Tributes paid to Prof Dr S M Makhdumi

By Abdul Qadir Qureshi
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Glowing tributes were paid to Prof Dr S M Makhdumi, the former Dean of Faculty of Engineering, Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology (SSUET), Karachi, who was laid to rest on March 22. He was also a member of the Board of Governors and member of the Academic Council at the university. 

He did his PhD in civil engineering from Nottingham, UK, MSc in Structural Engineering from Manchester, UK, and his BE (Civil Engineering) from the NED University of Engineering and Technology, Karachi, where he also went on become chairman of the civil engineering department and later, Dean of Faculty of Engineering. 

He was also a consultant to many engineering firms in Pakistan who benefited from his vast experience in design of structures including multistoried buildings, industrial concerns, bridges and varied structures. He was associated in over 500 projects in the country.

The burial of Prof Dr S M Makhdumi was also attended by Prof Dr Sarosh Hashmi Lodi, who had taken over the charge of the Vice Chancellor of the NED University earlier in the day. 

Meanwhile a large number of teaching and non-teaching staff of the SSUET attended the condolence reference held at SSUET in which they offered dua-e-maghfirat for the departed soul and prayed to Allah to rest the soul in eternal peace and grant him highest place in Jannah. 

The SSUET Chancellor, Jawaid Anwar, Vice-Chancellor, Prof Dr Jawed H Rizvi, Acting Dean Prof Dr Najeeb, and Registrar, Syed Sarfraz Ali besides some senior Aligharians were also present on the occasion. 

In a brief speech Chancellor Jawaid Anwar recalled the services of the late Prof Dr Makhdumi as Chairman of the civil engineering department and Dean Faculty of Engineering for promoting the cause of the SSUET. 

He observed that the university has grown over the years and is recognized as educational centre of excellence both at home and abroad which was made possible by dedicated persons like Prof Dr Makhdumi. 

The Chancellor stated that the SSUET graduates were performing appreciative services and earning successes everywhere. He said that it was the very objective of the university and Prof Dr Makhdoomi too was working on this mission. 

Meanwhile, the Convener of the Aligarh Institute of Technology, Engr Anwar Ali, also paid rich compliments to the late Prof Dr Makhdoomi, describing him as one of the best teachers and a kind-hearted human being whose services will always be remembered. 

Prof Dr Abdul Samad, also working at the SSUET, informed that Prof Dr Makhdumi was his class fellow and they had both joined the NED University together. 

Engr Mohammed Shafiq, a former Director of the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA), recalled that Prof Dr Makhdumi was his teacher at the NED University, adding that even at the SSUET he used to visit him regularly to seek his guidance and advice on various issues.