Biographical sketches

Senior writer Akhtar Hamid Khan came in for much praise for his collection of pen sketches at an evening held in his honour last week by the Urdu-Sindhi Adabi Foundation. Haq Nawaz Akhtar, poet and former chairman of the Steel Mills, was in the chair.

The writer in lively style narrated his meetings with Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Maulana Abul Ala Maudoodi, Iftikhar Ahmad Adni, who died only recently, Prof Karrar Hussain and some others.

Those who spoke on the occasion said that apart from its literary value, Akhtar Hamid Khan's book had historical importance. Dr Fareedullah, Shafiq Ahmad Shafiq and Seema Siraj dilated upon the stylish prose of the book.

The foundation's chairman, Prof Afaq Siddiqui, quoted Dr Jamil Jalebi as having said that Hamid Khan's sketches were like "talking protraits". Ebadatullah Khan, Prof Azfar Rizvi and Sajjad Sukhan were among the speakers. Poets Raees Baghi and Abdul Jabbar Aser presented their verses about the author.

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The first teaching session at the National Academy of Performing Arts started this month, with 100 students on the rolls, said Zia Mohyeddin, the director of the academy, during a brief meeting the other day.

Zia has had to undergo much hard work in setting up the academy. He regretted the loss of many decades, saying such an academy should have been founded 50 years ago.

Nearly 1,000 people applied for admission, most with university degrees, reflecting the general interest in the performing arts. They were interviewed and their inclinations tested, because mere degrees and certificates were not considered as wholly reliable. When a candidate who had done his MA in English was asked if he had read Charles Dickens, he paused and then said: 'Naam tau suna hai' (the name I have heard).

Zia had many interesting bits like this. He said some of the trainees, at one stage, may lose interest and leave courses, "but we have a waiting list of candidates to replace the dropouts.

In reply to a question that why he preferred Karachi over other cities for the setting of the academy, he said Karachi was a big, cosmopolitan city, with a large middle class that was ethnically and culturally diverse. It provided a progressive environment.

Islamabad was a town of sarkari grades and had yet to grow into a city. "Lahore," Zia said, "might have been a seat of culture once, but it is so no longer. It is now a myth to call it the country's cultural capital".

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'From Exxon to Engro' highlights Shaukat Mirza's outstanding professional attributes and exceptional business acumen. It was launched by the Oxford University Press last week. The book relates the corporate drama leading to the creation of Engro Chemicals Pakistan Ltd and the subsequent growth of the organization.

The launch ceremony was well-attended by corporate executives, diplomats and journalists. Shaukat Mirza's story is one of leadership, farsightedness and integrity. He retired in July 1997 as Engro's president and CEO and in February 2000, he was appointed managing director, Pakistan State Oil Co. He died tragically at the age of 62 in Karachi.

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It was a bit unusual - an industrialist launching a book on the building industry. But Munir Sultan managed to attract quite a few entrepreneurs and representatives of commerce and industry to the presentation of his book, 'Mulki maeeshat mein construction industry ka kirdar".

Senate Chairman Mohammad Mian Soomro was in the chair, and he assured the author and his co-professionals that a plant for the treatment of sewage and other issues relating to the environment were on the government's priority list.

He was informed that in the absence of a treatment plant, thousands of tons of industrial waste and sewage were going into the sea, thus polluting its waters and affecting both marine life and people.

Munir Sultan said the building industry was providing jobs to a growing number of workers, 500,000 at present, and was also feeding many other industries like cement, iron and woodworks. But it was denied basic facilities. He also complained of the rise in gas prices.