Moosa Raza
Encyclopedia
Moosa Raza is the Chairman of the South Indian Educational Trust (S.I.E.T.), which runs six educational institutions; he is also Chairman of the Executive Committee of Coastal Energen Pvt. Ltd. Raza has written a widely read book, Of Nawabs and Nightingales.
Moosa Raza has been awarded the Padma Bhushan
for the year 2010. He joined the Indian Administrative Service
in 1960 and rose to be the Principal Secretary
to the Chief Minister
of Gujarat. He then served as Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir
, Advisor to the Governor
of Uttar Pradesh
and, in Delhi, as Secretary to the Government of India in the Cabinet Secretariat and in the Ministry of Steel.
and Villupuram in the Villupuram District in the State of Tamilnadu, India
to Ghulam Ali Mehkari and Aasiya Begum. His maternal ancestors hailed from a farming community and belonged to the Nawayath
Clan of South India. His maternal grandfather was the village munsif (District Munsiff Court
) and had a number of villages in the region under his stewardship. Moosa Raza studied in the local village school until the age of 8 studying Urdu
& Arabic after which he moved to Chennai
(Madras) along with his family. He studied in a local school called Madrasa-e-Azam and went on to complete his intermediate from the then Government Arts College (now called Quaid-E-Millath College) in 1955.
He graduated from the Madras Presidency College, (now called Presidency College, Chennai
) University of Madras with Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree in English Language and Literature, in 1958, getting a First Class First. During his days at the college, he won seven college medals, not only of his own department but also from the departments of History, Physics and Economics. He is the only triple gold medal winner from the University, a feat reported by unsurpassed till now. He went on to earn a Masters degree from the same University.
During this time, he was known as a great orator and debater, and member of the quiz team participating in and winning in several in the College and inter-university competitions.
for Gujarat (a state in India) in the year 1960, in the very first attempt.
in Gujarat, from where he later moved to Surendranagar district
and then to Surat
as District Collector. He was picked up by the then Finance Minister of India, Morarji Desai
, to head his home District of Bulsar (Valsad
) for 4 years.
He was given charge of the flood relief operations in 1968 as the Municipal Commissioner when the city and the District of Surat was submerged due to heavy floods in the Tapti river
.
In 1969 he was entrusted the onerous task of managing drought relief operations during the crippling famine and drought that struck Gujarat. As Director of Relief, Moosa Raza covered an area of over 50,000 kilometers, travelling by jeep, car, boats, on camel and on horseback. He was able to bring relief to over 12000 villages across Gujarat by way of providing government employment to over 1.5 million villagers, water to over 7500 villages and cattle feed to save the lives of over 3 million milch cattle, the livelihood of the rural communities in Gujarat.
In 1975, he was appointed as the Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Madhavsinh Solanki
. In 1998, when the state of Jammu and Kashmir
was facing severe turbulence, he was appointed Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir where he helped in controlling the incipient militancy and implementing welfare measures for the State.
He was the youngest Indian Administrative Officer to head the National Textiles Corporation, which then managed over 110 nationalized textile mills with an employment of over 2,00,000 workers. As Managing Director, he helped turn the corporation from a loss making concern into a profitable one and helping save the jobs of over 2,00,000 workers and 25,000 officers.
Later as Chairman and Managing Director of Gujarat State Fertilizers Company Ltd.,
the largest integrated Chemical & Fertilizer Complex of the country, Moosa Raza helped in giving fillip to the industrialization of Gujarat State. For seven continuous years under his stewardship, the Gujarat Sate Fertilizer Company won the National Awards for best productivity, safety and industrial relations. Concurrently, he functioned as the Chairman and Managing Director of the Calico group of Industries, a private sector undertaking under the control of the State Bank of India.
He served as Chairman and Managing Director of India Trade Promotion Organization, a government body engaged in the promotion of India’s domestic and international trade. He also functioned as a Director on several PSUs including Cotton Corporation of India, Gujarat Fisheries Corporation, Marine Products Export Development Authority, Gujarat Narmada Fertilizer Company, etc. Most of the institutions were made to turn the corner during his tenure.
