Address to the Students

VISION - MISSION & PROSPERITY

I am indeed delighted to be here in Rajkot particularly on the Teacher's Day to address the students and teachers in the meet organized by Mahatma Gandhi Charitable Trust. My greetings to all the children, teachers and the organizers. Mahatma Gandhi was the greatest teacher. During his life time every day he was teaching. Even when he was not with us, his teachings engulf us in every walk of our life. When I am in Rajkot which is very close to where Mahatma Gandhi was born and I am in the place where he had studied in a school, where his marklist is still preserved. I am inspired to walk on the path he had walked. And it is our great fortune that India had such a millennium leader.

In this context Albert Einstien states on Mahatma Gandhi " Generations to come, it may be, will scarecely believe that such a one as this in flesh and blood walked upon this earth". What a great honour Gujarat had attained for having been the home of Mahatma Gandhi. It is all the more important Gujarat continues to walk in the path shown by Gandhiji. My young friends, dream, dream leads to thoughts, and thought leads to action for realizing your mission.

I would like to share with you some of the contributions of great personalities of Gujarat. I would like to present to you three great lives who made a change in our society.

Vision of Nobility

India is indeed fortunate and proud to have Mahatma Gandhiji as 'Father of the nation', who was responsible for getting freedom by his writings and actions, and above all his nobility. When I talk about this great leader with nobility, I would like to go back to my school days at Rameswaram. I would like to narrate one incident to you which fascinated and shaped me when I was a young boy.

On 15th August 1947, my high school teacher Rev. Iyyadorai Solomon took me to hear the mid-night freedom speech of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. We were all thrilled when Panditji spoke that the mission was achieved. On the next day, that is on 16th August 1947, I had a great experience. An experience of best of education I can think of. In a Tamil newspaper, on the front page, two news items appeared. One item was India achieving freedom and Panditji's speech. The other news item and the most important one which has been embedded in my memory is about Mahatma Gandhiji walking barefoot in a town in Bengal, removing the pain of riot affected families. Normally as Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi has to be the first to unfurl the national flag on August 15, 1947 in Red Fort. But he was not there at the Red Fort, instead he was at Naokali. Mahatma Gandhi was an embodiment of nobility, elevated thinking and concern for human beings and he was there where there was pain. What an everlasting positive impact of the ideal leadership qualities in the mind of a school boy?

Marvels of the Universe

Let me start this talk with some of the questions posed to me by the children recently during a personal interaction. The questions were from Vikrant Nahal Arya of Sanskriti School and Rupanjali Lahiri of St Thomas School, New Delhi, They asked me very simple question which led me to think. The question was : " Your birthday has recently gone by. What were your thoughts on that day?." They wanted to know what my birthday meant to me. It meant for me that I had completed 71 orbits around the sun, and had entered my 72nd orbit. Think of our Universe. I am amazed and always inspired by the dynamics of our universe. Our star (sun), its planets, every celestial object has a purpose. If the Earth stopped rotating around its axis, what would happen? No earth, No night, no day. If Sun does not orbit, sun will not be there. Think of it. The sun also orbit around the Milky Way. Isn't it. It takes the Sun 250 million years for one orbit around Milky Way, our galaxy. Compare that to my 72nd orbits. What does that mean? One single citizen completing 71 orbits. It is an insignificant event, compared to dynamics of universe. But human mind is innovative and can think and explore the marvels of universe.

The cross section of people of young age group have inspired mind to make the nation great. It is important to recognise that India has a population of 700 million young people below 35 years. This is a big force. How to ignite the young minds? Only launching the vision for the nation will bring the young force into action. When I see such a young gathering bubbling with happiness and action oriented spirit and above all young minds, I believe, it is time for India to enter into the scond vision led by the young of this country.

Space Visionary

It was indeed a great experience working with Prof Vikram Sarabhai from 1963 to 1971. As an young engineer progressing multiple task of composite technology and explosive systems, rocket engineering systems at Thiruvananthapuram Space center I have drawn tremendous energy from the leadership of Prof. Sarabhai. Though the nation was in its technological infancy, Prof Sarabhai was dreaming it building its own satellite launch vehicles and launch from Indian soil a remote sensing satellite in sun synchronous orbit and communication satellite in the geo synchronous orbit. Today, his vision has been realised with Polar Satellite Launch Vehicles and the GSLV capability. ISRO has also operationalised IRS and INSAT satellite systems.

