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interviewers usually display when talking to a young and vulnerable candidate. Dr Sarabhai’s questions did not probe my existing knowledge or skills; rather they were an exploration of the possibilities I was filled with. He was looking at me as if in reference to a larger whole. The entire encounter seemed to me a total moment of truth, in which my dream was enveloped by the larger dream of a bigger person. I was advised to stay back for a couple of days. However, the next evening I was told about my selection. I was to be absorbed as a rocket engineer at INCOSPAR. This was a breakthrough a young man like myself dreamed of. My work at INCOSPAR commenced with a familiarization course at the TIFR Computer Centre. The atmosphere here was remarkably different from that at DTD&P (AIR). Labels mattered very little. There was no need for anyone to justify his position or to be at the receiving end of the others’ hostility. Some time in the latter half of 1962, INCOSPAR took the decision to set up the Equatorial Rocket Launching Station at Thumba, a sleepy fishing village near Trivandrum (now Thiruvananthapuram) in Kerala. Dr Chitnis of the Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmedabad had spotted it as a suitable location as it was very close to the earth’s magnetic equator. This was the quiet beginning of modern rocket-based research in India. The site selected at Thumba lay between the railway line and the sea coast, covering a distance of about two and a half km and measuring about 600 acres. Within this area, stood a large church, whose site had to be acquired. Land acquisition from private parties is always a difficult and timeconsuming process, especially in densely populated places like Kerala. In addition, there was the delicate matter of acquiring a site of religious significance. The Collector of Trivandrum then, K Madhavan Nair, executed this task in a most tactful, peaceful and expeditious manner, with the blessings and cooperation of Right Rev. Dr Dereira, who was the Bishop of Trivandrum in 1962. Soon RD John, the executive engineer of the Central Public Works Department (CPWD), had transformed the entire area. The St. Mary Magdalene church housed the first office of the Thumba Space Centre. The prayer room was my first laboratory, the Bishop’s room was my design and drawing office. To this day, the church is maintained in its full glory and, at present, houses the Indian Space Museum. Very soon after this, I was asked to proceed to America for a sixmonth training programme on sounding rocket launching techniques, at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) work centres. I took some time off before going abroad and went to Rameswaram. My father was very pleased to learn about the opportunity that had come my way. He took me to the mosque and organized a special namaz in thanksgiving. I could feel the power of God flowing in a circuit through my father to me and back to God; we were all under the spell of the prayer. One of the important functions of prayer, I believe, is to act as a stimulus to creative ideas. Within the mind are all the resources required for successful living. Ideas are present in the consciousness, which when released and given scope to grow and take shape, can lead to successful events. God, our Creator, has stored within our minds and personalities, great potential strength and ability. Prayer helps us to tap and develop these powers. Ahmed Jallaluddin and Samsuddin came to see me off at Bombay airport. It was their first exposure to a big city
like Bombay, just as I myself was about to have my first exposure to a mega city like New York. Jallaluddin and Samsuddin were self-reliant, positive, optimistic men who undertook their work with the assurance of success. It is from these two persons that I drew the core creative power of my mind. My sentiments could not be contained, and I could feel the mist of tears in my eyes. Then, Jallaluddin said, “Azad, we have always loved you, and we believe in you. We shall always be proud of you”. The intensity and purity of their faith in my capabilities broke my last defences, and tears welled up in my eyes. * * *
Page 4 and 5: WINGS OF FIRE As chief of the count
Page 6 and 7: provides only a thumbnail sketch of
Page 8 and 9: tributes to these fine persons, I a
Page 10 and 11: 1 I was born into a middle-class Ta
Page 12 and 13: partnership with Him. He would pres
Page 14 and 15: his best to break social barriers s
Page 16 and 17: 2 O nce I settled down at the Schwa
Page 18 and 19: seeks acceptance under the guise of
Page 20 and 21: Plate 2 The locality in which I gre
Page 22 and 23: Plate 6 A family get-together. Plat
Page 24 and 25: technologies and expected his stude
Page 26 and 27: (HAL) at Bangalore as a trainee. Th
Page 28 and 29: sorrow. He offered no explanation o
Page 30 and 31: time to review the progress of our
Page 34 and 35: II
Page 36 and 37: 4
Page 38 and 39: procrastination. Actually, problems
Page 40 and 41: out target-tracking functions. The
Page 42 and 43: Dreamers D uring his frequent visit
Page 44 and 45: woven into a matrix that encloses i
Page 46 and 47: unfolded his plan of developing a r
Page 48 and 49: unforeseen costs. “You name the t
Page 50 and 51: 6
Page 52 and 53: awareness of Stage IV problems thro
Page 54 and 55: Electrical and mechanical integrati
Page 56 and 57: Dr Brahm Prakash advised me to take
Page 58 and 59: 7
Page 60 and 61: Through mechanical engineering, the
Page 62 and 63: in the areas of aerodynamics, struc
Page 64 and 65: help determine the forces that dete
Page 66 and 67: 8
Page 68 and 69: temple, shining sand and dancing ti
Page 70 and 71: own destinies. Was I too stubborn o
Page 72 and 73: Total commitment is a crucial quali
Page 74 and 75: spellbound to see our hopes flying
Page 76 and 77: Builders Dr Brahm Prakash helped me
Page 78 and 79: discussing some finer aspects of th
Page 80 and 81: envisaged, though as a distant drea
Page 82 and 83:
Padma Bhushan award on me. The next
Page 84 and 85:
PROPITIATION [ 1981 - 1991 ] Let cr
Page 86 and 87:
Seekers A minor tussle over my serv
Page 88 and 89:
air. Once we opened the windows wid
Page 90 and 91:
Plate 12 Two gurus of Indian Space
Page 92 and 93:
final phase of integration. He help
Page 94 and 95:
Nothing to be discouraged! We have
Page 96 and 97:
Joshi, and Air Chief Marshal SK Kau
Page 98 and 99:
stature, sitting in the all-powerfu
Page 100 and 101:
Stewards T he launch of the IGMDP w
Page 102 and 103:
to share their power with others an
Page 104 and 105:
agencies would participate in the c
Page 106 and 107:
12
Page 108 and 109:
Shrimati Gandhi asked. I said, “J
Page 110 and 111:
weaver shall look into the whole cl
Page 112 and 113:
Triumphant The young engineers, 280
Page 114 and 115:
was related to the tremendous speed
Page 116 and 117:
motivational inventory of a leader
Page 118 and 119:
a circle within which 50 per cent o
Page 120 and 121:
Torchbearers Indian core competence
Page 122 and 123:
clock for the next ten days, our sc
Page 124 and 125:
In today’s world, technological b
Page 126 and 127:
CONTEMPLATION [ 1991 - ] We create
Page 128 and 129:
Emancipators O n Republic Day 1990,
Page 130 and 131:
dedicated to making solid achieveme
Page 132 and 133:
of an indigenous ship-launched anti
Page 134 and 135:
16
Page 136 and 137:
continues on a regular basis as the
Page 138 and 139:
centres and 41 production centres s
Page 140 and 141:
uilt nothing, possess nothing—no
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