KARACHI: The launch of Syed Babar Ali, A Centennial Tribute by Muhammad Azfar Ahsan turned into a rich conversation about the great entrepreneur, industrialist, educationist, environmentalist and philanthropist who, at 100, is a living legend and has lived through every chapter of our history while contributing to the country’s progress in every way possible.

The event was organised by the Corporate Pakistan Group Adabi Committee and the Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi, here on Sunday.

In his opening remarks, Arts Council President Ahmed Shah said that people like Babar Ali, Dr Adibul Hasan Rizvi, Nadirshaw Edulji Dinshaw and Abdul Sattar Edhi, who founded major institutions are the real heroes of this country.

Pakistan Banks Association CEO Muneer Kamal said that Babar Ali identifies geniuses to provide them with opportunities. “We all know him as the founder of the Lahore University of Management Sciences [Lums] but he has also made Syedanwala School System that facilitates children of some 19 villages and the Ali Institute of Education that trains teachers,” he said.

Intellectuals, business leaders and educationists pay rich tribute and recall his contribution to country’s progress

Poetess Zehra Nigah said Babar Ali believes in working hard without looking for any acknowledgement. “He may have been born in an affluent family but he is a very humble man akin to a Sufi,” she said.

Dr Ishrat Husain, former governor of the State Bank of Pakistan and former director of the Institute of Business Administration (IBA), said that Babar Ali helped IBA in many ways despite it being a competitor of Lums.

“It is because he has no ego and wants the best for his country’s educational institutions,” he said, adding: “He is an epitome of philanthrocapitalism, who will allocate most of his capital for society.”

Habib University President Wasif Akbar Rizvi said that even after the nationalisation of institutions in the early 1970s when Babar Ali’s companies were also taken from him, he was not bitter or full of malice. “Born in 1926, he had seen the effects of British colonisation. In fact, he attended Aitchison College, the biggest symbol of colonisation and yet he managed to save himself from arrogance and pretentiousness,” he said.

Packages Limited Chairman Atif Aslam Bajwa said that Babar Ali is an incredible hero of Pakistan. “Like him, I have also had the privilege of going to Aitchison College where I was a class fellow of his son. I would often go to his house where I always found him interested in what we were doing and our ambitions. Talking to us he would plant seeds in our heads about integrity, professionalism, perseverance and giving back to society. They were important lessons in leadership. He had a big hand in our character building,” he said.

Beaconhouse National University Vice Chancellor Moeed W. Yusuf said that successful people are known to develop big egos. “Babar Ali is larger than life and yet he puts the institution before himself. And when he will call you, it will not be to tell you anything. It will be to hear from you what you know,” he said.

All Pakistan Newspapers Society president Senator Sarmad Ali appreciated Babar Ali’s love for nature, art and culture and literature.

Educationist Shahnaz Wazir Ali spoke highly about his great vision, his insight, his farsightedness, humility and passion.

Finally, the book’s author, Muhammad Azfar Ahsan, said that he became a big fan of Babar Ali over the years. “

Whenever I have messaged him, he has called me and given me respect,” he said, adding that it was at the time of his 100th birthday in June that he thought of bringing out a leaflet or brochure about him.

“As I was gathering material about him, I found so much that I kept increasing the write-up until it started looking like book chapters. Then I also roped in others who are close to him to contribute their impressions about him that I have included in this book tribute,” he said.

“He laughed when I took the book to him but he was also touched and kept asking me why I wrote the book. I asked him to read my essay in the book ‘The Legacy of Builders’ to understand why I published this book,” he added.

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2026