Thursday, January 8, 2009

SCIENTIFIC MAGNANIMITY

IN a speech with the students in NIT he said:"Now, I would like to narrate an incident which took place during a function where Nobel Laureate Prof. Norman E Borlaug, a well known agricultural scientist and a partner in India’s first Green revolution, was conferred with Dr. MS Swaminathan Award, at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi on the 15th of March 2005. Prof. Borlaug, at the age of 91, was in the midst of all the praise showered on him from everybody gathered there. When his turn came, he got up and highlighted India’s advancement in the agricultural science and production and said that the political visionary Shri C. Subramaniam and Dr. MS Swaminathan, pioneer in agricultural science were the prime architects of First Green Revolution in India. Eventhough Prof Norman Borlaug was himself a partner in the first green revolution, he did not make a point on this. He recalled with pride, Dr. Verghese Kurien who ushered White Revolution in India. Then the surprise came. He turned to scientists sitting in the third row, fifth row and eighth row of the audience. He identified Dr. Raja Ram, a wheat specialist, Dr SK Vasal, a maize specialist, Dr. BR Barwale, a seed specialist. He said, all these scientists had contributed for India’s and Asia’s agricultural science. Dr. Borlaug introduced them to the audience by asking them to stand and ensured that the audience cheered and greeted the scientists with great enthusiasm. This action of Dr. Norman Borlaug, I call it as “Scientific Magnanimity”. Friends, if we aspire to achieve great things in life, we need scientific magnanimity to focus the young achievers. It is my experience that great mind and great heart go together. This scientific magnanimity will motivate the scientific community and nurture the spirit of achievement among the young towards science.

No comments: