Based by a normal, reimagined by students: The 330-year-old Delhi faculty that outlived empires
Tucked behind the busy Ajmeri Gate in Previous Delhi stands a faculty that has witnessed the rise and fall of empires, the transformation of a metropolis, and the reshaping of schooling in India. Anglo Arabic Senior Secondary College is not only one of many oldest working faculties within the nation, it’s a dwelling archive of India’s cultural, political, and tutorial evolution.What started in 1696 as a modest madrasa based by a Mughal normal has grown into a faculty that continues to coach tons of of scholars every year, carrying ahead a legacy constructed throughout centuries.
The final who planted the primary seed
The varsity’s story begins with Ghazi ud-Din Khan Feroze Jung I, a robust normal within the courtroom of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. Recognized for his navy prowess within the Deccan and because the father of Qamar-ud-din Khan, the primary Nizam of Hyderabad, Ghaziuddin Khan based a madrasa outdoors the walled metropolis of Shahjahanabad. His imaginative and prescient was to create a centre for Islamic and Persian studying, an thought forward of its time in Seventeenth-century Delhi.The madrasa, which got here to be generally known as Madrasa Ghaziuddin Khan, was constructed close to Ajmeri Gate and initially flourished as a hub of classical schooling. However because the Mughal Empire weakened, the madrasa fell into decline and ultimately closed by the early 1790s.
A revival in a altering world
In 1792, simply as colonial affect started spreading throughout India, the madrasa discovered new life. Backed by native the Aristocracy, it was re-established as an oriental school, introducing literature, science, and the humanities to its curriculum. This revival marked the college’s first transformation, from a spiritual establishment to a broader seat of studying.Its location, simply outdoors the town’s protecting partitions, earned it the title “School Bastion”, hinting at its position as each a fortress of information and a logo of Delhi’s mental resilience.
Arrival of the British and reshaping of the college
In 1828, the British East India Firm stepped in. Pushed by the colonial aim of training an area elite fluent in English, they reorganized the college into what turned generally known as the Anglo Arabic School.One of many key figures behind this transformation was Charles Trevelyan, brother-in-law of Thomas Babington Macaulay, whose notorious schooling coverage would go on to form India’s education system for generations. English language and literature have been now taught alongside Arabic and Persian: a fusion that mirrored the tensions and aspirations of the time.Beneath the stewardship of Dr. Sprenger, a visionary principal, the faculty turned much more dynamic. He established a printing press, Matba‘u ’l-‘Ulum, and launched Qiranu ’s-Sa‘dain, the college’s personal journal, in 1845, bringing scholarly discourse into print and giving the establishment a public mental voice.
Lecturers who stood for greater than teachers
The varsity has not simply been formed by political forces, it has additionally been outlined by the eagerness of its lecturers.One such title is Rao Shamshad Ali Khan, who joined in 1947, the 12 months India turned impartial. He would go on to serve the establishment till 1975, via a interval marked by political upheaval and nationwide transformation. A member of the Muslim League, Rao Shamshad was even arrested throughout Indira Gandhi’s Emergency. It serves as a reminder that schooling, politics, and activism have at all times intersected at Anglo Arabic College.
The alumni who modified India
It’s no shock {that a} faculty with such depth of historical past has produced alumni who went on to form India and past.Amongst them:
Sir Syed Ahmed Khan , who would later discovered Aligarh Muslim College and grow to be a pioneer of contemporary Muslim schooling in India.- Muhammad Husain Azad, one in every of Urdu literature’s most celebrated writers.
- Meem Afzal, a journalist, politician and diplomat.
- Akhtar ul Iman, a poet who gave Urdu cinema a few of its best screenplays.
- Mirza Masood, who represented India as a hockey Olympian.
A narrative captured in print
To make sure that this exceptional journey isn’t forgotten, two former directors chronicled the college’s story in a e-book titled “The College at Ajmeri Gate: Delhi Academic Legacy”, printed by Oxford College Press. The e-book weaves collectively information, private anecdotes, and historic paperwork to current the college not simply as a constructing, however as a dwelling establishment that has survived warfare, colonialism, Partition, and Emergency.
A dwelling legacy
In the present day, beneath the steerage of Principal Mohd Wasim Ahmad, with Prof. Najma Akhtar, Vice Chancellor of Jamia Millia Islamia, because the Chairperson of the Delhi Schooling Society, the college continues its mission. It serves a co-educational scholar physique and stays government-aided: nonetheless accessible, nonetheless related.Whereas the facade of the college has been renovated over time, the echoes of its previous stay: within the structure, the traditions, and the generations of scholars who stroll via its gates unaware they’re getting into historical past.In a world the place new faculties rise yearly with shiny partitions and company branding, Anglo Arabic College stands out, not as a result of it has the most recent tech, however as a result of it has the oldest soul.TOI Schooling is on WhatsApp now. Observe us right here.