In the wake of the demolition of the Babri Masjid, Moosa Raza was sent as an Advisor to the Governor of Uttar Pradesh where during his tenure, he helped in controlling the law and order situation. Later as Secretary to the Government of India in the Cabinet Secretariat in the Steel Ministry.
, he formulated numerous proposals and policies to liberalize the steel industry of India and set it on the path of expansion and modernization.
He retired from government service in 1995 after 35 years of service as Secretary to the Government of India having served in that position in both the Cabinet Secretariat and the Ministry of Steel.
He has been a Member of the National Integration Council of India headed by the Prime Minister of India for several years. He was Chairman of the Committee appointed by the Government of J & K to recommend measures to devolve power to the people and control corruption. He also served on the Government Committee to review the POTA cases in Jammu & Kashmir and Gujarat as well as the Task Force on Socio-Economic development of J & K headed by the Chief Economic Advisor to the Prime Minister. He was a member of the Arjun Sen Gupta Committee to review reforms in the Public Sector of India. He was also the Convenor of the MOU Task Force for Mining & Mineral Industries of Government of India as also for the Transport Industries Syndicate of Government of India.
Moosa Raza has been recently nominated on the ATF for evaluating performance of Government Departments and Ministries set up by the Prime Minister of India. He is currently a member of the Committee of SCOPE & Ministry of Public Enterprises for awarding Excellence Awards to the PSUs headed by Justice P.N. Bhagwati, former Chief Justice of India.
The National Minorities Commission of India had asked him to lead a delegation of Muslim Clerics and leaders to negotiate with the Hurriyat leaders and Government of J & K for the honourable return of Kashmiri Pandits to the valley.
Moosa Raza was nominated as the President’s nominee on the Senior Selection Committee of Indira Gandhi Open University and since 2009 has been on the Court of Aligarh Muslim University. Since 2000, he has also been functioning as the Chairman of Southern India Education Trust, a minority promoted institution which is running a College for Women, two High Schools, a Centre for Women’s Studies, a Centre for Dyslexic children etc. More than 50% of the 9,000 students of these institutions belong to the majority community.
In view of his long experience with industrial and commercial enterprises, Raza was elected and served as Chairman of the Standing Conference of Public Enterprises, an apex body of over 240 public sector undertakings in India. Moosa Raza also functioned during this period on the governing councils of the Indian Institute of Management (Ahmedabad), the Advanced Management Programme Committee, the Management and Administrative Research Council of India, International Management Institute, New Delhi, and the various expert committees to study public sector reforms and government functioning.
During the course of his services, he has been awarded the President’s Silver medal, the Shiromani Award, the Indira Priyadarshini Award, the Jewel of India Award, the Pride of India award and several other awards.
He has delivered lectures in Chicago, at the Nehru Centre in London and in Dubai, Heidelberg, Germany besides other centres in Inda.
He owns a personal library of over 10,000 books, over 7,000 of which are on Islam. He has delivered lectures on Bhagavad Gita, the Upanishads, Christianity, Buddhism and Sufism.
Raza has traveled widely both within the country and outside. He has led several delegations abroad on behalf of the Government, both diplomatic and commercial, and goes out on speaking assignments on management, country analysis, human resources development, corporate restructuring, project management and related fields. He is also deeply involved in many educational activities, especially for the deprived sections of society and minorities.
