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The history of Jamia
Hamdard begins with the establishment of a small Unani clinic in the year
1906 by Hakeem Hafiz Abdul Majeed, one of the well-known practitioners of
Unani System of Medicine of his time.
Hakeem Hafiz Abdul Majeed had a vision of making the practice of
Unani Medicine into a scientific discipline so that Unani medicines could
be dispensed in a more efficacious manner to patients.
He gave the name "Hamdard" to his venture which means
"sympathy for all and sharing of pain".
His illustrious son, Hakeem Abdul Hameed, carried forward the
philosophy and objectives of Hamdard in independent India. Even at the
time of partition of India in 1947, Hakeem Abdul Hameed was dreaming of
setting up a complex of educational institutions which would concentrate
on highlighting the contribution of Islam and Islamic culture to Indian
civilization and development of Unani medicines for curing diseases
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On
22 Shawwal, 1367 Hijri, corresponding to 28th August, 1948, Hamdard,
which was a commercial enterprise at that time, was converted into a Wakf, with the object of giving effect to Islamic teachings of
public charity including health and education. In 1964, Hamdard
National Foundation was created with a view to receive and disburse
the profits earned by Hamdard (Wakf)
Laboratories. Hamdard
National Foundation was to take up charitable causes in the areas of
education, medical relief and the advancement of knowledge, consistent
with the principles of the true teachings of Islam.
For setting up a complex of research and educational institutions, Hakeem
Abdul Hameed purchased a piece of land in Tughlaqabad area of South
Delhi which was hardly inhabited in those times.
In
order to implement and execute the objects of Wakf as enshrined in the Wakf
deed, Hakeem Abdul Hameed and his Muslim associates, established
several institutions for teaching and research as given below.
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In
1962, Hakeem Abdul Hameed set up the Institute of History of Medicine and
Medical Research with the object of promoting education and research in
the history of medicine, besides appraising the principles of medicine.
In
1963, Hakeem Abdul Hameed and his Muslim friends and associates set up
Indian Institute of Islamic Studies with a view to promote the study of
Islamic Culture and Civilization especially its contribution to Indian
society and culture.
In
1963, Hamdard Tibbi College was set up in Gali Qasim Jaan, Old Delhi. It
was later shifted to Jamia Hamdard Campus in 1980 to provide education in
Unani Medicine to students so that the heritage of Unani Medicine largely
available in Arabic and Persian is passed on to the students of next
generation.
In 1972, Hamdard
College of Pharmacy was set up with the objective of providing education
and training in all branches of pharmacy.
The
year 1989 saw the fulfilment of the dream of Hakeem Abdul Hameed when
Jamia Hamdard was given the status of Deemed to be University by the
Ministry of Human Resource Development on 10th May, 1989.
All the above named institutions set up by Hakeem Abdul Hameed and
his friends and associates were amalgamated into Jamia Hamdard. In a brief
period of only ten years, Jamia Hamdard has evolved into an institution
fulfilling the objects of the wakf,
which has funded it.
It was a day of great
joy for Hakeem Abdul Hameed, founder and the moving spirit behind all the
institutions promoted by Hamdard and his large number of friends and
associates. As a means of
thanking the Almighty Allah for His guidance to its founder and his
associates, Jamia Hamdard adopted a Seal with the following ayat from Sura
al-Jum'a from the Holy Quran:
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This
verse is translated as under:
"he
(The Prophet, may peace be upon him) instructs them in `the Book And
Wisdom'.
Since
the founding of Jamia Hamdard, this ayat from the Holy Quran is a
source of inspiration and guidance for those connected with Jamia
Hamdard management and administration.
Jamia
Hamdard was inaugurated by Late Shri Rajiv Gandhi on August 01, 1989.
In his impressive speech, the Prime Minister lauded the efforts
of Hakeem Abdul Hameed in setting up institutions of learning which
were emerging in the form of a "Deemed to be University".
He said, "This
will enable (the Muslim) minority to go forward and help India to
march forward".
Contribution
of Hakeem Abdul Hameed to promote the cause of education, health and
social service was acknowledged by the Government of India in 1965
when he was awarded Padma Shri for his valuable contribution and for
his personal qualities of sacrifice, devotion and commitment to the
cause of education. He
was also awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1991. The services rendered by
Hakeem Abdul Hameed to the cause of
education of Muslims have been acknowledged not only in India
but in other countries too.
Jamia Hamdard was
conceived as a seat of higher learning in Unani Medicine, Islamic
Studies, Biosciences, Pharmacy, Nursing and other areas of knowledge
by its founder as a means of fulfilling the objects of the wakf.
Over a period of last ten years, Jamia Hamdard has emerged as
an outstanding institution of higher learning with distinct and
focused academic programmes. Graduate programme in Information
Technology and Computer Applications and Post-graduate programmes in
Information Technology, Computer Applications, Business Management,
Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy have been started in the last
few years. Undergraduate programmes in Physiotherapy and Occupational
Therapy are being introduced from this year. Jamia Hamdard offers
postgraduate and doctoral programmes in several disciplines for which
advanced facilities are available.
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