https://en.bharatpedia.org/w/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Viqar-un-Nisa_NoonViqar-un-Nisa Noon - Revision history2026-08-18T17:56:59ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.43.6https://en.bharatpedia.org/w/index.php?title=Viqar-un-Nisa_Noon&diff=285518&oldid=prev->Hrksmp at 12:38, 1 December 20212021-12-01T12:38:18Z<p></p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{short description|Pakistani political leader}}<br />
{{Use Pakistani English|date=May 2014}}<br />
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2014}}<br />
{{Infobox officeholder<br />
| name = Viqar un Nisa Noon<br />
| image = Viqar-un-Nisa Noon.jpg<br />
| caption = Noon in 1958<br />
| predecessor = [[Ra'ana Liaquat Ali Khan]]<br />
| successor = [[Nusrat Bhutto]]<br />
| order = [[First Ladies and Gentlemen of Pakistan|First Lady of Pakistan]]<br />
| term_start = 16 December 1957<br />
| term_end = 7 October 1958<br />
| alongside = <!--For two or more people serving in the same position from the same district. (e.g. United States Senators.)--><br />
| spouse = [[Feroz Khan Noon]]<br />
| nationality = [[Austria]]n<br/>[[Pakistani]]<br />
| birth_date = {{birth year| July 1920}}<br />
| death_date = 16 January 2000 (aged 79)<br />
| birth_place = [[Austria]]<br />
| death_place = [[Islamabad]], [[Pakistan]]<br />
| awards = [[Nishan-e-Imtiaz]] (Medal of Excellence) by the [[Government of Pakistan]] in 1959<br />
}}<br />
'''Begum Viqar un Nisa''' (also known as '''Victoria Rekha''' or ‘[[Lady]] Noon’; 1920 &ndash; 16 January 2000) was the [[First Lady of Pakistan]] from 1957 to 1958. By profession, she was a [[social]] worker. She married 7th Pakistani Prime Minister Sir [[Feroz Khan Noon]] in 1945 and also participated in the [[Pakistan Movement]], which led to the creation of the [[Islamic Republic of Pakistan]]. Viqar was an [[Austria]]n by [[birth]] and origin, and was born as Victoria in July 1920.<ref>[[Larry Collins (writer)|Larry Collins]] and [[Dominique Lapierre]], ''[[Freedom at Midnight]]'', 1975.</ref><ref name=begumnoon>{{cite web|title=Profile of Begum Viqar-un-Nisa [1920-2000]|url=http://www.storyofpakistan.com/person.asp?perid=P032|website=Story of Pakistan website|access-date=22 September 2021}}</ref><br />
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==Involvement with Pakistan Movement==<br />
After her marriage, she converted to Islam, and renamed herself from Victoria to Viqar un Nisa. The Noons left [[Delhi]] the same year after Sir [[Feroz Khan Noon]] resigned from the [[Viceroy of India|Indian Viceroy]]'s cabinet, and moved to [[Lahore]].<ref name=begumnoon /> Lady Noon had firsthand exposure to Pakistani politics and involved herself with local politics, becoming a member of the Punjab Provincial Women's Subcommittee, organizing rallies and processions for the [[All-India Muslim League|Muslim League]]. During the [[Civil disobedience movement]] in [[Punjab, Pakistan|Punjab]], Lady Noon helped organize protests and demonstrations against the British-backed [[Malik Khizar Hayat Tiwana]]'s cabinet, being arrested three times.<ref name=begumnoon /><br />
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==Accession of Gwadar==<br />
Viqar-un-Nisa Noon played a big role in accession of [[Gwadar]] to Pakistan. She reportedly worked hard in London in 1956 to get Gwadar for Pakistan through British PM and parliament's approval for British colony Oman to give custody to Pakistan. She visited [[Winston Churchill]] for lobbying at [[British parliament]] in 1956 for ' Gwadar port' to be given to Pakistan<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ourbeacon.com/cgi-bin/bbs60x/webbbs_config.pl/md/read/id/314123119252656|title=Gwadar, Victoria and Aga Khan|website=www.ourbeacon.com}}</ref> and get approval from [[House of Lords]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.reddit.com/r/pakistan/comments/aqram1/viqar_ul_nisa_the_woman_who_helped_pakistan/|title=r/pakistan - Viqar Ul Nisa, the woman who helped Pakistan obtain Gwadar (Info in comments)|website=reddit|date=15 February 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://dailytimes.com.pk/243413/who-do-we-thank-for-gwadar/|title=Who do we thank for Gwadar?|date=23 May 2018|newspaper=Daily Times (newspaper)|access-date=22 September 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.quora.com/Why-did-Oman-sell-Gwadar-to-Pakistan|title=Why did Oman sell Gwadar to Pakistan?|website=Quora.com website|access-date=22 September 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://dailyurducolumns.com/column/ali-ahmad-dhillon/gwadar-ki-shaan-begum-waqar-un-nisa-noon.aspx|title=Gwadar Ki Shaan, Begum Waqar Un Nisa Noon!|first=Ali Ahmad|last=Dhillon|date=17 January 2019|website=Daily Urdu Columns}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tbNvAAAAQBAJ&q=gwadar+british+parliament&pg=PA89|title=Oman, Culture and Diplomacy|first=Jeremy|last=Jones|date=10 March 2013|publisher=Edinburgh University Press|isbn=9780748674633|via=Google Books}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1452133|title=Purchase of Gwadar|date=18 December 2018|newspaper=Dawn (newspaper)|access-date=22 September 2021}}</ref><br />
