President Visits Vikram Sarabhai
Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram

It was a homecoming for the President of India, Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam, when he made anostalgic visit to his former institution, the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre at Thiruvananthapuram on November 18, 2002, to deliver the first Prof. Satish Dhawan Memorial Lecture. This was his first visit to Kerala after becoming the president. Dr. K Kasturirangan, Chairman, ISRO and Mr. G Madhavan Nair, Director of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre received the President. About 5000 employees from the ISRO Centres in Thiruvananthapuram waited anxiously to greet their former colleague.

In his address, Dr. Abdul Kalam spoke at length on "Vision and Leadership". He reminisced that his real education was at the sprawling expanse of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre more than in any University. He said that "the education we receive and our environment transform us into good human beings", and that he was fortunate to be associated with three great human beings _ Dr. Vikram Sarabhai,
Prof. Satish Dhawan and Dr. Brahm Prakash. The President recalled that Prof. Dhawan was a great leader with a vision and said that it was the confidence that a leader like Prof. Dhawan bestowed on his colleagues and his unstinted support that made all the projects undertaken in his time successful. While remembering the SLV-3 period and the failure of its maiden flight, Dr. Kalam said that a great leader owns responsibility for failures and gives credit for successes to his team members. Prof. Dhawan was one such great leader. In a nostalgic tone he thanked the ISRO community for their support and inspiration. The President also talked at length about the noble leadership of Mahatma Gandhi who chose to reduce the sufferings of ordinary people when the nation celebrated its independence in 1947.

Stressing the enormity of responsibility, which organisations such as ISRO have undertaken to fulfil the socio-economic aspirations of the underprivileged, the President urged the urgent establishment of physical, electronic

Sharing happy moments ...

and economic connectivity to the rural masses. Technology, not meant to be kept in cupboards, must be translated into benefits for the common populace as ISRO has so successfully demonstrated. Setting the next mission target of eradicating hunger, malnutrition and illiteracy for the 300 million living below the poverty line, the President