Abid Hussain (26 December 1926 21 June 2012) was an Indian economist, civil servant and diplomat. He was India's ambassador to the United States of America from 1990 to 1992 and a member of the
Planning Commission from 1985 to 1990.
Personal life
He was married to Trilok Karki, author of "Sino-Indian Conflict and International Politics in the Indian Sub-Continent", (1977) and had three children: Suhail Hasan, Vishaka Hussain, and Rana Hasan. His brother is the actor and mime artist
Irshad Panjatan
Irshad Panjatan (born 7 September 1931) is an Indian actor and veteran mime artist, based in Berlin, who introduced the art form to India during the 1960s. He started his career as stage actor, acted in few Bollywood films, and later received acc ...
, who played in the German film ''
Der Schuh des Manitu
''Der Schuh des Manitu'' (eng.: ''The Shoe of Manitou'') is a 2001 German Western parody film. Directed by Michael Herbig, it is a film adaptation of the Winnetou sketches from his ProSieben television show '' Bullyparade''. With earnings of a ...
''. Dr. Hussain grew up in his hometown Hyderabad, in
Hyderabad State, where he studied at the
Nizam College
The Nizam College is a constituent college of Osmania University established in 1887 during the reign of Mir Mahbub Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VI, in Basheerbagh, Hyderabad, Telangana.
History
The Nizampur University College was originally the "Mirsar ...
in 1942.
Career
He served as India's ambassador to the United States of America from 1990 to 1992. He also served as secretary in the Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Heavy Industry as a member of the
Indian Administrative Service
The Indian Administrative Service (IAS) is the administrative arm of the All India Services of Government of India. Considered the premier civil service of India, the IAS is one of the three arms of the All India Services along with the India ...
. He was a Member of India's
Planning Commission from 1985 to 1990.
As India's ambassador to the US and one of several prominent Muslim-Indian leaders, Hussain was a staunch defender of Israel and the Jewish people, who actively sought to convince Prime Minister PV Narsimha Rao that Israel would give the country a superior edge over Pakistan, and that an alliance with the Jewish state was indispensable to India's long-term interests.
Hussain was honoured in 1988 with the
Padma Bhushan
The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...
(awarded to recognise distinguished service of a high order to the nation) and has been at the forefront of India's economic and trade reforms since the 1980s. He chaired six important committees set up by the Government of India covering Trade Policy Reforms; Project Exports; CSIR Review Committee for Development of Science and Technology; Textile Policy of the Government of India; Development of Capital Market; and Small Scale Industry. Of these, the Abid Hussain Committee Report on Trade Policy Reform and the Abid Hussain Committee Report on Small Scale Industries have been regarded as milestones in India's economic reforms.
He was also president of Katha, chairman of Research Council of National Institute of Science, Technology & Development Studies (CSIR); India-China Economic & Cultural Council; Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan, NOIDA Kendra, member of the board of trustees of the
Observer Research Foundation
Observer Research Foundation (ORF) is an independent global think tank based in Delhi, India. The foundation has three centres in Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. ORF provides potentially viable inputs for policy and decision-makers in the Ind ...
, member of the board of governors of Himgiri Zee University, Dehra Dun and several other cultural organisations. He was a member of the Nehru Memorial Fund; the
Asia Society
The Asia Society is a non-profit organization that focuses on educating the world about Asia. It has several centers in the United States (Manhattan, Washington, D.C., Houston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco) and around the world (Hong Kong, Ma ...
, New York; Population Foundation of India; Foundation for Academic Excellence & Access;
Administrative Staff College of India
Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI), was started jointly by the Government of India and the representatives of industry as an autonomous institute in the year 1956 to impart training in the field of Civil Services development. It is loc ...
, Hyderabad; Shankar Lall Murli Dhar Memorial Society; and the Governing Council of Ranbaxy Science Foundation.
In addition, he was president of Lovraj Memorial Trust and a member of Academy of the Kingdom of Morocco and BP Koirala Foundation (Nepal).
Hussain was for nine years special rapporteur to UN on freedom of opinion and expression. He was a member of the Constitution Review Commission set up by Government of India. He was a member of the Prasar Bharati Board till April 2001. Till recently Hussain was a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, New York.
During his long standing career he was U.N adviser on Turkey on community development for two years and also chief of industrial, technology, human settlements and environment in the UN Regional Commission of ESCAP, Bangkok for seven years. He has also been vice-chairman of
Rajiv Gandhi Foundation
The Rajiv Gandhi Foundation was established on 21 June 1991. The foundation works on a range of issues including literacy, health, disability, empowerment of the underprivileged, livelihoods and natural resource management. Its current focus ar ...
, chancellor of
Central University, Hyderabad, and trustee of the
Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts
Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), New Delhi is a premier government-funded arts organization in India. It is an autonomous institute under the Union Ministry of Culture.
History
The Indira Gandhi National centre for art ...
Trust. Hussain presided over several national and international conferences and contributes papers on contemporary issues.
He was an active member of civil society and contributed to contemporary debates on a wide range of issues including
globalisation,
Internet censorship
Internet censorship is the legal control or suppression of what can be accessed, published, or viewed on the Internet. Censorship is most often applied to specific internet domains (such as Wikipedia.org) but exceptionally may extend to all Inte ...
,
gender issues
Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most culture ...
,
freedom of expression, and
cultural relativism
Cultural relativism is the idea that a person's beliefs and practices should be understood based on that person's own culture. Proponents of cultural relativism also tend to argue that the norms and values of one culture should not be evaluated ...
.
On 21 June 2012, Abid Hussain died in London due to a massive heart attack.
At the time of his death, Hussain was chancellor of English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad; chancellor of ICFAI Foundation for Higher Education, member on the board of trustees, of India Development Foundation of Overseas Indians (Ministry of External Affairs), member of International Panel on Democracy & Development of UNESCO; professor emeritus at Indian Institute of Foreign Trade; professor emeritus at the Foreign Service Institute of Ministry of External Affairs; chairman of Ghalib Academy and vice-president of Rumi Foundation.
Awards
Hussain was honoured with the
Padma Bhushan
The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...
in 1988 for meritorious services.
See also
*
Syed Akbaruddin
Syed Akbaruddin is a retired Indian civil servant from 1985 batch of the Indian Foreign Service and served as India's permanent representative at the United Nations at New York from January 2016 to April 2020. He had previously served as offi ...
References and notes
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hussain, Abid
1926 births
2012 deaths
20th-century Indian economists
20th-century Indian educational theorists
Ambassadors of India to the United States
Indian civil servants
Indian Shia Muslims
Osmania University alumni
Politicians from Hyderabad, India
Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in civil service
Scientists from Hyderabad, India