Saturday, February 13, 2010

Nasreen Jalil


Nasreen Jalil was born in Lahore on 22 February 1947, then part of colonial India, her family were originally from the United Provinces (U.P.) but had settled in Karachi.

She was educated at the Adabistan-e-Soophia Lahore from where she got her primary education. She went to the United Kingdom at a very young age and was educated at the Savernake School of London for her Middle Standard education. After her return to Pakistan, she completed her secondary and higher secondary education in Karachi from 1958 to 1962. She did her Matriculation from PECHS College in 1960 then she joined Home Economics College later on she got admission in Karachi University. Her interest in learning the Occidental languages and literatures motivated her to go to Paris in 1963 and learn the French language. she came back to Pakistan after a year, rejoined Karachi University and completed her Honours in English Literature in 1966.

Nasreen Jalil took a keen interest in the extra-curricular activities during her academic career and was very active in social welfare activities at the academic institutions she attended and also at the community level. She learned to fly at Aero Club and got her Commercial Pilot License in 1966. She was an instructor of flying at Hong Kong Aero Club. Then she got married and have four children. She has also worked for "Bahboud", a welfare organization in Karachi, since 1970.

Nasreen Jalil is a widely travelled person and has been to the United Kingdom, South Africa, France, the United States, Canada, Saudi Arabia and a number of other countries of Europe, Africa and Far Eastern Regions and academic, excursion, business, political and parliamentary missions.

Nasreen Jalil was elected to the senate of Pakistan in March 1994 for a six-year term. She was member of the Senate Standing Committees and Commerce and on Foreign Affairs, Kashmir Affairs and Northern Affairs and on Health, Social Welfare and special Education and also Chairperson on Functional Committee on Human Rights. On January 2006 she became Naib Nazim of Karachi, during the swearing in ceremony Jalil pledged that underdeveloped areas of the city would be developed and also that women's rights would be safeguarded. (Source: Wikipedia)