In memory of late Capt. Fazlur Rahman Chowdhury (1N): Mubashir Ahmed Khan (2E)

I was deeply shocked and grieved on hearing news of the sudden passing away of our dear friend F R Chowdhury in Turkey on 15th October 2022. He was buried on 20th October in the Garden of Peace Cemetery, Chigwell, 1G7 40P, UK. (I attended the funeral and conveyed my condolence to his family members). He left behind family members, relatives and a large number of friends to mourn his death. May his soul rest in peace. All our sympathies are with members of the bereaved family. Though F R Chowdhury has left us physically, but he remains alive in our hearts.

It is difficult to sum up his nice qualities and achievements in this article. This writing is just tip of the iceberg. Late F R Chowdhury was the seniormost mariner belonging to the First Batch of Juldia Marine Academy. He held many important posts relating to marine industry in Bangladesh and abroad. He was pioneer BD mariner to serve with Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), UK. He was also for some period, Commandant of Bangladesh Marine Academy.

Armed with vast experience, F R Chowdhury’s knowledge of maritime affairs in Bangladesh and foreign countries was limitless. He was no doubt a source of inspiration for many BD mariners. In my previous article, “THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF BANGLADESHI MARINERS (1)”, I had written that he was an institution. But now, after his untimely death, I can rightly say that he was a legend.

F R Chowdhury’s innumerable articles published on BD mariners’ website contained a lot of useful information on maritime affairs of Bangladesh and other countries. He was an outspoken person and never hesitated to express his opinion as to what was right and wrong with BD merchant navy. Personally, I would read his articles with interest. In fact, I would print his writings and keep the same in a separate folder. Now, I have with me about more than sixty pages of his articles. It will be a commendable task if all his writings are combined, printed in a book form and made available to all BD mariners.

Personally, I had the privilege of very cordial friendship with late F R Chowdhury. Before Covid, I visited his house in London. He very kindly brought his vehicle to the underground station to pick me. I also used to meet him in BD mariners’ functions held in and outside London. I always enjoyed his company and conversation with him. On occasions, he expressed his appreciation that I, coming from a different background, (Pashto speaking Pathan from north of Pakistan), kept myself associated with BD mariners and attended all their get-together functions held in UK.

UAE, 06.11.2022