– Syed Mustapha Kamal

In the evolution of Urdu as the medium of instruction in Hyderabad, the establishment of the allopathic Medical School in 1846 was the most important event. As the Hyderabadis were introduced to modern knowledge they started shifting it into the Urdu through translations. During the process they came to know about the developments in modern western medicine and cure. Till the beginning of the19th century the people of Hyderabad State did not have the public facilities of modern western medicine. The Unani System of cure was available for the elites and the commoners whereas the British had their own doctors. The compiler of ‘Bustan-e- Asafia’(Urdu) writes about the reason for the establishment of Hyderabad Medical College:

“In the year 1251F ( 1842) Nawab Naseer ud Daulah (the 4th Nizam) fell ill because of bowel inflammation. The Unani doctors couldn’t cure him. One day Mr. Frazer, the British Resident came to the court and found the king ill. On his inquiry the King told him about his disease and said that, ‘we heard many praises of the doctor’s treatment’. The Resident replied that if the king wishes he can send a doctor. The king said that the doctor should cure his disease without using any medicine, and only by external means, the way Hakeem Alavi Khan treated Nadir Shah of his headache. The resident introduced Dr McLain, the residency surgeon, who then cured the king’s disease within three months through the control of his diet…The king was pleased and ordered to establish a madrasa of doctori in the Hyderabad State”.

By the order of Naseer ud Daulah the ‘Hyderabad Medical School’ was established in the year 1846 at Gun foundry (a locality) under the supervision of one Dr Franklin. Here the staff of health department and hospital assistants from Berar were provided preliminary education. As the ability to gain education in English was not available in the State, Urdu was made the medium of instruction. The British already had the experience of establishing a medical School in Urdu in Bengal so they didn’t face any difficulties in establishing a similar medical school at Hyderabad. Shamsul Umara II and other nobles interested in modern education helped in getting students. In the school, the students were first familiarized with English to the extent of reading and understanding the names and properties of the medicines and the diseases. Explanation, lectures, discussion and note-taking took place in Urdu. After a few years the basic knowledge of English was made compulsory to get the admission. The Hyderabad Medical School started publishing a journal from 1851 under the editorship of Dr Smith; Dr Maclain and Dr Mackenzie wrote books in Urdu for the students that were published from the press owned by Shamsul Umara II.

It was claimed that the standard of teaching was high in this school, despite the lack of textbooks. The exams were conducted in six subjects: anatomy, orthopedics, properties of medicines, rules and laws of life, principles of health etc. Dr Mackenzie, Dr Walter, Dr Dickson and Dr Reed were the examiners. After the completion of the course those students who adopted the medical profession permanently were considered important in Hyderabad. The names of the students who passed out in the first eight years were mentioned in Bustan-e Asafia: “ Md Yakoob, Mohd Baquar Ali, Ghulam Hussain, Burhan Shareef, Khaja Ashraf, Mohd Hussain, Ghulam Jeelani, Syed Omer, Ghulam Mohd, Ain Khan, Faizullah Khan, Mohd Maulana, Fakheer Sahab, Wazir Ali, Shifai Khan, Mirza Ali, Mohd Ashraf and Shamsuddin”. In Hyderabad city the first clinics were established by Mohd Ashraf and Faizullah Khan.

The government conducted the entrance exams for the aspirants to this School. According to an advertisement published in the government journal of January 1870, the students should have proficiency in Persian and Urdu and familiarity with English. According to another advertisement of 1878 the knowledge of English was made compulsory along with Persian and Arabic. In the announcement of 1885 the working knowledge of English, good understanding in history, geography and mathematics, and proficiency in Urdu was stressed. When English education started taking roots in Hyderabad, the medium of instruction of the Medical School was changed to English. It was strange that in the same year Urdu was declared to be the language of administration by the Nizam Government. Three years latter another advertisement announced that selections will be made for the post of twenty doctors and five assistants. The candidates should be English speaking and would have to have the ability to read and write Urdu; the exam would be conducted in history, geography, mathematics and geometry. The knowledge of Persian was preferred.

After a few years the use of Latin was allowed along with Persian to write the answer scripts. Till 1885 the Secunderabad Medical Board used to conduct the exams. After the medium of instruction changed to English, the examination papers started coming from Madras or Bombay. The responsibility for the oral examination was allotted to the Secunderabad Medical Board. The Syllabus of Hyderabad Medical School since 1885 was made in accordance to the syllabus of LM&S ( Licentiate in Medicine and Surgery) of Madras.

The Hyderabad Medical School was shifted to Saifabad in 1921 from Residency Hospital at Chaderghat. In the same year it was affiliated to Osmania University and then came to be known as Osmania Medical College.

Beginning of English Education

In Hyderabad English education was initiated by the Christian missionaries. In the year 1825 at Saint John Church secunderabad, a few children were brought together for the sake of educating them in European sciences and English. Soon it gained the status of a school. In 1846 this school was shifted to Chaderghat. Initially the school was named as Protestant English School, and then it was renamed as Saint George Grammar School. The All Saints School began its educational activities in 1855. In the districts the first School was established in the year 1874 in Aurangabad city, soon after Anglo Vernacular School was opened in Gulbarga. Like wise favorable environment for the English Medium Schools was created.

The language of Arabic and Persian was fighting its last battle of survival as the medium of instruction, whereas Urdu was positioning itself as the strong contender to this claim. With the arrival of English, a new front was opened, and intensified the race of linguistic competitions in the Hyderabad State. A few nobles and jagirdars felt the necessity of English for their children, as the medium or subject for the sake of acquiring modern knowledge and to increase contacts with the British….

 

From Hyderabad mein Urdu ki Tarraqui..
(The development of Urdu in Hyderabad as educational and administrative language) Hyderabad: Shagoofa publications, 1990. Pages 226-229. Translated by MA Moid.
Syed Mustapha Kamal is editor of the journal Shagoofa.