KARACHI: President Arif Alvi during his visit to the Quaid-i-Azam Academy on Wednesday sought digitalisation of all its rare manuscripts ensuring easy accessibility of these to scholars and researchers in the years to come.

He acknowledged that the centre established with the objective to conduct a holistic research on Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah and his associates and their struggle for a separate homeland for Muslims of the subcontinent was indeed a significant platform for archiving national history with focus on research, publication and projection of cultural, social, political and economic aspects of the history of Pakistan.

The president paid glowing tributes to Prof Sharif Al Mujahid, the first director of the academy followed by other scholars who headed the institution in different years and played important role in turning it into a robust research and publication centre since 1976.

Mohammad Arif, secretary, Quaid-i-Azam Mazar Management Board with additional charge of director, Quaid-i-Azam Academy, gave a briefing to the president.

President Alvi said that current pace of its research work needed to be expedited.

The president was informed that besides the post of QAA director itself (lying vacant since December 2019), no replacement against the positions for two senior research fellows, four research fellows and one librarian could be made for quite some time.

President Arif Alvi was further informed that QAA Karachi had submitted its proposals to the National Heritage and Culture Division, Ministry of Education for establishment of a ‘Heritage Corner’, digitalisation of speeches, statements and interviews of Quaid-i-Azam as the governor general, digitalisation of books and other relevant material besides production of audible version of his speeches.

Since its establishment the academy has published some 80 different publications in English, Urdu and regional languages available for sale on discount.

Published in Dawn, February 18th, 2021