KARACHI, May 29: The 125th meeting of Bazm-i-Scienci Adab was held at the Salimuzzaman Siddiqui Science Centre on Saturday. Chaired by Dr Mohammad Ali Siddiqui, the proceedings were conducted by Prof Najmul Huda, former professor at the geography department of Karachi University. Azmat Ali Khan, known as a pioneer in promoting scientific journalism, also addressed and explained the role of a journalist in the promotion of science through literature. Actually, they were not apart, as Prof Huda had explained in his discourse. All the knowledge about human society at the highest level was woven together as one.
The proceedings started with an essay presented by Dr Waris Kudwai, cardiologist at a medical university, about his most memorable experience in his professional life. He described the story of a patient, an aged person basically a victim of negligence by his own sons and certainly not a heart patient as earlier believed.
The learned doctor advised medical practitioners to first study the mental and psychological conditions of a patient before deciding the case. A human change in family relationship was needed, he observed.
Saher Mansoor, an architect and an interior decorator, read out an article on Karachi, its history spread over 5,000 years. She, however, dilated upon the city’s modern history when it was renamed Kolachi in 1729 and a fort was built in 1728. The English men decided to build their office at the place, now known as Saddar, in 1839. After describing the city’s development over the years, she advised citizens to make the city a haven of peace and prosperity.
Ansar Aalam recited her poem ‘Elaj bil gheza’ (treatment through diet) a very purposeful poem written with poetic appeal.
Two papers were also read — one by Shahab Zafer and the other by Sohel Yusuf, a journalist writing for a scientific journal. The scientists and the journalist should come closer since they both want to carry scientific knowledge to the common people, Mr Shahab advised. But he felt that in journalists there was a tendency to sensationalize facts and turn those into a fiction while the scientists were shying away from journalists for their own reasons. The writer felt that the former needed good public relationship to remove the hesitation found between them.
Sohel Yusuf described as to how the journalist without basic knowledge of physical science committed blunders in dealing with spurious material.
Dr Mohammad Ali Siddiqui felt that after the ousting of Persian from the syllabus and poor teaching in Arabic, Urdu was deprived of its basic support languages. Urdu’s decline in education sector was quite imminent. The poverty of language and shortage of vocabulary was felt in the learning of literature and social sciences. It hampered the teaching of physical science as well making the translation of foreign material into Urdu much difficult. Dr Siddiqui advised that social sciences in our educational system must be given its due status, without which our youth would remain half literate.—HA
