Shaheen School Bidar: A humble start in a single-room that accommodated only 18 students has now grown into a pan India movement.
– Mohammed Atherulla Shariff
Complete five centuries after the establishment of a great learning centre, Madrasa-e-Mahmud Gawan in 1460 by a visionary wazir in Bahmani kingdom, a new lamp of learning called Shaheen School was lighted in Bidar in 1989.
It was an Islamic scholar, a mathematician, a warrior and an able administrator Khwaja Mahmud Gilani who founded the former institution whereas it is an engineer by profession, a returnee from overseas, Abdul Qadeer who established the latter.
A humble start in a single-room that accommodated only 18 students has now grown into a pan India movement.
With 28 own branches and 51 franchisees spread in 13 states – from Karnataka to Kashmir and Assam to Rajasthan, undoubtedly Shaheen Group is without a parallel in the community institutions in India.
Currently the Shaheen educational conglomerate caters to over 25,000 students comprising Muslim and non -Muslim students in almost equal ratio and boys and girls in the same proportion. There are more than 1500 dedicated staff members rendering yeoman services.
It provides a comprehensive educational journey from kindergarten to twelfth grade. Emphatically, providing education in the students’ mother tongue, a pioneering concept that fosters better understanding and engagement has yielded the expected result.
Academic Intensive Care Unit (AICU)
One of the most notable initiatives of the Shaheen Group is the Academic Intensive Care Unit (AICU), launched in 2003. This groundbreaking project aimed to integrate school dropouts and students from Madrasas into contemporary education. AICU offers a composite curriculum from class 5th to 12th, allowing students aged 10-18 to appear for Class 10th and 12th examinations, as well as professional exams like NEET. The success stories from AICU alumni, pursuing higher education in prestigious institutions, underscore the project’s impact.
Madrasa Plus Initiative
Building on the success of AICU, the Shaheen Group has introduced the Madrasa Plus initiative, with the goal of providing contemporary education to 5000 Madrasa students. This initiative involves academic support and teachers being provided to 52 Madrasas across India. The program includes a rigorous 18-month course that prepares students to pass Class X examinations, with Shaheen Group bearing teachers’ salaries and academic expenses.
Diverse Educational Models
With over three decades of experience, Shaheen has introduced and successfully implemented various educational models which include Shaheen Kids (Pre-Primary School), Shaheen Value School (Classes 1 to 10), Shaheen Junior College (Senior Secondary Integrated with NEET+ Competitive Exam Crash Course), Shaheen Women’s Degree College (Integrated with UPSC), Shaheen Civil Services Academy, Shaheen Degree College for Boys, and the Shaheen Distance Learning Programme for students in Classes XI and XII.
Shaheen is attaining 14% of Government MBBS seats of Karnataka every year and around 0.9% of Government MBBS seats of India, showcasing its remarkable impact on the medical education landscape in the region and the nation as a whole.
Dr. Abdul Qadeer’s journey from a dedicated engineer to a pioneering educationist and philanthropist has left an indelible mark on the educational landscape of Karnataka and beyond. His relentless pursuit of excellence and commitment to inclusivity continue to inspire and drive positive change in society.
