S.M. Qureshi (3 May 1936 17 February 2019) was a Pakistani academic,

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

, and

civil engineer A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing i ...

. He was the founding Vice-Chancellor of

Mehran University of Engineering and Technology Mehran University of Engineering & Technology () (Often referred as Mehran University or MUET) is a Public university, public Research university, research Universities in Pakistan, university located in Jamshoro, Sindh, Pakistan focused on s ...

Jamshoro Jamshoro (, ) is a city and the capital of Jamshoro District, in Sindh, Pakistan. It is on the right bank of the Indus River, approximately northwest of Hyderabad and northeast of the provincial capital of Sindh, Karachi. This city is popula ...

Sindh Sindh ( ; ; , ; abbr. SD, historically romanized as Sind (caliphal province), Sind or Scinde) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, southeastern region of the country, Sindh is t ...

, Pakistan. His name was included in Hall of Fame of the

Asian Institute of Technology The Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), founded in 1959, is an international organization for higher education situated 40 km north of Bangkok, Thailand. It specializes in engineering, advanced technologies, sustainable development, and ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. He served as Federal Secretary of Education, Federal Secretary of Science and Technology and Convener of the Vice Chancellor's Selection Committee of

Government of Sindh The Government of Sindh () () is the provincial government of the province of Sindh, Pakistan. Its powers and structure are set out in the provisions of the 1973 Constitution, in which 30 Districts of 7 Divisions under its authority and ju ...

Education

Qureshi was born on 3 May 1936 to Muhammad Bakhsh Qureshi at Boobak town of Taluka

Sehwan Sehwan (; ; also commonly referred to as Sehwan Sharif or ''Noble Sehwan'') is a historic city located in Jamshoro District of Sindh province in Pakistan situated on the west bank of the Indus River north-west of Hyderabad. The city is renowned ...

, District Jamshoro,

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

. His real name was Shamsuddin. He graduated from N.E.D. University of Engineering and Technology,

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

in 1959. He received Master of Engineering (M.E.) degree in Structural Engineering from the

(AIT),

in 1965 and PhD degree in Civil and Structural Engineering from

Sheffield University The University of Sheffield (informally Sheffield University or TUOS) is a public research university in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. Its history traces back to the foundation of Sheffield Medical School in 1828, Firth College in 1879 ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in 1971.

Career

Qureshi started his career as a supervisor in the Public Works Department and was promoted as a Design Engineer in the same Department. He was appointed a reader in Sindh University Engineering College, Jamshoro in 1965. He was appointed a Professor of Civil Engineering in the same college in 1971. From March 1974 to July 1976, he served as a member of Pakistan Science Foundation. In July 1976, he was appointed Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the Sindh University Engineering College. This college was upgraded as a University on 1 March 1977 and was renamed as Mehran University of Engineering and Technology. Qureshi served as Federal Secretary of Education from 1987 to 1990 and Federal Secretary of Youth Affairs from 1990 to 1993. He also served as Secretary of Housing and Works, Zakat and Usher, and Secretary of Science and Technology. He was advisor to International Islamic University from 1996 to 1999 and Chairman of Pakistan Council of Science and Technology from 1999 to 2000. He was Chairman of the Charter Inspection and Evaluation Committee of Governor of Sindh from 2002 to 2013. He founded Mehran University Institute of Science and Technology Development and served as its Director till his death.

Awards

His name was inducted in AIT's Hall of Fame in 2010. Other awards include the following: * Gold Medal by

Governor of Sindh The governor of Sindh is the appointed head of the province of Sindh, Pakistan. The office of the governor as the head of the province is largely a ceremonial position; the executive powers lie with the Chief Secretary of Sindh, Chief Secretary ...

(2010). * Distinguished Alumni Award by AIT, Thailand (2001) * Life Time Achievement Award by

Pakistan Engineering Council The Pakistan Engineering Council (Urdu: ; acronym: PEC) is a professional body for accreditation of engineering education and regulation of engineering profession in Pakistan. It was established on 10 January 1976 by the Parliament under th ...

(2001)

Death

Qureshi died on 17 February 2019 in

. He was buried at Mehran University of Engineering and Technology.

References

{{Reflist 1936 births 2019 deaths Academic staff of Mehran University of Engineering & Technology NED University of Engineering & Technology alumni Sindhi people Scholars from Sindh Pakistani civil engineers Vice-chancellors of Mehran University of Engineering & Technology Vice-chancellors of universities in Pakistan