The great Sufi Mizanur Rahman Nasiruddin Chowdhury

When I was writing an article on PHP founder and chairman, philosopher and industrialist Sufi Mizanur Rahman, it became too long and when I went to submit it to the newspaper, I was shocked because the journalists did not agree to publish the article because he was involved in a case with Sheikh Hasina and 201 others. That is why I posted the article on Facebook, but I also faced problems there, I could not post the entire article at once due to its large size. I divided the article into two parts and posted half yesterday, and the rest today. Our country is plagued by various problems. Among them are education and health. The state is not able to solve the problems in these two areas. In this regard, the rich also have something to do. In the field of medicine, he has upgraded the hospital established by his father in Kanchan, Rupganj, Narayanganj to 30 beds and established it as a full-fledged hospital with all the equipment and facilities of modern medicine. In this hospital, a two-day plastic surgery camp was organized jointly by PHP Family and Rotary Club of Agrabad, providing free surgery to patients with cleft lip and palate. For the first time in the Kanchan area, successful people participated in welfare activities in the service of humanity. He also contributed to the establishment of Imperial Hospital in Dhaka. The first pediatric ICU for children was established at Chittagong Medical College Hospital with the financial support of PHP. Earlier, Sufi Mizanur Rahman had arranged air conditioning (AC) for newborns and in the operation theater in the neonatal unit of CHMEC Hospital. In addition, he also arranged 18 high-quality exhaust fans in various wards. He has also extended a helping hand in the eclampsia ward for women. PHP Family is bearing the entire cost of two orphanages in Chittagong. Apart from this, Mr. Sufi Mizan provides assistance to various individuals and social organizations through Lions and Rotary Club. No one knows how much money he donates to people on a personal level every day. He believes in the old saying that if you donate with your right hand, your left hand should not know. He helps countless people on a weekly and monthly basis. No one can show any example of anyone coming to him seeking help and returning empty-handed. Sufi Mizan has formed a foundation in his name with a part of the PHP family’s profits for public welfare work. Such as the Azim Premji Foundation, Tata Foundation in India or AK Khan Foundation in our country. The Sufi Mizan Foundation provides scholarships to poor and talented students. To promote religious education, Mr. Sufi Mizan has launched a program to distribute Quran Sharif and stands in every mosque and religious institution in the country on behalf of PHP. A book has been compiled by Sufi Mizan Foundation and published. PHP has introduced the Quran Light Competition to develop the latent talent of students. This good man, dedicated to human welfare, has built hospitals, schools, colleges, madrasas, etc. for the people. If we analyze the life of PHP Chairman Mr. Sufi Mizanur Rahman, it will be seen that along with acquiring wealth through business and trade, he is spending a part of that wealth on improving the living standards of the poor. He has borne the education and medical expenses of many poor and needy people and has established educational institutions and hospitals for the spread of education. Many madrasas are being run regularly in Chittagong with the financial support of Sufi Mohammad Mizanur Rahman. In addition, many Pirs and Dervishes from different parts of Multan, Hazara and Karachi in Pakistan and from Pakistan, India, Iran, Iraq, Arabia and Turkey receive his financial support. He has arranged for more than a hundred people who are helpless and unable to go for Hajj on their own to complete the Hajj vow at their own expense. This system is still in operation today and will continue in the future. Mr. Sufi Mizan is a learned man. His association with scholars and pursuit of knowledge has not been mentioned. He is a worker. Industrialist Sufi Mizan, educationist Mizan, philanthropist Sufi Mizan, social worker Mizan, philanthropist Mizan, art lover – literature lover – Sufiist Mizan – it is difficult to say who is greater than whom. He has made a distinguished contribution in each field. Mr. Sufi Mizan’s contribution to the country’s industry and commerce and his philanthropic activities in the fields of education, human service, social welfare, etc. have been recognized by receiving various government and private awards and honors. In recognition of his extraordinary contribution in various fields, he was awarded the Ekushey Padak, the country’s second highest civilian honor, in 2020. On March 16, 2016, he received the Standard Chartered-Financial Express Corporate Social Responsibility Award for demonstrating extraordinary dedication to corporate social responsibility. For his other contributions to employment creation, Daily Purbakon and Grameenphone honored him as the ‘Pride of Chittagong’. In recognition of his management skills and leadership qualities, Alhaj Sufi Mohammad Mizanur Rahman was awarded the title of ‘Business Person of the Year’ by the then Finance Minister of the Government of Bangladesh in 2003. He is currently serving as the Honorary Consul of Indonesia in Chittagong. He is the Chief Patron of the Chittagong Allama Rumi Society and the Sufi Mizan Foundation. He has enlightened the common people through discussions on ‘Islam: A Religion and Its Philosophical Explanation’ on Chittagong Television and ‘Tasawwuf’ on ATN Bangla. He was once the President of the Rotary Club of Agrabad, Chittagong and has also served as the Vice President of the Chittagong Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He is a Life Member of Chittagong Mother and Child Hospital and a Fellow of Paul Harry’s Foundation (Rotary International). He is a founding patron of the Independent University Bangladesh (IUB), which is a reflection of his dedication to the field of education. He has been recognized for his lifelong dedication, leadership qualities and human values ​​with these honors and medals. Still, if I have to give the title of excellence to any one of Mr. Sufi Mizan’s works, then I would say that Mr. Sufi Mizan’s family is his greatest gift to the nation. His seven sons are like seven charioteers. Each of them has received higher education from world-renowned educational institutions in America and Australia and is engaged in the ancestral business. I do not know if such a family can be found in Bangladesh in which every member is one soul, one soul. There is no division or conflict between them; they follow each other’s views and paths in every matter. They live together with their parents under the same roof like a large extended family. His first son is Mohammad Muhsin, second son is Mohammad Iqbal Hossain, third son is Anwarul Haque Chowdhury, fourth son is Mohammad Ali Hossain Sohag, fifth son is Amir Hossain Sohel, sixth son is Zahirul Islam Rinku, seventh son is Akhtar Parvez Hiru. Their mother is Tahmina Rahman. All of her seven sons have graduated from universities in America and Australia in various subjects. All of them have returned home and taken over the management of the PHP family’s industrial enterprises. But none of them stayed abroad. She herself is a graduate.Although his academic studies were limited to graduation, Sufi Sahib never stopped reading books. He learned a lot about religion, philosophy, economics, history, political science, and social science by reading books. In addition to reading books, he continuously tried to get the company of scholars and became friends with Sufi scholar Syed Ahmadul Haque, an amazing example of versatile talent, educationist Principal AA Rezaul Karim Chowdhury, one of the best scientists of the country, Professor Dr. Jamal Nazrul Islam, and the first caliph of Gausul Azam Maizbhandari, Hazrat Abdus Salam Ichhapuri, and was able to enrich his world of knowledge step by step. He was a close friend of many who practiced mystical music and folk songs in Chittagong, including Abdul Gafur Hali. Inviting one of the greatest statesmen and thinkers of the contemporary world, Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, and world-renowned Indian scientist and thinker Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam to deliver speeches at the convocation ceremony of his university, UITS, is a shining example of Mr. Sufi Mizan’s thirst for knowledge and respect for knowledge. Mr. Sufi Mizan is a multilingual scholar. He can speak, speak fluently and write in six/seven languages, including Bengali, English, Urdu, Arabic, Hindi, Persian, etc. Mr. Sufi Mizanur Rahman has achieved many feats in his colorful career. It is really difficult to calculate which ones are big and which ones are small.