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==Social work==<br />
Following the [[Partition of India|independence]] of [[Pakistan]] in 1947 and the mass transfer of people across the border, she engaged in ameliorating the refugee crisis, lending assistance to various refugee camps and committees.<ref name=begumnoon /> She was involved with the [[Red Cross]] and engaged herself in local social work. She helped found [[Viqar un Nisa College for Women, Rawalpindi]], [[Pakistan]]<ref name=begumnoon /> and the [[Viqarunnisa Noon School]], a famous school for girls in [[Dhaka]], [[Bangladesh]].<ref name=VNEF/><br />
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==Later life==<br />
Her husband Feroz Khan Noon later became the first Governor of [[East Pakistan]] and ultimately the [[Prime Minister of Pakistan]] in 1957. After his death, she continued to be involved in social work activities, along with other prominent lady social workers of Pakistan, such as late [[Begum Mahmooda Salim Khan]], [[Attiya Inayatullah]] and [[Begum Zari Sarfaraz]]; and remained a senior and executive member of such organisations as the Family Planning Association of Pakistan, [[Pakistan Red Crescent Society]], the National Crafts Council of Pakistan and others.<ref name=VNEF/><br />
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For a brief while, she also remained Federal Minister for Tourism and Culture in the [[Government of Pakistan]], during the regime of [[Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq]]. In her later life, she spent a great deal of her time at her cottage "Al-Feroz", in the hills near [[Abbottabad]], Pakistan, and in scenic [[Islamabad]], where she found creative solace to paint and write.<ref name=VNEF/><br />
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==Awards and recognition==<br />
In 1959, she was awarded the [[Nishan-e-Imtiaz]] (Medal of Excellence) for her services to the nation by the [[Government of Pakistan]].<ref name=VNEF>{{Cite web|title=Founders of 'Vicky' Noon Educational Foundation (Profile of Viqar-un-Nisa Noon)|url=https://noon-foundation.org/a-portrait-of-the-founder/|website=Vicky Noon Educational Foundation website|access-date=22 September 2021}}</ref><br />
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==Death==<br />
Viqar-un-Nisa Noon died on 16 January 2000 in [[Islamabad]] after a prolonged illness.<ref name=begumnoon /><br />
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According to [[Dawn (newspaper)|Dawn]] newspaper in January 2021, "GWADAR plays a pivotal role in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which is termed a game-changer that is bound to boost the national economy".<ref name=Dawn3/> Many people in Pakistan give a lot of credit to the then Prime Minister [[Feroz Khan Noon]] and his wife Viqar-un-Nisa Noon for making it possible.<ref name=Dawn3>[https://www.dawn.com/news/1604067 Honouring the Noons] Dawn (newspaper), Published 28 January 2021, Retrieved 23 September 2021</ref><br />
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==Recent developments at Gwadar==<br />
By 2021, rapid development in and around this port city has changed much of the landscape and looks of the city &ndash; such as highways connecting it to the rest of Pakistan. Movement of cargo ships has begun and it is expected that trade through this deep-sea port will also pick up soon. For added security and logistics, [[Pakistan Navy]] has also set up an additional base there.<ref name=Dawn3/><br />
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== Acknowledgment ==<br />
* Viqar un Nisa Noon Girls Higher Secondary Institute Rawalpindi Pakistan<br />
* Nishan e Imtiaz Pakistan<br />
* Vicky Noon Educational Foundation<br />
* Viqarunnisa Noon School & College [[Dhaka]] [[East Pakistan]]<br />
* Pakistan Federal Minister for Tourism and Culture.<br />
* Pakistan ambassador to Portugal.<br />
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== References ==<br />
{{reflist}}<br />
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==External links==<br />
* [https://www.vnsc.edu.bd/ official website of 'Vicky' Noon Educational Foundation]<br />
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{{Pakistan Movement}}<br />
{{DEFAULTSORT:Noon, Viqar}}<br />
[[Category:1920 births]]<br />
[[Category:2000 deaths]]<br />
[[Category:Austrian emigrants to Pakistan]]<br />
[[Category:Spouses of prime ministers of Pakistan]]<br />
[[Category:Noon family|Viqar]]<br />
[[Category:Pakistani social workers]]<br />
[[Category:Converts to Islam]]<br />
[[Category:Pakistan Muslim League politicians]]<br />
[[Category:Pakistan Movement activists]]<br />
[[Category:Austrian social workers]]<br />
[[Category:Women federal ministers of Pakistan]]<br />
[[Category:Austrian Muslims]]<br />
[[Category:Ambassadors of Pakistan to Portugal]]<br />
[[Category:Recipients of Nishan-e-Imtiaz]]</div>->Hrksmp