Moosa Raza has been awarded the Padma Bhushan
Padma Bhushan
The Padma Bhushan is the third highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan, but comes before the Padma Shri. It is awarded by the Government of India.-History:...
for the year 2010. He joined the Indian Administrative Service
Indian Administrative Service
The Indian Administrative Service is the administrative civil service of the Government of India. It is one of the three All India Services....
in 1960 and rose to be the Principal Secretary
Principal Secretary (India)
The Principal Secretary in India denotes a government official of high seniority and is commonly found in the state governments. There is only one Principal Secretary to the Government of India and that is the Chairman of the Railway Board who is the ex officio Principal Secretary of the Ministry...
to the Chief Minister
Chief Minister
A Chief Minister is the elected head of government of a sub-national state, provinces of Sri Lanka, Pakistan, notably a state of India, a territory of Australia or a British Overseas Territory that has attained self-government...
of Gujarat. He then served as Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir is the northernmost state of India. It is situated mostly in the Himalayan mountains. Jammu and Kashmir shares a border with the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the south and internationally with the People's Republic of China to the north and east and the...
, Advisor to the Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
of Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
and, in Delhi, as Secretary to the Government of India in the Cabinet Secretariat and in the Ministry of Steel.
Early life
Moosa Raza was born on 27 February 1937 in Minambur, a small village located between GingeeGingee
Gingee is a panchayat town in Viluppuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The nearest town with a railway station is Tindivanam, 28 km away....
and Villupuram in the Villupuram District in the State of Tamilnadu, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
to Ghulam Ali Mehkari and Aasiya Begum. His maternal ancestors hailed from a farming community and belonged to the Nawayath
Nawayath
The Nawayaths are a small Muslim community concentrated mostly in coastal Uttara Kannada. It is an ethnic society, having its own unique traditions and distinct cultural identity...
Clan of South India. His maternal grandfather was the village munsif (District Munsiff Court
District Munsiff Court
District Munsiff Court is the court of the lowest order handling matters pertaining to Civil matters in India. Usually it is controlled by the District Court of the respective district. The District Munsif Court is authorised to try matters pertaining to certain pecuniary limits...
) and had a number of villages in the region under his stewardship. Moosa Raza studied in the local village school until the age of 8 studying Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
& Arabic after which he moved to Chennai
Chennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
(Madras) along with his family. He studied in a local school called Madrasa-e-Azam and went on to complete his intermediate from the then Government Arts College (now called Quaid-E-Millath College) in 1955.
He graduated from the Madras Presidency College, (now called Presidency College, Chennai
Presidency College, Chennai
Presidency College is an arts, law and science college in the city of Chennai in Tamil Nadu, India. Established as the Madras Preparatory School on October 15, 1840 and later, upgraded to a high school and then, graduate college, the Presidency College is one of the oldest government arts colleges...
) University of Madras with Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree in English Language and Literature, in 1958, getting a First Class First. During his days at the college, he won seven college medals, not only of his own department but also from the departments of History, Physics and Economics. He is the only triple gold medal winner from the University, a feat reported by unsurpassed till now. He went on to earn a Masters degree from the same University.
During this time, he was known as a great orator and debater, and member of the quiz team participating in and winning in several in the College and inter-university competitions.
Early career
In 1958, the then Vice Chancellor, Sir Lakshman Swami Mudaliar appointed him as an Assistant Professor of English in the Presidency College, his alma mater. At the same time he prepared for the prestigious Indian Administrative Service examinations. He appeared for the selection exams in 1959 and was selected for the Indian Administrative ServiceIndian Administrative Service
The Indian Administrative Service is the administrative civil service of the Government of India. It is one of the three All India Services....
for Gujarat (a state in India) in the year 1960, in the very first attempt.
District Administration Career
Within just 4 years of service, Moosa Raza was posted in 1964 as Collector and District Magistrate in the district of the Banaskantha districtBanaskantha district
Banaskantha is one among the twenty-six districts of the Gujarat state of India. The administrative headquarters of the district is at Palanpur which is also its largest city...
in Gujarat, from where he later moved to Surendranagar district
Surendranagar district
Surendranagar is an administrative district in the state of Gujarat in India. It has a population of approximately 1.7 million people. Surendranagar is also known as Zalawad, as the city of Surendranagar was ruled by Zala Rajputs...
and then to Surat
Surat
Surat , also known as Suryapur, is the commercial capital city of the Indian state of Gujarat. Surat is India's Eighth most populous city and Ninth-most populous urban agglomeration. It is also administrative capital of Surat district and one of the fastest growing cities in India. The city proper...
as District Collector. He was picked up by the then Finance Minister of India, Morarji Desai
Morarji Desai
Morarji Ranchhodji Desai was an Indian independence activist and the fourth Prime Minister of India from 1977–79. He was the first Indian Prime Minister who did not belong to the Indian National Congress...
