The Man Himself

"HE APJ Abdul Kalam" screamed the banner. After breaking our heads over the additional initials, we realised that "protocol" does come into play. Anywayz, I got myself a great seat in the third row, just behind the President's entourage, and bang in the middle. After a tense, fiddling, boring, exhausting wait, we cooled ourselves on sharing of anecdotes about our beloved President, and the beauty of his own anecdotes. Ofcourse, for those of you who havent gone through it till now, please visit The President of India.

Aint his lectures and speeches fascinating? With only one out of the 20+ comments I got being negative about his talks, I was eagerly awaiting his presence. Hidden amidst the powerful big men came a humble little man with ruptuous applause (that was more instructed than spontaneous). However, the sponteneity of the applause was in the duration. It reminded me of how popular he actually is. He had to turn around twice to get us to stop clapping and be seated.



After a short inaudible intro about the President, it was time for his speech. He dint disappoint, with his subtle humour and his purpose-filled talk. "I have prepared a presentation, but let me know if you dont like, I can talk about what you want" lightened up the atmosphere. He went on about the importance of Education, the the need of the present (Info-Nano-Bio technologies merger), the pillars of the future (Knowledge, Education, Healthcare, PURA Grids), and above all scientists and science and technology.

You could see a sense of gratitude in his voice when he referred to Vikram Sarabhai, Verghese Kurien and Homi Jehangir Baba, and pictures of these greats (with their accomplishments) were truly inspiring. One statement was very powerful indeed. He said "Technology has borders, but Science does not". Ofcourse, hardly a speech passes without one of his trademarked anecdotes. So here it was. He had the honour of presenting an award to a 92 year old Nobel laureate. During the ceremony, the Nobel winner not only thanked Abdul Kalam but also picked out persons in the 3rd, 4th and 6th rows to thank them individually for their researches and scientific contributions, saying that it was the collective effort that has made the earth a better place to live in. He emphasised that this "Scientific Magnanimity" is what should run in the veins of all scientists the world over.

He had the knack to tie the whole presentation (that he has meticulously prepared himself) to the purpose of his visit to the Univerisity (to sign MoU on Nanotechnology) and lead to his closure with its impact on scientific enhancements for the world.



Then followed a hilarious Q&A. The first question was quite straightforward, on the importance of Education towards India 2020 - his vision. The second question was from an Indian student doing his MS here (not so hilarious in itself, but tht he did his undergrad in IIT Delhi and grad studies in Stanford made every other Indian question his sanity). He was asking about what measures the President is taking to ensure there is no brain drain :P I thot it was he who has to make a decision whether to go back or not. The President said that 10-15% expats are normal and does not affect the brilliance of the country (man, am I proud :D:D:D) and that they are having a lot of R&D effort back home, if they are interested. The final question was the shocker. One communication engineering gal wanted to put her theory to the ultimate test by quizzing the President about how he is going to abolish the rampant Child Sex Tourism in India. He got the word Children alone at first, but taking note of the shock in the auditorium, and after 3-4 clarifications from the gal and the MC, he proceeded to stop his Advisors from shooing away the gal and asking for the next question. Even though it was ill advised of the gal considering this is not a debating forum but a question to the Head of State, he calmly said that "We need good citizens. Govt cant make good citizens. Women, Family and Education can only make good citizens. And once we get good citizens, these things will automatically cease to exist".

All in all, it was really a humbling experience to meet such a nice down to earth humane scholar of gigantic proportions. Even though I couldnt manage to ask a question, neither get an autograph (he only managed to sign for 2 before he was ushered away), I really felt it an honour to have him with us today. Today shall go down in history as the day - I almost fell down on his feet.

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