Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of Zaheer Science Foundation (ZSF)

Friday, 29th July 2022 at 05:00 pm (Hybrid Mode)
Zaheer Science Foundation- 4, Udyan Marg, New Delhi

The following members were present in person:

1. Prof. Harsh K. Gupta, Chairman, ZSF
2. Prof. Zahid H. Khan, Vice Chairman, ZSF
3. Dr. Tabassum Jamal, Secretary, ZSF
4. Mohd. Rais, Member Governing Council, ZSF
5. Dr. Naresh Kumar, Member, ZSF
6. Dr. Subhan Khan, Member, ZSF
7. Ms. Shabnam, Member, ZSF
8. Mr. Monis Kidwai, Member, ZSF
9. Ms. Manju Bagai (Legal Advisor) was also present as a special invitee.

In addition, the following were present virtually via zoom link:

1. Dr. T. Ramasami, Patron, ZSF
2. Dr. D. Shailaja, Member GC, ZSF
3. Dr. M. Irfan Qureshi, Member GC, ZSF
4. Dr. Asad Ullah Khan, Treasure, ZSF
5. Dr. Seema Wahab, Member, ZSF
6. Dr. Abhishek Kumar, Member ZSF
7. Dr. Bhagirath Choudhary, Member, ZSF
8. Mr. Javed Yunus, Member, ZSF
9. Dr. Y. Madhavi, Member, ZSF
10. Dr. Yogesh Suman, Member, ZSF
11. Dr. S. Siraj Hasan, Member, ZSF
12. Dr. Mahesh Kumar Saini, Member, ZSF
13. Shri Mehmood Khan, Member, ZSF
14. Prof. Dr. Badrul Islam Kairanvi, Member, ZSF

The following members informed of their inability to attend the meeting due to their prior commitments:

1.Prof. S. S. Siddique, Member GC, ZSF

2. Prof. Atiya Habeeb Kidwai, Member ZSF

The following agenda items were taken up for information:

Agenda Item # 1

The Chairman extended a warm welcome to all members of the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the foundation and informed them about the last AGM held on 23rd April 2010, chaired by Dr. A. R. Kidwai, the then Chairman of ZSF. He also informed the AGM about the present interim Governing Council constituted on 4th February 2022, a virtual meeting of the ZSF governing Council.

The present interim Governing Council members are the following:

Patrons:  Dr. G. Thyagarajan

              Dr. T. Ramasami

1. Prof. Dr. Harsh K. Gupta Interim Chairman
2. Prof. Dr. Zahid H. Khan Vice-Chairman
3. Dr. Tabassum Jamal Secretary
4. Md. Asad U. Khan Treasurer
5. Dr. Girish Sahni Member
6. Dr. Seema Wahab Member
7. Prof. Shahid S. Siddiqui Member
8. Dr. D. Shailaja Member
9. Dr. Mohd. Rais Member
10. Dr. M. Irfan Qureshi Member

Agenda Item # 2

The Chairman ZSF Prof. Harsh Gupta informed the AGM about the minutes of the Last Annual General Meeting which was held on April 23rd, 2010.

Agenda Item # 3

The chairman of ZSF informed the AGM of the present Status of Accounts and Balances of ZSF on the following points:

1. Status of Income Tax return (ITR) filed • Last ITR for AY. 2019-2020 had already been submitted. • The ITR’s for the AY. 2020-2021, 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 are in the process of preparation as per the information provided by the Accountant engaged by ZSF for this purpose.

2. ‘Handing Over’ & ‘Taking Over’ Charge Given the extra-ordinary circumstances in ZSF due to the sad demise of the former Chairman of ZSF, Dr. Mohsin U. Khan, on 05th May 2021, the said post of Chairman remaining unfilled for a reasonably very long time. The then Secretary cum Treasurer Dr. Y.P. Kathuria expressed his inability to continue to serve further in the above capacity which was approved by the Governing Council meeting held on 4th February 2022. It is to be noted that no ‘Handing Over’ and ‘Taking Over’ charge could take place in the given circumstances.

Agenda Item # 4

Secretary, ZSF presented a summary note on the following:

• Situation/Circumstances before 7th August 2021

• Meeting of Governing Council held on 7th August 2021 at ZSF

• Virtual meeting of Governing Council held on 4th Feb. 2022

• Meeting of Governing Council held on 17th May 2022 at ZSF

• Expansion of the activities of ZSF to enhance its visibility and wide publicity through various training programmes and outreach activities besides organising Seminars, workshops and Brainstorming Sessions.

