Amal Chakrabarti
A memorable trip
Every moment of a trip to Howrah Station from Balasore in a passenger train during a sultry afternoon of 1988 will forever remain etched in my memory. In those days a DRDL team returning to Hyderabad via Kolkata after conducting a successful mission of firing missile, had to travel by train since it was the only option available. As we squeezed into the bench with co-passengers, I felt nostalgic remembering my daily journey to the high school in Diamond Harbour, travelling in heavily crowded local trains. I was much junior to other members of the team, comprising leading experts in rocket technology. It took me some courage to offer mouth-watering 'Masala Moori,' a local delicacy with puffed rice, to my seniors and explain its ingredients.
Our team discussed about the missile firing at length. But soon we ran out of topic. The leader of our team, a master in engaging people, asked us to suggest a few topics to keep us engaged till we reach Howrah. Since no suggestions were forthcoming, he said, "Let's discuss about the ways in which we can transform India into another Singapore in the next 10 years." It was a rapid switchover- from the complexities involved in a missile launch to a major national issue, and possibly it could have been done by only one person in India. Yes, we were travelling with our true friend, philosopher and guide, A P J Abdul Kalam.
He asked each one of us to give our individual views. We attempted our best to satisfy our boss covering all major areas education, economy, manufacturing, social and political environment etc. None of us had the answer which he sought. He said," All the ideas are good, and surely will help the cause, but you are missing something very fundamental. I will elucidate through a story." The story went like this:
Sivasubramania Iyer, a science teacher of the elementary school in the island town of Rameswaram, noticed some potential in a boy of fifth standard wearing a cap and thought he could be trained to be at par with the students of the big cities. He I decided to offer the boy special coaching after school hours in his house located within the Agraharam (houses of priests around the temple).The boy remembered well the scene when he arrived at Iyer's house. All hell broke loose when Mrs lyer found the boy with a cap inside the Agraharam. It was indeed a tough moment for Iyer to explain and convince his wife about his noble intention. After a good amount of persuasion the boy was permitted to sit in a corner outside the house. Every day, thereafter, new problems cropped up; when the boy asked for a glass of water or when one evening the teacher offered the boy some food. Initially, the boy had to I drink water poured from a pot by his teacher into his own little folded palms. Gradually, things changed. Soon, evening classes were conducted inside Iyer's house, and the meals were served by his wife in the kitchen.
Since his school days the boy was fascinated with flying objects. Hailing from a middle class family whose fortune nosedived when the ancestral business of ferrying people from island to mainland collapsed with the opening of Pamban Bridge in 1914 the boy sold tamarind seeds and helped a newspaper vendor for a little extra income. Mentored by the Iyers and with the encouragement and support from his parents and other family members he finally became an aeronautical engineer. Dr Kalam paused here, and said the boy with the cap on head is right in front of you. The air was filled with emotion as he narrated the story. Some of us were wiping our moist eyes.
Kalam said, "Well you heard the story, what message does it convey?" Watching our silent faces, he said, "If India has to grow like Singapore, all of us should have the courage of Subramania Iyer to go for that big change in our mindset and the grace of his wife to accept the same". This incident of his childhood left a huge impact on Kalam. He developed that legendary never-give-up attitude while pursuing his scientific or social missions throughout his life till the end came on July 27.
A great integrator
Our mentor was a great integrator. After passing out from MIT, Chennai in aeronautical engineering, he joined DRDO as Senior Technical Assistant in Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), a DRDO Lab in Bangalore and participated in the development of Hovercraft. Kalam demonstrated its operation to Prof. MGK Menon who recommended him to Vikram Sarabhai for space programmes at ISRO. It was Satish Dhawan, the then Chairman of ISRO and Director of IISc who shaped Kalam's future. ISRO was looking for a suitable candidate for the post of Project Director for India's first satellite launched vehicle, SLV-3. Kalam was selected by Dhawan from a group of highly qualified scientists with PhDs and research experience abroad. Dr Kalam was holding only a bachelor degree in aeronautical engineering from an Indian academy. When asked about his choice, Dhawan had said that he was impressed by Kalam's exceptional quality to integrate the team. Kalam always considered Dhawan as his mentor who was able to detect a real gem. Kalam was able to effectively integrate the R&D establishments, industries and the academics into his programmes at ISRO and DRDO.