, to head his home District of Bulsar (Valsad
Valsad
Valsad , formerly known as Bulsar, is a city and a municipality in the Valsad district of the Indian state of Gujarat. The city has a collectorate, a district court, and a police headquarters with a historic prison...
) for 4 years.
He was given charge of the flood relief operations in 1968 as the Municipal Commissioner when the city and the District of Surat was submerged due to heavy floods in the Tapti river
Tapti River
The Tapi River ancient original name Tapi River , is a river in central India. It is one of the major rivers of peninsular India with a length of around 724 km...
.
In 1969 he was entrusted the onerous task of managing drought relief operations during the crippling famine and drought that struck Gujarat. As Director of Relief, Moosa Raza covered an area of over 50,000 kilometers, travelling by jeep, car, boats, on camel and on horseback. He was able to bring relief to over 12000 villages across Gujarat by way of providing government employment to over 1.5 million villagers, water to over 7500 villages and cattle feed to save the lives of over 3 million milch cattle, the livelihood of the rural communities in Gujarat.
In 1975, he was appointed as the Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Madhavsinh Solanki
Madhavsinh Solanki
Madhavsinh Solanki is a former Indian External Affairs Minister from the state of Gujarat.-External links:*http://rajyasabha.nic.in/kiosk/whoswho/alpha_s32.htm...
. In 1998, when the state of Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir is the northernmost state of India. It is situated mostly in the Himalayan mountains. Jammu and Kashmir shares a border with the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the south and internationally with the People's Republic of China to the north and east and the...
was facing severe turbulence, he was appointed Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir where he helped in controlling the incipient militancy and implementing welfare measures for the State.
Public Sector Undertakings
For a major part of his career Moosa Raza functioned as Chairman & Managing Director of several prestigious industrial and commercial enterprises both at the State and Central levels.He was the youngest Indian Administrative Officer to head the National Textiles Corporation, which then managed over 110 nationalized textile mills with an employment of over 2,00,000 workers. As Managing Director, he helped turn the corporation from a loss making concern into a profitable one and helping save the jobs of over 2,00,000 workers and 25,000 officers.
Later as Chairman and Managing Director of Gujarat State Fertilizers Company Ltd.,
the largest integrated Chemical & Fertilizer Complex of the country, Moosa Raza helped in giving fillip to the industrialization of Gujarat State. For seven continuous years under his stewardship, the Gujarat Sate Fertilizer Company won the National Awards for best productivity, safety and industrial relations. Concurrently, he functioned as the Chairman and Managing Director of the Calico group of Industries, a private sector undertaking under the control of the State Bank of India.
He served as Chairman and Managing Director of India Trade Promotion Organization, a government body engaged in the promotion of India’s domestic and international trade. He also functioned as a Director on several PSUs including Cotton Corporation of India, Gujarat Fisheries Corporation, Marine Products Export Development Authority, Gujarat Narmada Fertilizer Company, etc. Most of the institutions were made to turn the corner during his tenure.
In the wake of the demolition of the Babri Masjid, Moosa Raza was sent as an Advisor to the Governor of Uttar Pradesh where during his tenure, he helped in controlling the law and order situation. Later as Secretary to the Government of India in the Cabinet Secretariat in the Steel Ministry.
, he formulated numerous proposals and policies to liberalize the steel industry of India and set it on the path of expansion and modernization.
He retired from government service in 1995 after 35 years of service as Secretary to the Government of India having served in that position in both the Cabinet Secretariat and the Ministry of Steel.
