Geniuses are a rare breed and are born in centuries. Arfa Karim Randhawa was an IT genius. She created a significant place for herself in the IT world at the age of nine, and was declared as the youngest Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) by Microsoft Corporation USA.
Arfa was born to a family belonging to village Chak No 4JB, Ram Dewali in Faisalabad, Punjab, in February 1995. She was a brilliant student and an outstanding computer genius, who at a very tender age, in 2004, stunned the entire world by becoming a MCP – the youngest in the world until 2008. On her remarkable achievement, Bill Gates, Chairman Microsoft Corporation USA extended Arfa an invitation to visit Microsoft Headquarters in Redmond, Washington, USA. Undoubtedly, her visit to the Microsoft Headquarters in the USA was a matter of immense pride and honour not only for herself but the entire Pakistani nation.
Arfa received numerous awards and honours during her very short but extremely illustrious lifetime. After returning to Pakistan from her visit to Microsoft Headquarters in August 2005, she was awarded the Fatima Jinnah Gold Medal in the field of Science and Technology. This award was conferred upon her by a person of not less than the stature of the then Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mr Shaukat Aziz. Yet another prestigious award conferred upon Arfa was the civil award of the country, Pride of Performance Award. Arfa received another prestigious award in 2005 – “Salaam Pakistan Youth Award”. The Punjab government has honoured Arfa by naming a science and IT park after her in Lahore “Arfa Software Technology Park.”
The government of Pakistan is contemplating to confer a prestigious civil award upon late Arfa Karim. This is the least the government could do to acknowledge the contribution and brilliance of Arfa who had earned laurels for this nation and this country, during her very short life span. Arfa deserves more. The government of Pakistan must take tangible measures to fulfil the dreams of Arfa by giving concrete shape to the projects she had planned to implement during her lifetime. In her death, Pakistan has indeed lost a genius who, as very rightly said, is born in centuries.
M FAZAL ELAHI
Islamabad
In our heart arfa is present,
In our thoughts arfa is present,
in the darkness arfa is light,
then who says she is dead..????
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