His core strength
Though we are aware of it yet some of the very important contributions of Kalam have not been adequately presented in public domain, and such contributions are of immense importance to our industry and business houses, academies, business management institutes, researchers, administrators and the policy makers. His most important core strength was the skill to manage high technology missions and programmes. Kalam will always be respected and remembered for his exemplary role in introducing the ethos of professional project management for the development of advanced technology and products in India. As a Project Director of India's first space mission, SLV-3, Kalam could introduce modern project management technique which was developed for the space programmes of NASA and European Space Agency. ISRO never looked back after the success of SLV-3 mission and moved on to establish itself as a major space establishment through ASLV, PSLV, GSLV, MARS and the futuristic Moon and manned missions. It may be appreciated that among all developed nations many commercial technologies were the spin-offs of space and military technology. India as a nation failed to capitalize on the benefits derived from the advancement of technology in both areas. Kalam is the only scientist in the world who led both space and military missions for the country. Unfortunately, even such stellar performance could not attract the attention of our industry leaders, the researchers of business management, administrators and the policy makers. It is high time for our business schools to take up the success stories of Dr Kalam as case studies to generate valuable input to our industries, both in large and SME sectors. Unless a country develops capability in high technology, however rich, it will never be recognised as a developed nation.
Rejuvenated DRDL
When Kalam joined DRDL in 1982, the organization was going through a bad patch. Though two missile systems, anti- tank and anti-aircraft had been developed successfully, but none could be inducted into services for several reasons. Many scientists left the organization at that time for better prospects. After few months of acquainting himself with the organisation Kalam convened a major meeting inviting all top experts from DRDO, ISRO, Academy and senior officers from the ministries to discuss DRDL's future programme. The DRDL team led by Kalam presented a programme to develop five missile systems, ranging from 4 km Nag to long range Agni missile. Everybody suggested that he should not be very ambitious as so far no missile could be inducted into the services, and many scientists had left the organization. The general consensus was to take one missile at a time. The meeting ended on an inconclusive note. But Kalam was very firm in his conviction and submitted a proposal to the government to develop five missiles simultaneously.
The proposal, named as IGMDP, was approved in totality by another great visionary, the then Minister of Defence, Ramaswamy Venkataraman. Never before was such a bold decision taken by the Government. Kalam enjoyed the confidence was a master in assessing the strength of his team and, most importantly, in the of the government and the policy makers throughout his tenure with DRDO. He decision making. He always encouraged us to take decision even though some went wrong.
He often said that it is very surprising that a nation having the capability to develop advanced satellites and ballistic missiles with extreme precision, is not able to make an MRI machine which is required in a large number for our hospitals and health care centres. Developing an MRI machine does not call for a fortune, it only requires project management skill which Kalam exhibited in space and military projects. Our industries including the major ones can surely learn many useful techniques from him on how to manage high tech projects, such as developing MRI machines. Unfortunately, such techniques are not very explicitly included in text books on management.
Social missions
He motivated us to use military technology for developing low cost medical devices, such as stent, calipers for polio patients, pacemaker, telemedicine etc. Government at the state and national level should seriously examine this achievement which was not a part of his assigned task, and make it mandatory for research organizations, various academies and the major industries to develop such items at an affordable cost as a part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
Contribution in national economy
Very few in India are aware that Kalam made a huge contribution to the growth of national economy, comparable to the likes of Sir Jamshetji Tata and other visionaries. One may wonder how a scientist made similar contribution. But India is the largest importer of military hardware in the world. Surely, that is not a distinction to be proud of, particularly for a person like Kalam who always discouraged imports. He made us realize that it is a big compulsion and not a choice or luxury to spend on defence when a large number of Indians subsist below poverty line; and hence one must ensure that indigenous development of military product should be taken up with all seriousness. Projects of ISRO and DRDO contributed immensely in the growth of industry, generated employment, created national economy. an R&D base of international standard, and all these combined to give a boost to
India spends a few thousands crores of rupees ( 10 K Cr may be a good guess) annually for buying missiles only. Kalam initiated the Integrated Guided Missile Programme (IGMDP) for developing 5 missiles. IGMDP was completed with great success by his successors. Akash, one of the five IGMDP missiles, is a medium range anti-aircraft missile. Akash is now the most dependable anti- aircraft missile with Indian Air force and Army, used to guard our territory from attacks by enemy aircrafts from the vast land mass and sea around India. Akash is not only a very effective system, but also the cheapest in the World. Akash missile system was developed at a cost of around Rs 700 crore. The production order to our PSUs is more than Rs 30000 crore and expected to increase in future. It is a great example of import substitution. Such a huge return on investment is exemplary and unprecedented anywhere in the world. The other emerging example is the Light Combat Aircraft. Kalam injected life into the project at a very crucial stage. LCA will be operationalised soon with induction in Indian Air Force. LCA programme has given the nation many state-of-the-art technologies of dual use, and is another great example of saving hard earned foreign exchange. A major chunk of India's annual missile requirement worth around 10 K crore will be manufactured in near future using indigenously developed technology. The excellent effort by the scientists groomed by Kalam has resulted in huge savings in foreign exchange and contributed to reduction of Current Account Deficit (CAD), something that Reserve Bank struggles to achieve. India needs many more missiles such as Akash. The nation should celebrate the success of this extraordinary achievement of Kalam's team by taking up major programmes in high technology areas for commercial sector. No other scientist in the world has made such an all-round contribution in science, technology and national economy, as was made by our guru.