• Updating on a few important activities of ZSF:

• Website Renovation
• Audio Visual Clips to showcase ZSF activities
• Communication regarding the renewal of MoU’s,

• Reporting on a few important activities of ZSF in the recent past:

• A half-day workshop on Science of Yoga on 28th June 2022.
• Approval by the Governing Council of UNESCO-IDL, events 2022.

The following three events were approved by the UNESCO–IDL 2022 Steering Committee Chair and published in its Calendar of Events:

•  Workshop on Disruption of Education during the Covid-19 Pandemic; (Date of Event: 30/08/2022).
•  Training on Scientific Film Making Using Mobile Phone; (Date of Event: 26/09/2022).
•  Conclave on Science Diplomacy, with Focus on “Science for Small Nations” (Date of Event: 07/11/2022)

• Research Areas to Focus On

1. Information & Communication Technology (ICT)in Education
2. Science Popularisation
3. Environmental Challenges
4. Emerging Trends in Biotechnology
5. Inspiring & Engaging Women In Science
6. Technological Interventions &Micro Enterprises (Focus on North-East)
7. State S&T Councils & Regional Development 8. Science Diplomacy (Focus on Science for Small Nations)

Agenda Item # 5

The AGM approved the list of new Individual Members of ZSF as recommended by the Governing Council Meeting held on 17th May, 2022.

(The list of new Individual members is attached)

Agenda Item # 6

The Chairman ZSF requested the AGM members to give their suggestions/inputs to make ZSF more visible and meaningful as per the given mandate of the organisation.

Inputs received from the members are the following:

• Dr. T. Ramasami suggested ZSF to prioritise its activities in the area of Science, Technology and Innovation policies, especially for the low-resource countries to address their special needs and sustainable development issues. He also emphasised the need to take up the research work on policies and strategies which can integrate the small and disadvantaged nations with global scientific Initiatives.

• Dr. D. Shailja in her remarks suggested ZSF to take up outreach activities and hands-on training programmes for upskilling the post-pandemic working areas. She also offered her support in organising the meet on Science for Small Nations and suggested planning this event with the collaboration of CSIR-IICT at Hyderabad.

• Dr. Bhagirath Choudhary appreciated the points suggested by Dr. Ramasami and Dr. Harsh Gupta and said that we need a critical mass of people who could actually drive this agenda in years to come and emphasised that more institutions and organisations should come together to work in collaborative mode. He also mentioned that we should optimise and mobilise our resources for achieving the scientific and technological development.

• Dr. Subhan Khan, Patron, Mewat Development Society (MDS- a renowned NGO working on community-led local development to aid grassroots development in the Mewat Region for last thirty years) Haryana, appreciated the work done by ZSF in organising national and international seminars and conferences helping in disseminating the scientific knowledge. He also mentioned that MDS would be interested to undertake a collaborative programme with ZSF for the popularization and dissemination of scientific knowledge in the rural areas and also to promote technical and vocational education for the weaker section, especially in the aspirational district of Mewat.

• Mr. Monis Kidwai appreciated the initiative to call for this Annual General Meeting after a long gap of twelve years. He praised the activities initiated by the present Governing Council and offered his support to further strengthen the academic programmes of the foundation.

• Dr. Abhishek made his remarks and appreciated the work done by ZSF in the last many years organising national and international seminars and conferences helping in disseminating scientific knowledge and suggested that ZSF to continue its research activities in the science policy domain.

• Dr. Islam appreciated the recent event organised by ZSF on the Science of Yoga. He showed his interest to participate in various research activities of ZSF and offered his full support in organising the collaborative event with ZSF on research-based Scientific Yoga Techniques for working officials as well for school and college students.

• Dr. Yogesh Suman in his remarks mentioned that we should optimise and mobilise our resources for raising the revenues for the foundation. He mentioned that ZSF may take up some research activities focusing on technological interventions, especially with CSIR-developed technologies to help the Micro Enterprises in the rural areas.

• Mr. Asad Ullah Khan, Treasurer ZSF informed the members about the present financial status of ZSF as also detailed above in Agenda Item no 3. He also informed that the financial condition of ZSF is not in good Shape. Currently, the income at ZSF is limited and expenses are going up. Therefore there is an urgent need to think collectively to mobilize resources for smooth functioning in coming times.

Dr. M. Rais in his remarks suggested that ZSF to take up outreach activities and training programmes related to S&T policy areas and a specific proposal in this regard may be submitted to the relevant agencies.

• Dr. Irfan Qureshi suggested to widen the horizon of the ZSF objectives by organising more programmes at the public educational institutions and universities. He also mentioned that ZSF should also organise extension and outreach programmes for general awareness about climate change and environment protection.

The valuable inputs received from the members were appreciated and noted with thanks.

The meeting concluded with thanks to the chair.