Dr Nasim Fatima hosts welcome reception for Prof Dr Ghani-ul-Akram Sabzwari

Pakistan News & Features Services

Prof Dr Nasim Fatima, one of the topmost library scientists of the country, hosted a luncheon reception to welcome her mentor and one of the founding fathers of Library and Information Science (LIS), Prof Dr Ghani-ul-Akram Sabzwari, in Karachi on September 27.

The function was attended by the senior office-bearers of the Bazm-e-Akram, having transformed into an internationally acclaimed literary forum of library professionals, which included its President, Abdul Samad Ansari, Secretary, Dr Nasreen Shagufta, and Vice President, Dr Amna Khatoon. Zain Siddiqui, Iqbal-ur-Rahman Farooqui Qamar, Syed Ateeb Ahmed, Azra Qureshi and Syed Khalid Mahmood, were also present on the occasion. 

Bazm-e-Akram, which has become more proactive during the past one year or so, was formed by the students and admirers of the venerated Prof Dr Ghani-ul-Akram Sabzwari, the Founder President of the Library Promotion Bureau (LPB) and the Founder Editor of the Pakistan Library and Information Science Journal (PLISJ). 

Prof Dr Ghani-ul-Akram Sabzwari, in his speech, paid glowing tribute to Prof Dr Nasim Fatima for having kept the momentum alive particularly in those 27 years when he was out of country due to professional reasons.

He also complimented Prof Dr Rais Ahmed Samdani for his excellent work over the years which helped the LPB as well as the PLISJ to move in the right direction. 

“Both of them worked together for the cause of the profession with passion and dedication. Their contribution, along with those of a few others, needs to be commended for delivering against the heaviest of odds,” he added. 

Prof Dr Ghani-ul-Akram Sabzwari, a former Chairperson of the LIS department at the University of Karachi, recalled that the LPB was founded in 1966 while the bilingual PLSIJ, which was titled the Pakistan Library Bulletin (PLB) until 2004, had started publication in 1968. 

“The bureau has already published 59 books, which includes 31 in English and 28 in Urdu. Revised editions of quite a few titles have also been brought out. The PLISJ has now completed 46 years in September, having come out every quarter,” he observed. 

Prof Dr Nasim Fatima, also an ex-Chairperson of the LIS department at the University of Karachi, acknowledged the support of Prof Dr Rais Ahmed Samdani in the continued functioning of the LPB and the PLISJ. 

“We complemented each other and ensured that the interests of the bureau or the journal were not compromised. As they say one plus one is 11 and we proved this point,” she stressed. 

“Teamwork has its own virtues. It’s very gladdening to find so many stalwarts of the profession having assembled at such a short notice. It shows their level of commitment besides also demonstrating their unstinted gratitude to our beloved Usatad-e-Mohtaram (Prof Dr Ghani-ul-Akram Sabzwari). Let’s continue to work with unity and the same intensity to carry our mission forward,” Prof Dr Nasim Fatima concluded.