– M Rafi Ahmed
“All I want is education and I am not afraid of no one.” So said Malala Yousafzai, 2014 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, UN Messenger of Peace and co-founder of the Malala Fund, who is credited to be the youngest education campaigner to address the UN Youth Assembly when she was just 16 years old. No doubt, this had a great impact among the Muslim women across the globe to continue their education breaking the taboo and gender bias.
Taking a cue from “Rabbi Zidni Ilma” which is a powerful Quranic Dua from Surah Taha Verse 114 which means “O My Lord! Increase my knowledge”, the Coimbatore Sundarapuram based Advanced Institute for Modern and Moral Science (AIMMS) under the able guidance of noted Holy Quran researcher, writer, orator and publisher Haji Dr Ameer Althaf, about 93 Muslim women aged between 19 and 55 enthusiastically wrote Afzal-Ul-Ulama examinations with confidence.
With a sharp increase this year (last year 85 students), it only proves to show the awareness among the Muslim women to get educated. About 850 students drawn from different corners of the State (last year 827) took up the exams conducted by the Madras University at The New College premises. All credit goes to AIMMS, the maiden Muslim women community college in Tamil Nadu established in 2005 with the sole objective of helping Muslim women mostly home-makers from lower echelons of the society to pursue their education with the support of their family.
From a humble beginning, AIMMS grew from strength to strength to become one of the much sought-after institutes by Muslim women. As to the revelation of the first word “Iqra” in the Holy Quran meaning ‘To Read’, AIMMS left no stone unturned to impart education to women using modern methods in tune with the emerging trend keeping in view of technological development.
Notably, the Institute is located in a good environment equipped with all latest facilities including powerpoint presentation, modernised Arabic computer lab besides scope for doing MA, MPhil and PhD in Arabic while exempting the women from poor family background from paying fees.
Yet another redeeming feature is guest lectures by experts and resource persons giving useful tips to the students in getting their varied skills honed. Thanks to the wholehearted support extended by the AIMMS trustees.
In today’s globalised world, knowing multiple languages can significantly boost one’s career prospects. And one language that stands out for its potential to expand job opportunities is Arabic since it offers a plethora of opportunities right from becoming an Arabic teacher, translator, software pro, Medical Tourism, Language adviser, Editor, E-publishing, Journalism, Multi Media, Advertisement and Data Collection.
It may be noted that the Arabic language is among the oldest and most spoken in the world, serving as a cornerstone of cultural and historical identity across many nations. It is spoken by more than 550 million people and is the official Arabic language in 25 odd countries, mostly in the Middle East and North Africa. To top it all, Arabic is one among the six languages – English, Chinese, Russian, French and Spanish to be recognised by the UN as the official language.
The zeal to excel through education among the Muslim women is definitely a welcome sign at a time when many success stories were pouring in from several quarters with the first Muslim female to become IAS officer in Maharashtra after clearing the civil services in AIR 142 this year while not to speak of S Ajeetha Begum from Coimbatore who made headlines after cracking civil services to become IPS (2008 batch). Age is never a barrier to those who have the will to learn at any stage. AIMMS women-folk have proved this through dedication and determination.