 PHP Rabin Majhi Mohammad Ali Hossain in Rushi Modi’s Shadow

Management is a big problem in business. Making money in business is not a big deal, financial management is the real issue. As the scope of money increases, the need for management is also felt more acutely. Along with Ratan Tata, Rushi also has to be given some credit in that regard. These words of PHP’s Sufi Saheb are not unknown. That is why he has kept a close eye on financial discipline so that his industrial empire, built with much difficulty, does not collapse like a house of cards due to lack of management. He has trained his fourth son Ali Hossain Sohag to be skilled in the accounting and bookkeeping of the group. In this context, I am reminded of Rushi Modi, a leading member of the famous Tata Group of India and former Chairman and Managing Director of Taka Steel. He was the most generous Managing Director of Tata Steel Limited. During his tenure, he rewarded many employees for their good work. He even started many awards like giving air-conditioned Maruti Suzuki cars to all the divisional managers of Tata Steel. He never faced a strike at the Tata Steel factory. Once, a full-page article about Rushi Modi was published in the widely circulated daily Anand Bazar Patrika of Kolkata. That article identified him as the guru or Gunin or Ojha of management. In those days, just as the Ojha Vaidyas used to come and sweep the people’s diseases and make medicines from the vines, leaves, roots and bark of trees and cure the patients, similarly, Rushi Modi was also the Ojha of the diseases of the industrial factories. The name of Tata Steel is because of Rushi Modi. He is the real steel giant. In March 1993, Rushi Modi retired from the Tata Steel factory. After his retirement, the then Prime Minister of India, Shri PV Narasimha Rao, appointed him as the Joint Chairman of Indian Airlines and Air India. I can see the shadow of Russian Modi in the newly appointed Managing Director of PHP, Mohammad Ali Hossain Sohag. We are waiting to see whether he will eventually improve himself to the level of Modi or not. However, as the morning show The Days says, Mr. Mohammad Ali Hossain Sohag has already proven that in the future, he will spread the light of Naveen Martand in the sky and illuminate the horizon. Mohammad Ali Hossain graduated from the University of Canberra, Australia in 2002. He was given the responsibility of Managing Director of the PHP family. He has firmly laid the foundation of the business by using his knowledge, skills and extensive experience. After graduating from Australia in 2002, he was responsible for maintaining the financial discipline of PHP, so that losses and financial evasion could be prevented in the system. His main goal was to ensure effective discipline and management in various areas such as trade, procurement, insurance, trade finance, international business, etc. Under his direct guidance and supervision, these matters are efficiently managed and controlled. He is also interested in poetry, music and social activities. He represents the PHP family in ‘Dainik Amader Soyo’ and ‘The Business Post’, is a Fellow of Paul Harry’s Foundation, which is affiliated with Rotary International, has served in various important positions at the University of Canberra, Australia: President of the Muslim Students’ Association (2001 and 2002), Vice President of the Overseas Students’ Organization (2001 and 2002), Member of the University Students’ Organization (2002), Trustee Member of the University of Information Technology and Sciences (UITS), Life Member of the Chittagong Mother and Child Hospital, Donor Member of the Chittagong Kidney Foundation, General Member of the Allama Rumi Society, Member of the Shaheen Golf and Country Club, Member of the Chittagong Boat Club, Member of the Chittagong Khulshi Club Limited. He is also an active participant in various social and recreational clubs.