Our man
Kalam's presence was absolutely electrifying. People never got tired even after working for long hours regularly, often stretching till wee hours of the night when he was around. He would be present till the work was completed; yet he would be back to his office, dot on time, the next morning. During a major campaign, he asked us to write every day's schedule, technical observations, analysis on a large writing board in very small letters with different colours. The board was never wiped clean till the end of the campaign. At the end it turned out to be a marvellous piece of art with sketches, equations, observations etc. We used to fondly remember it as the "da Vinci Sketch."
He had a fine sense of humour. 'Hi buddy', 'What's happening?'- these were some of his favourite phrases to start a conversation. Funny guys' was another one, he frequently used it to show his appreciation for a job well done. One evening, by the sea shore at Balasore he joined us during tea break with his favourite greeting, "What's happening?' He appeared a little excited. "You know what happened today ?As soon as I opened the door (to his room in the guest house) a snake fell on my head." Pat came my reply, "That's great, sir .You are very lucky". "Funny chap," he continued, "A snake sitting on my head (perhaps a small one got trapped in his curly tresses) and you are telling I am lucky". I said: "In our village people say if a snake falls on somebody's head, he will be a king, one day". "Oh, you mean to say King Kalam," he said with a hearty laugh and childish innocence. Truly, he went on to become the head of the State of the world's largest democracy.
Door was open to all
In a large organization like DRDL or even a smaller one, whether in public d always kept his office door as well as his heart open for those willing to meet him a private sector, it is very difficult for an ordinary employee to meet the top boss. He anytime; just walk in if he was not engaged in any important meeting. He introduced a system of morning meeting where he along with a few senior officers I used to go through the daily mail and discuss major administrative issues. The meeting was held at different locations of the sprawling campus to encourage employees into interacting with him. After the morning meeting which normally used to last for half-an-hour to one hour he had plenty of time to visit the technical centres. With close interaction and the simple style of functioning, Kalam won the heart of every employee. It is difficult to find a better style of functioning by a leader than that of Kalam. How many top bosses in the country are seen on the shop floor, even once in a blue moon?
His Legacy
Researchers in business management can rewrite the theories by taking Kalam as a case study. In a nation where manufacturing is struck at 15% of the GDP, a boy from the island town of Rameswaram guided the nation to join the elite club of the few developed nations in top end technology of space and military systems. It was possible only because of his vision and the capability to integrate research organizations, industry and the academia on a common platform, as done in every developed nation. Our academies, Indian Institute of Science, Jadavpur University, leading IITs all have made significant contributions to his programmes. In the post Kalam era,we witnessed decline in our university rankings. The primary reason being the steady reduction in the number of quality researches in our academic institutions. We shouldn't blame them unilaterally. Lack of a sponsor like Kalam is also a big concern.
We are proud of many of our major industries and business houses who are among the richest in the world. They can surely take the cue from Kalam's style of technology management to produce hi-tech commercial products, a sector where the Indian manufacturers need to do lot more to come respectably close to our neighbour - China.
Ignited billion minds
Kalam will remain in the heart of every Indian, particularly the younger generation for a very long time, joining the great men like Swami Vivekananda and Mahatma Gandhi. Many more memorials will be built in his honour. That is our tradition and there is nothing wrong about it. But more importantly, we must initiate a systematic study on the technology and project management system that were introduced by him and his gurus - Vikram Sarabhai, Satish Dhawan, Bramhaprakash and many other such luminaries. A national institute may be set up through the participation of all the stake holders to take up high technology as a national mission and if we can do that, we will pay a true homage to the person who dedicated his life to the nation.
Finally
Einstein once stated while paying his respect to Mahatma Gandhi on his 70th birthday, "Generations to come, it may well be, will scarce believe that such a man as this one ever in flesh and blood walked upon this Earth". Inspired by Einstein's quote, we can say that to those who worked with Kalam or came in touch with him, it now appears to be a dream that he was amongst us and he inspired us and we, who were otherwise, just ordinary human beings could do such extraordinary work under his guidance.