pakistan and the region. His lectures and writings on various areas of human, social and professional responsibility and Muslim thought have had a profound impact on his audiences. He is often in demand as a speaker at different forums in Pakistan.

Zulkader is the founder and chief executive officer of the Techcorp Group of Companies[1] and Emerging Energy Systems[2] which are spread out over Pakistan, Bangladesh, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Afghanistan and China. The group is currently involved in alternate energy solutions, engineering services and construction business aimed primarily at the telecom sector, structures, and institutional corporate buildings. In addition, the group is involved in the security services business.[3]

Zulkader is a senior executive in corporate management, international business, marketing management, industrial management, and business development in the fields of alternate energy, information technology/services, technology systems and services, and industrial and construction products and systems, with an impressive track record during a thirty-year career in Saudi Arabia, USA, Canada and Pakistan. He has successfully led several major corporations and businesses in Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Bangladesh in various areas of technology including alternate energy, telecommunications, information services, chemical industry, electrical distribution and civil construction.

In addition to his business accomplishments, he has been deeply involved in academic activities, primarily with universities in Pakistan. He has also demonstrated his leadership in social sector development and relief activities through Non-governmental organisations. (NGO) He is the founder chairman of the Petarian Foundation,[4] and a director of the Metupak Foundation. Both of these organisations are involved in improving the standard of education in Pakistan.[5]

Zulkader is a pioneer in the field of wind energy, solar energy, bio-fuels and waste to energy in Pakistan, which are expected to provide a clean source of energy in line with international efforts to reduce pollution and global warming. He has been instrumental in introducing small wind turbines and solar systems on a large scale in an organised manner in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.

Ancestry

Kazi Zulkader traces his lineage to the first Caliph Abu Bakr. He is also a direct descendant of the famous Sufi Baha-ud-din Zakariya Multani (1160–1267). One of Baha-ud-din Zakariya's great-grandsons – Shaykh Nizamuddin – moved to the Deccan in South India during the reign of Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq around the year 1343. Subsequently, this branch of the family settled down in Hyderabad for over six centuries. Kazi Zulkader's ancestors were given the title of "Kazi", i.e. judge and administrators of the various towns that were located west of the city of Hyderabad – like Qandahar, Udgir, Parbhani, etc.

His grandmother's great grand father was the great Sufi Sayyid Sahib Husayni, who is buried at Tekmal.

His grandfather Kazi Zainul Abedin who was the last of the Kazis of Udgir was one of the earliest officers of the Hyderabad Civil Service and eventually rose up to the rank of a Secretary in the government of the Nizam of Hyderabad State. His father Kazi Abdur Rasheed also followed in the footsteps and joined the Hyderabad Civil Service in 1946, two years before the fall of Hyderabad State to Indian armed forces.

A year after the creation of Pakistan, his grandfather Kazi Zainul Abedin moved to Pakistan and settled down in Mirpurkhas, Sindh in 1948. Kazi Zainul Abedin spent the rest of his years at Mirpurkhas in developing agricultural farms and social work in that area. He died in 1962 and is buried on his farms there.

Education and early life

Zulkader is a graduate in Chemical Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, Mass, USA.[6] He pursued his graduate studies in at the Institute of Islamic Studies, McGill University, Montreal Canada. Prior to his studies at MIT, he also studied at the Middle East Technical University (METU), Ankara, Turkey for 3 semesters.[7]

He spent his high school years at Cadet College Petaro,[8] one of the premier institutions in Pakistan, from where he completed his Matriculation and Intermediate (FSc). Cadet College Petaro is located around 160 km from Karachi, the main port city of Pakistan. This college has produced many prominent Pakistanis who have excelled in every field in Pakistan.

In 1969, upon completion of his High School Certificate from Petaro, Zulkader moved to Ankara, Turkey and was admitted to the Chemical Engineering program at the Middle East Technical University in the Fall of that year with a full merit scholarship from CENTO. Those were tumultuous years, and the university was going through a difficult period. With political upheavals influenced by Leftist and communist philosophies, Middle East Technical University was also hit badly. Boycott of classes and other Leftist student activities disrupted studies, leading to closure of the university for 6 months from March – August 1971 after a battle on campus between the Leftist students and the Turkish armed forces.

Dissatisfied with the loss of academic progress and the on-campus politics, Zulkader then chose to make a move. He applied for transfer to MIT, USA. He was granted admission as a transfer student in the Second year with scholarship and financial assistance from the university. He moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts in September 1971. Subsequently, he graduated from MIT from the Department of Chemical Engineering in 1974.

Zulkader has a flair for languages as well. While he is proficient and fluent in English and Urdu (his native language), and a good command off Arabic and Turkish. He is able to pick up and communicate very easily in a number of other regional languages and dialects.

Upon return to Pakistan from Canada, Zulkader married Ayesha on 7 February 1980. They have four children – Amina, Kazi Muhammad, Khadija and Sarah.