Industrial Visionary

At this point, I recall the meeting between Swami Vivekananda and Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata during a ship journey from Japan to Chicago. I have realized that vision not only leads to achieve what we want but also it generates great leaders and spiritual minds. I would like to share one incident that inspired me particularly in steel sector. It happened in 1893. A ship was sailing to USA. There were hundreds of people in that ship including two significant personalities. Swami Vivekananda and Jamsetji Tata were in that ship. Swamiji asked Jamsetji for what mission he was traveling. Jamsetji said that he wanted to bring steel industry to India. Swami Vivekanda blessed him. He suggested steel technology had two components - one is steel science and the other is manufacturing technology. What can you bring to this country in material technology - you will have to build material science with in the country. Jamsetji was thinking and thinking and made a decision. Earlier when Jamsetji went to London he asked for technology transfer for Steel Plant. UK steel manufacturers looked at Jamsetji and said that if Indians make steel, Britishers will eat it. Jamsetji crossed Atlantic Ocean, talked to Americans and brought manufacturing technology for steel. And the Tata Steel was established in Jamshedpur. He seeded and worked for the steel plant. Jamsetji is not there now, but 4 million tons per annum steel is rolling out. The visionary Jamsetji gave one portion of his asset for starting a science institute today known as Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore. The message I would like to convey to this audience, dream gives vision, vision gives thoughts and thought leads to actions. Jamsetji brought two establishment to this country - first one was steel plant and the other was an educational research institution. Hence have a goal, persevere and work hard to succeed.

Role of Individuals

With the vision and characteristics of creative leader defined, what can be the tasks of various spectrum of people. The student community can take the task during holidays to remove the illiteracy of certain number of people in their area where their schools or houses are situated. They can excel in their studies and plant at least 5 trees. Only a burning candle can light another. Teachers and parents can assist them in this task. The Government and R&D labs can provide technological upgradation to small-scale industries so that production can be increased and they become competitive. The large-scale industries have to increase their productivity and quality so that the market share can be increased for economic growth and GDP. They can aim to become multinational companies and global leaders. The farming community, have to increase their productivity with the help of available new scientific methods particularly for dry land cultivation. The Information Technology and knowledge workers have got a tremendous responsibility to contribute in the areas of tele-medicine, tele-education and e-governance for rural areas apart from their business role. PURA (Providing Urban Amenities to Rural Area) has to be a business proposition economically viable and managed by entrepreneurs and small scale industrialists with government participation, as it involves education, health, power generation, transport and management. In this vision period, the whole Government agency, has to build a name for itself, by fast decision making and transparent administration. Media has to become a partner and positive critic in national development. Our musicians, poets, artisans and artists should nurture the glory of living of our great civilization and sing the song of developed India. This type of motivated environment will be indeed a great foundation for our vision of transforming India into a 'developed nation'.

Concluding remarks

A nation is great, not because a few people are great, but because every one in the nation is great. I wish you all to excel in your studies and become Doctors, Engineers, Scientists, Entrepreneurs, Officers of armed forces, Teachers, Lawyers, Administrators, Politicians and above all the best human beings with traditional value system and societal care. The challenge in the mission of the developed India calls for an important, cohesive and focused efforts of the young. Just like our first vision of Independence created leaders, I am sure you all will rise to the occasion and become leaders in multiple areas.

Sir CV Raman led teaching and research in Physics and created great scientific leaders and also the birth of Raman Research Institute, Bangalore. I would like to quote Sir CV Raman, at the age of 82, while addressing young graduates. The message is still reverberating in my mind: "I would like to tell the young men and women before me not to lose hope and courage. Success can only come to you by courageous devotion to the task lying in front of you. I can assert without fear of contradiction that the quality of the Indian mind is equal to the quality of any Teutonic, Nordic or Anglo-Saxon mind. What we lack is perhaps courage, what we lack is perhaps driving force which takes one anywhere. We have, I think, developed an inferiority complex. I think what is needed in India today is the destruction of that defeatist spirit. We need a spirit of victory, a spirit that will carry us to our rightful place under the sun, a spirit which will recognise that we, as inheritors of a proud civilization, are entitled to a rightful place on this planet. If that indomitable spirit were to arise, nothing can hold us from achieving our rightful destiny."

Those were the words from the Nobel laureate scientist of India. You would see the bridge of science and society. Friends, I request all who are responsible for the young, all who are creators of the young, for the childrens' growth, allow them to dream. Dream transforms into thoughts and thoughts result into actions.