Post IAS Career
Since retirement from active Government service, Moosa Raza has served on several Committees of State and Central Governments, the private sector as well as charity and non-profit organizations. For 5 years, he served as the Chairman of the Iridium India Telecom Co., and also on the Board of Iridium International at Washington.He has been a Member of the National Integration Council of India headed by the Prime Minister of India for several years. He was Chairman of the Committee appointed by the Government of J & K to recommend measures to devolve power to the people and control corruption. He also served on the Government Committee to review the POTA cases in Jammu & Kashmir and Gujarat as well as the Task Force on Socio-Economic development of J & K headed by the Chief Economic Advisor to the Prime Minister. He was a member of the Arjun Sen Gupta Committee to review reforms in the Public Sector of India. He was also the Convenor of the MOU Task Force for Mining & Mineral Industries of Government of India as also for the Transport Industries Syndicate of Government of India.
Moosa Raza has been recently nominated on the ATF for evaluating performance of Government Departments and Ministries set up by the Prime Minister of India. He is currently a member of the Committee of SCOPE & Ministry of Public Enterprises for awarding Excellence Awards to the PSUs headed by Justice P.N. Bhagwati, former Chief Justice of India.
The National Minorities Commission of India had asked him to lead a delegation of Muslim Clerics and leaders to negotiate with the Hurriyat leaders and Government of J & K for the honourable return of Kashmiri Pandits to the valley.
Moosa Raza was nominated as the President’s nominee on the Senior Selection Committee of Indira Gandhi Open University and since 2009 has been on the Court of Aligarh Muslim University. Since 2000, he has also been functioning as the Chairman of Southern India Education Trust, a minority promoted institution which is running a College for Women, two High Schools, a Centre for Women’s Studies, a Centre for Dyslexic children etc. More than 50% of the 9,000 students of these institutions belong to the majority community.
In view of his long experience with industrial and commercial enterprises, Raza was elected and served as Chairman of the Standing Conference of Public Enterprises, an apex body of over 240 public sector undertakings in India. Moosa Raza also functioned during this period on the governing councils of the Indian Institute of Management (Ahmedabad), the Advanced Management Programme Committee, the Management and Administrative Research Council of India, International Management Institute, New Delhi, and the various expert committees to study public sector reforms and government functioning.
Social Work
Moosa Raza is the Founder Trustee of the India Islamic Cultural Centre, New Delhi, and as its Director General he helped set it up as an institution for establishing communal harmony and build understanding between various communities of India. He is a Member of Sarvodaya International, Tamilnadu Chapter, Chennai and a Member of the National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language.Honours
Mr. Moosa Raza was conferred the prestigious award of Padma Bhushan in the Republic Day Honours in 2010.During the course of his services, he has been awarded the President’s Silver medal, the Shiromani Award, the Indira Priyadarshini Award, the Jewel of India Award, the Pride of India award and several other awards.
Literary Work
Moosa Raza has authored a book titled “of Nawabs and Nightingales” which is a collection of his early experiences in the Indian Administrative Service. His book was very favorably reviewed by the noted author, Khushwant Singh in newspapers and magazines.Other Interests
Apart from his hands on experience in managing large enterprises, Moosa Raza has been intimately concerned with theories of management and governance, study of comparative religion, Islamic and Indian history, philosophy and law and has written several articles on these subjects. Extensively read in European and Indian history and Sufism, Raza has a deep knowledge of human motivation, ethos and culture of both the west and the east.He has delivered lectures in Chicago, at the Nehru Centre in London and in Dubai, Heidelberg, Germany besides other centres in Inda.
He owns a personal library of over 10,000 books, over 7,000 of which are on Islam. He has delivered lectures on Bhagavad Gita, the Upanishads, Christianity, Buddhism and Sufism.
Raza has traveled widely both within the country and outside. He has led several delegations abroad on behalf of the Government, both diplomatic and commercial, and goes out on speaking assignments on management, country analysis, human resources development, corporate restructuring, project management and related fields. He is also deeply involved in many educational activities, especially for the deprived sections of society and minorities.