ASHRAFF.A.SAMAD
COLOMBO: Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Prof .G.L.Pieris unveiled the portrait of Deshamaniya Prof. M T A Furkhan, in the midst of a distinguished gathering at the Abdul Gaffoor Hall at Zahira College Colombo on Wednesday, Jan 19
Prof. Furkhan was former Principal of Colombo Zahira College and Old Boy President and former chairman of Confifi Group of Companies.
Principal of Colombo Zahira College Rizli Marikkar Chairman of Board of Govenor Colombo Zahira Fouzul Hameed also addressed the gathering.
Deshamanya Prof. M.T.A. Furkhan’s portrait will be the first Zahirian to be unveiled at the Hall after a lapse of 100 years.
Prof. Furkhan was a pillar of strength who passionately involved in the development of Zahira for more than 56 years with dedication and commitment and toiled immensely for the development in various fields.
He was the President of the ZCC WS, serving for the past 30 years and was president of the OBA for 10 long years. He was instrumental in establishing the Zahira Motor Garage that helped provide Technical education for the talented students of Zahira and helped to raise funds with the late Principal S.L.M. Shafie
Marikkar to build it. As the Principal of Zahira, he never received a monthly stipend, and instead he donated Rs. 50,000/= monthly to pay the teachers’ salaries in time.
Prof. M.T.A. Furkhan single-handedly lobbied and constituted the Board in 1982 through a Parliament Act. He successfully negotiated with the late Manager of Zahira and the President of Maradana Mosque Committee Late Al-Haj A.H.M. Ismail. He served in the Board as the Chairman for 1 term and is a long-standing member of the Board since
its inception. It was his brainchild to introduce English Medium at Zahira under a new registered name, ‘Zahira International (Private) Limited,’ which has helped Zahira immensely in terms of cash flow.
It is no exaggeration to mention that, Prof. Furkhan is the only old boy to put up a modern building in the Primary section consisting of 26 classrooms, a library hall, etc., with his own money. Besides, he has donated Rs. 10 million for the Swimming Pool Complex as well as brought millions of rupees into the coffers for various development projects at Zahira from time to time.
