TAXILA: Rich tributes were paid to legendary British teacher Hugh Catchpole on his 27th death anniversary on Sunday.

Mr Catchpole had the rare distinction of heading military colleges in India and Pakistan and founded Cadet College Hassanabdal.

Born in 1907, Hugh Catchpole spent almost seven decades outside his country, heading military colleges in two neighbouring South-Asian countries before passing away in 1997. Mr Catchpole was buried in Cadet College Hasanabdal as per his will.

The first air chief, Air Marshal Asghar Khan and his successor Air Marshal Nur Khan were his students at Rashtriya Indian Military College. They had requested him to come to Pakistan and become the founder principal of Cadet College Hassanabdal.

Mr Catchpole was still at Hassanabdal when Air Marshal Asghar Khan handpicked him to join Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Public School Sargodha as principal in 1958.

He stayed there till 1967 and then joined Abbottabad Public School (APS) as Head of English Department, a post he held till his very last.

Mr Catchpole was honoured twice by Queen Elizabeth II - first in 1971 when he was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) and then in 1980, when he was awarded the Commander’s Badge of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), also called the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire.

In 1979, the then president, Gen Mohammad Ziaul Haq, conferred upon Mr Catchpole Sitara-i-Imtiaz for his meritorious services in the field of education.

On June 15, 2007, President Pervez Musharraf conferred upon Mr Catchpole the highest civil award of Pakistan, Hilal-i-Imtiaz, posthumously for his incomparable, selfless and single-minded dedication to the cause of quality education in Pakistan.

A guard of honour was presented by cadets, and wreaths were laid on his grave by his students, as were those of PAF College Sargodha, Abbottabad Public School, and Cadet College Hassanabdal, after which many of the late teacher’s students delivered speeches.

The chief guest at the event was former bureaucrat Saeed Mehdi, who was the first cadet to join Cadet College Hassanabdal, of which Mr Catchpole was the founding principal.

While paying glowing tributes to Hugh Catchpole, his former students who came from across the country stated that Mr Catchpole was an extraordinary educationist, humanist and philanthropist who financed the education of many students and provided scholarship funds in England, India and Pakistan.

The speakers also spoke about their memories, unveiling his strong commitment to education, sense of humour, passion for cricket and strong memory.

One of his former students from APS noted that during his 69 years of service in Pakistan, Mr Catchpole taught thousands of students who have since then done well in their fields and are now working all over the world.

In his address, Saeed Mehdi said Mr Catchpole also laid the foundation for the tradition of academic excellence, which the college cherishes to this day. He said it was due to Catchpole’s hard work that the institution had become a standard for cadet colleges across Pakistan.

Mr Mehdi added that one of Catchpole’s greatest contributions to the subcontinent was the large number of his students who went on to become high achievers in their respective professions.

Cadet College Hassanabdal Principal retired Brig Nasir Saeed Khattak said that he was committed to continuing Catchpole’s legacy.

He added that the British and Pakistani governments had honoured the late educationist for his services.

Mr Khattak further said during the centenary birth celebrations of Mr Catchpole in 2007, over 250 students of Mr Catchpole, even from India, gathered in Hassanabdal.

Published in Dawn, February 5th, 2024