Islamia College University

Islamia College University Peshawar (ICP) (Urdu: اسلامیہ کالج پشاور) is a public university located in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.

Degrees awarded

Initially established as a college, Islamia College Peshawar awarded higher secondary school certificates. It was later converted into a university and now also awards numerous undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in the fields of Arts & Humanities, Business & Social Sciences, Language & Cultural, Engineering and Science & Technology.

This university is ranked 24th on the List of Top Universities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2022.

Recognized university

This university is recognized by the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan.

History

Founded by Sir S.A. Qayyum and Sir George Roos-Keppel in 1913, it is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in Pakistan, and its historical roots are traced from the culminating point of the Aligarh Movement. The university provides higher learning in arts, languages, humanities, social sciences and modern sciences. In 1950, the University of Peshawar was founded as an offshoot of Islamia College Peshawar, with the later being associated to the university as a constituent college. Initially established as Islamia College, it was granted university status by the Government of Pakistan in 2008; the word college is retained in its title for preserving its historical roots.

Cash Donations by Nawabs

On June 2, 1911, a delegation headed by Sahibzaba Abdul Qayyum Khan visited Tangi Tehsil in Charsadda and set up his camp at the historical Hujra of his personal friend the influential Khan of Sherpao, Khan Bahadur Ghulam Haider Khan Muhammadzai, Khan of Sherpao, for collection of donations. The Khan of Sherpao was the largest contributor, having donated the entire sum required for purchase of the expensive land in Peshawar to serve as the campus of the college. The Khans of Tangi donated a handsome amount of Rs.25,000 and the delegation stayed for 3 days at the Sherpao Hujra in Tangi before moving on to the villages of Umarzai, Turangzai and Rajjar where donations of Rs.12,000, Rs.20,000 and Rs.3,000 were collected respectively and finally went on to the village Charsadda. In total Rs 150,000 was collected from the area of Hashtnagar (the former name of the present district of Charsadda in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa). Subsequently, a large plot of land was purchased for the college building from the Khalil (Arbabs) of Tehkal and Sufaid Dheri. Generous contributions of Rs. 150,000/- from Nizam of Hyderabad and the construction cost of the college building paid by the Nawab of Amb of Rs. 100,000/- (sent by the prime minister of Amb Syed Abdul Jabbar Shah to Sahibzada Abdul Qayyum) are also noteworthy.

Conception

When the new province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (previously known as N.W.F.P) was formed in 1901 after its separation from the Punjab, there was only one college (Edwardes College) in whole province. This scarcity of quality educational institutions forced local youth to travel to faraway regions of the country (British India) in pursuit of higher education. This same lack of educational opportunities in the region motivated Nawab Sir Sahibzada Abdul Qayyum and Sir George Roos-Keppel to establish an institution that would not only cater to the academic needs of the region but also produce leaders from the region.

Endowment

According to the board of trustees, the college, which is spread over 300 acres of land, has 1089 Jaribs cultivable land in Harichand, Rai Killi and Tarnab, (District Charsadda). In addition to this, there are 395 shops and flats in the Khyber Bazaar Peshawar and main bazaar Charsadda.

Notable alumni

The following is a list of notable alumni of Islamia College University, Peshawar, and its predecessor institution, Islamia College Peshawar:

Hayat Muhammad Khan Sherpao – Notable Pakistani politician, founding member of the Pakistan People's Party, former Governor of the Province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Federal Minister and Senior Provincial Minister.

Sardar Abdur Rab Nishtar – Pakistani statesman (being one of the founding fathers of the modern state), freedom fighter, prominent leader and former head of the Pakistan Muslim League, close associate of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, former Governor of Punjab and Federal Minister.

Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan – Pashtun independence activist, political leader, and founder of the Khudai Khidmatgar movement.

Inayatullah Khan Mashriqi – Mathematician, Islamic scholar, and founder of the Khaksar Movement.

Roedad Khan – Senior civil servant, author, and former Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh.

Ajmal Khattak – Pashto poet, journalist, and political activist.

Hamza Shinwari – Renowned Pashto poet and literary figure.

Arif Nizami – Veteran journalist and former editor-in-chief of The Nation newspaper.

Waqar Ahmed Seth – Jurist and former Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court.

Эх сурвалж: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)