Academic experience

For the past several years, Zulkader has also been a professor of Ethics, History and Religion at various universities in Pakistan. Currently, he is Professor of Civilization Studies and Medical Ethics at the Shifa College of Medicine (Bahria University) where he heads the "Physician and Society" program. This is a unique program that examines philosophical and medical ethics issues in a Muslim and Pakistani environment.

Previously, he has taught courses on History and Modern Muslim thought at the Hamdard University, Islamabad Campus. He was also the Founder Head of the Department of Islamic Studies at the Women's Institute of Science and Humanities[9] (Riphah International University, Islamabad), where he is still listed as a visiting Professor.

He has lectured extensively on various subjects related to civilizational studies, ethics, religion and technology in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Canada and Sri Lanka.[10][11]

He is also a member of the Editorial Committee of the well respected journal "Islamic Studies"[12] published by the Islamic Research Institute of the International Islamic University Islamabad.[13]

Other activities

Since his return to Pakistan in 1995, Zulkader has been involved in a number of activities and has contributed to support social sector and educational programs. He has been deeply involved in philanthropic organisations.

Due to his commitments, he was chosen to sit on the Board of Governors / Management Board of the following academic institutions:

In addition, he is an honorary adviser on technology, and an ex-officio member of the Board of Research at the Islamic Research Institute of the International Islamic University Islamabad, Pakistan.

He has worked in different capacities with non-governmental organisations as well. Since its inception in 2003, he has been the chairman[15] of the Petarian Foundation, which offers scholarships to needy and meritorious students at Cadet College Petaro, and runs their teacher training programs. The devastating earthquake[16] in the northern areas of Pakistan on 8 October 2005 brought the Petarian Foundation to offer relief programs, medical relief programs and reconstruction and rehabilitation programs.[17] To date, the Petarian Foundation has disbursed nearly US$2.5 million worth of relief and reconstruction services in Bagh, AJK in cash and kind. The Foundation also established relief camp for the Internally Displaced Persons from Swat at Peshawar in 2009, and for the affected population of the 2010 Floods in Pakistan. It set up relief camp at Jhimpir, Sindh, and constructed homes for people at Jhimpir, Dadu, and Peshawar District.

Zulkader is also an education counselor for new undergraduate applicants to Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge MA, USA. He has also been a Member of the Nomination Committee for selection of candidates from Pakistan for the Eisenhower Foundation Fellowships, Washington, DC.

Publications

Zulkader has authored a number of articles on history, religion, ethics and technology published in the Journal of Pakistan Historical Society, Islamic Studies, Al-Hawliyah, Arc, and other journals. He was the editor of a number of journals during his student days at MIT and McGill University. Some of his books are expected to be published during the current year.

Some of his articles that have been published are as follows:

Professional affiliations

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Techcorp Group of Companies"
  2. ↑ Emerging Energy Systems
  3. ↑ Pakistan Board of Investment site http://www.pakboi.gov.pk/pak/adsummery.asp?PageNo=361&SortOptions=0 for listing of Premier Security Services (Pvt) Ltd.
  4. ↑ "Petarian Foundation". Petarian Foundation. 20 March 2002. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  5. ↑ Kazi Zulkader Siddiqui discusses issues related to higher education in Pakistan pepfoundation.org
  6. ↑ See the Wikipedia article on "List of Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni"
  7. ↑ list of Pakistanis who studied at METU at http://home.ica.net/~rabbani/list/list_01.htm
  8. ↑ http://www.petaro.org and check under "Search for Petarian" for details
  9. ↑ A list of faculty of WISH is given on their website at http://www.wish.edu.pk/F_Visiting.htm
  10. ↑ "Capacity Building of RIU's Students Continues" on page 4
  11. ↑ international lecture delivered at Sri Lanka for the Eisenhower Foundation Fellowships program
  12. ↑ Islamic Studies
  13. ↑ Editorial Committee
  14. ↑ A list of the Management Board of WISH is given at http://www.wish.edu.pk/MB.htm
  15. ↑ "Petarian Foundation". Petarian Foundation. 20 March 2002. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  16. ↑ http://www.hawausa.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=8&Itemid=2 and also at http://www.pakistan-earthquake.org
  17. ↑ A detailed account of Zulkader's leadership role during the earthquake relief can be found in the chapter "The Pious Patriot" in the book "Portraits of grief, and of hope" by Nizamuddin Siddiqui, Karachi, 2006
  18. ↑ for review citation of the book
  19. ↑ This article is listed at http://www.ttk.gov.tr/data/2001/is40-1.htm and http://www.ttk.org.tr/index.php?Page=SureliYayinlar&No=2606
  20. ↑ For full text of article, http://www.contactpakistan.com/news/news143.htm
  21. ↑ http://www.cappak.org/pages/members.php?start=90

External links

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