B. V. S. Parsi High School

Bai Virbaijee Soparivala (BVS) Parsi High School is a private school in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. It opened in 1859 as Karachi Parsi Balak Shalla, by the Zoroastrian residents of Karachi.^[1]

Bai Virbaiji Soparivala Parsi High School
Location
Abdullah Haroon Road, Saddar Karachi , Sindh Pakistan
Coordinates	24.86213°N 67.02501°E / 24.86213; 67.02501
Information
Type	Private school
Motto	Towards that Best Light
Established	23 May 1859; 165 years ago (1859-05-23)
Chairman	Mr. Mehelli B. Dinshaw
Administrator	Mr. Jamshed Sohrab Patel
Principal	Mrs. Mehernaz Bharucha
Houses	Soparivala Sir Lancelot Graham Quaid-e-Azam Reza Shah Pahlavi
Website	www.bvsparsischool.edu.pk (Currently Working on Updates)

History

• The Zoroastrian residents of Karachi, feeling the need for imparting religious education and knowledge of Gujarati, opened on 23 May 1859, “The Parsi Balakshala,” or children's school.
• In June 1862, Seth Shapurji Hormusji Soparivala was appointed the secretary of the school. In May 1870, Seth Shahpurji Hormusji Soparivala, in memory of his late wife, Bai Virbaiji Soparivala, donated his personal two-story house on Frere Street (valued Rs. 10,000/-), to be used as a coeducation vernacular school. Thereafter, the school was named the Parsi Virbaiji School. The opening ceremony was performed on 24 September 1870, by the Commissioner in Sindh, Sir William Merewether.
• On 1 April 1918, the girls' section of the school was separated and commenced to function on the first floor of the building. In June 1919, the girls’ school shifted to its present location of Mama School.
• Through the efforts of the managing committee and principal, technical classes were organized in the school, and in June 1946, a technical workshop building began.
• In 1947, after the partition of India, on the personal request to the elders of the Parsi community by the Quaid-I-Azam, Mr. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the school opened its doors to all Muslim and other non Parsi children of the new nation.
• On 23 May 1958, the school began Centenary celebrations and the entire Parsi community participated in the functions that were organized.

Architect

Bai Virbaiji Soparivala Parsi School

In 1875, Parsi Virbaiji Soparivala School became Bai Virbaiji Soparivala Parsi High School and H. E. Sir Robert Temple, Governor of Bombay, visited the BVS. In 1877, Seth Shahpurji was awarded the "Certificate of Loyalty" by Queen Victoria for his services in the field of education and social sector. In 1904, the construction of the present building started, and, in 1906, BVS shifted to the new building at Victoria Road (now Abdullah Haroon Road). BVS was designed by Moses Somake, the Jewish architect who is perhaps the first known architect of many Karachi buildings.

Notable alumni

See also: Category:B. V. S. Parsi High School alumni

• Ardeshir Cowasjee
• Irfan Essa
• Bilal Maqsood
• Farooq Sattar
• Waqar Zaka
• Murtaza Wahab

Faculty

Administration

• Mrs. Mehernaz Bharucha - Principal
• Mrs. Kermin Parakh - Advisor to the School
• Mrs. Diana Randeria - Headmistress AKU Section
• Mrs. Sofia Nasir Ali - Headmistress CAIE Section
• Mrs. Parveen Pohwala - Headmistress Primary Section

Office Staff

• Mr. Jamshed Sohrab Patel - Administrator
• Mr. Naveed Shah - Assistant Administrator

References

1. "Deena Mistri, former principal of BVS Parsi High School, dies". The Express Tribune. 2020-06-26.

External links

• Official website
• The Virbaijeeite Alumni Association