The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Bibliophile with a heart of gold

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jan 29, 2006

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Bibliophile with a heart of gold

J.S. Ifthekhar

GENEROUS DONOR: The founder of Juma Al Majid Centre of Culture and Heritage, Dubai. Photo: K. RAMESH BABU

Hyderabad: They contained more holes than a sieve. But now priceless tomes at the Nizamia Tibbi College have got a fresh lease of life. Similar is the case with ancient manuscripts at the Idara-e-Adabiyat-e-Urdu. The brittle documents have been saved from irretrievable damage. Hundreds of rare books and hoary scripts in Hyderabad are getting salvaged in the nick of time. Thanks to Juma Al Majid, a sheikh from Dubai with a difference.

He may not be a bookworm exactly, but his heart bleeds when he sees a book in shreds. For him books are the best of friends, the same today and forever.

MoU signed

The Juma Al Majid Centre for Culture and Heritage has already treated and restored some 30,000 books in the city. They have even been digitalised and preserved for posterity. Al Majid, who was here to take part in the World Urdu Conference, has signed an MoU with Osmania Univeristy for the digitalisation of its books. How much money is he prepared to spend? Majid refuses to spell the amount. "There is no limit. What is important is preserving books," is all that he would say.

As a student, Majid had a difficulty in obtaining books. This gave him the idea of preserving books and providing them to the needy as also scholars and researchers who were are unable to procure the required material. In 1991, he founded the Juma Al Majid Centre for Culture and Heritage in Dubai.

Many departments

The centre has a number of departments - each having a distinct goal and programme to serve the seekers of knowledge. Those who visit the United Arab Emirates drop in here to see the academic heritage of the `ummah' and the contemporary scientific civilisation. The centre also has a separate division to treat, preserve and maintain books and manuscripts in a most scientific way in 20 countries.

Majid, who is into banking and trading, plans to set up a centre in Hyderabad for training persons in the art of restoration of books. No, he makes no distinction between books. They can be of any language. "If a book is worth it should be preserved at all costs," he remarks.

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