A BIOGRAPHY OF JAMILUR REZA CHOUDHURY
(15 November 1943 – 28 April 2020 )
Structural Engineering
A BIOGRAPHY OF JAMILUR REZA CHOUDHURY
Jamilur Reza Choudhury is a Bangladeshi engineer, academician, and writer who established his recognition both nationally and internationally. He is a professor of Mechanical Engineering at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET).
Choudhury has made significant contributions to the field of engineering in Bangladesh. He has played a major role in establishing the Bangladesh Society of Mechanical Engineers (BSME) and the Bangladesh Academy of Sciences (BAS). He was the first vice chancellor of BRAC University and former vice chancellor of University of Asia Pacific.
Choudhury’s work has been recognized both nationally and internationally. He received several awards for his achievements.
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Table of Contents
ToggleLife of “Jamilur Reza Choudhury” At a Glance:
Known For: Academics, research, civil engineering, former adviser to Caretaker Government of Bangladesh
Born: 15 November 1943
Birthplace: Sylhet, Assam Province, British India
Father: Abid Reza Choudhury
Mother: Hayatun Nessa Choudhury
Spouse: Selina Nowroz Choudhury
Children :
Charisma Farheen Choudhury
Kaashif Reza Choudhury
Nationality: Bangladeshi
Awards:
Dr. Rashid Gold medal
Bangladesh Engineering Institution Gold medal
Rotary Seed Award
Bangladesh Computer Society Gold Medal
Lions International (District-315) Gold Medal
ICT Champion Award
Sheltech Award
Received an honorary doctorate degree from the University of Manchester
Jica Recognition Award
Star Lifetime Award
Ekushey Padak
BDI Lifetime Achievement Award
Order of the Rising Sun
Died: 28 April 2020
Age: 76 years
Early Life
Jamilur Reza Choudhury was born in Sylhet on 15 November 1943. His father, Abid Reza Choudhury (1905-1991), developed his identity as a civil engineer who had migrated to Dhaka in 1952 (after the Partition of India) from Rangauty, a rural area of Hailakandi (Assam, India). In the year 1929, Abid Reza Choudhury was the first Muslim completed his graduation from Bengal Engineering and Science University.
His mother namingly Hayatun Nessa Choudhury (1922-2010), a homemaker, came from Nitainagar area of Hailakandi. Among five siblings Jamilur is the middle child.
Education
Jamilur Reza Choudhury began his school in 1950 at the age of 6 at Mymensingh Zilla School. In the year 1952, his family moved to Dhaka from Mymensingh. For this reason, he transferred to Nawabpur Government High School. And later transferred to a private Catholic school, St Gregory’s High School, in 1953.
Jamilur attended Dhaka College from 1957-1959 and earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) in 1963. Upon graduating from BUET in the same year he became a lecturer in the Civil Engineering Department.
He completed a Masters of Science in Engineering Degree (advanced structural engineering) in 1965 and then a Ph.D. in structural engineering in 1968, both at University of Southampton.
Career
Right after the publication of his B Sc. Engineering results, he joined as a faculty member of BUET before formal appointment. In November 1963, he formally joined as a lecturer of the Department of Civil Engineering and began his teaching career. In September 1964 he was awarded a scholarship by Burmashell to continue M.Sc in Structural Engineering.
In 1968, he completed his Ph.D. degree on the topic of “Shear Wall & Structural Analysis of High rise Building”. After that, he returned to former East Pakistan in 1968 and joined BUET as an assistant professor until the demise of East Pakistan.
In 1973, after Bangladesh received its recognition, he was promoted to associate professor from assistant professor of Bangladesh University of Engineering & Technology (BUET) and in 1976 to a full professor. In 1975, he received an offer on a Nuffield scholarship to pursue a postdoctoral Fellowship at Surrey University in the UK. Until 2001 he was working as a Professor at BUET.
He was assigned with the development of a “Computer Center” at BUET and was appointed as the director for about 10 years. He served as a vice-chancellor of BRAC University between 2001 and 2010. Later Choudhury was appointed as the chairman of the task force for developing Software Export & IT Infrastructure in Bangladesh from 1997 to 2000 under the Ministry of Commerce.
His immense popularity and respect made him the president of the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB) for the period of 1992-93. He was appointed as the Adviser (Minister) in the Non-Party Caretaker Government in April, 1996 and took charge of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources and the Ministry of Water Resources. Along with top-tier leadership activities, Prof. Jamilur Reza Choudhury also served as the head of many other govt. and non-govt. committees and organizations.
Jamilur Reza Choudhury was the chairman of Board of Directors of Bangladesh Shilpa Bank (1996 – 1998), Chairman of the Board of Governors, Bangladesh Institute of Technology, Chittagong (1997-2004). He was also the Vice President of the Bangladesh Computer Society and founder president of Bangladesh Earthquake Society etc.
He was the Chairman of the Board of Accreditation for Engineering and Technical Education (BAETE), Bangladesh. He was a Fellow of Institution of Civil Engineers (U.K.) and was a Chartered Engineer, UK. he was also the president of Bangladesh Mathematical Olympiad Committee, and was trying to develop the awareness of mathematics among the school and college students of Bangladesh.
Moreover, he was a ranking member of the Prime Minister’s Task Force on developing Digital Bangladesh. He was involved with several local and international organizations. He was also working as the vice-chancellor of the University of Asia Pacific (UAP). Because of his intelligence, he was later appointed as the Technical Adviser of Padma Bridge.
Personal Life
Prof. Jamilur Reza Choudhury was married to Mrs. Selina Choudhury. They were blessed with daughter Charisma Farheen Choudhury and son Kaashif Reza Choudhury.
Achievements
He received the Bangladesh Engineering Institution Gold Medal and was awarded honorary degree of Doctor of Engineering by Manchester University as the first Bangladeshi to receive this honor from a British University.
In 2018, he was adorned with the Order of the Rising Sun: Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, a highest international honor conferred by the Japanese Government. In recognition of his contribution to the society, Bangladesh Govt. declared him as a National Professor in June 2018
Research And Publications
Jamilur Reza Choudhury published more than 70 research articles in various local and foreign journals. In his PhD research, he came across an easier way to analyze ‘sheer walls’ of multistoried buildings. This process later became familiar as Coull and Choudhury’s Method. It is now a part of the syllabus in civil engineering departments in many universities at home and abroad.
He did research on many different subjects including construction of multistoried buildings, construction of buildings at low cost, designs of earthquake-proof buildings and construction of cyclone-proof buildings.
Awards
Dr. Rashid Gold medal, (1997)
Bangladesh Engineering Institution Gold medal (1998)
Rotary Seed Award, (2000)
Bangladesh Computer Society Gold Medal (2005)
Lions International (District-315) Gold Medal (2007)
ICT Champion Award by Bangladesh Association for Software and IT Services (BASIS, 2009)
Sheltech Award (2010)
Received an honorary doctorate degree from the University of Manchester(2010)
Jica Recognition Award (2013)
Star Lifetime Award (2016)
Ekushey Padak (2017)
BDI Lifetime Achievement Award (2017)
Order of the Rising Sun, 3rd Class, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon (2018)
Death
At the age of 76 years Jamilur Reza Choudhury died on 28 April 2020 with a heart attack at his home in Dhanmondi, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
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