The special feature of Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam’s working in his field of activities has been that he, instead of giving credit to himself for success during performance of duties, has given credit to all those who worked with him shoulder to shoulder.
Dr. Kalam worked day and night with all his energy considering the work an offering of worship to God. He always took his ‘inner power’ to be a gift of God. We get the proof of his sincerity towards his duties and his concentration and absorption from the fact that he built a hovercraft, working with his friends, in a motor garage, which he named ‘Nandi’ after the name of the bull which was Lord Shiva’s mode of conveyance.
The following statement which he has made in his autobiography—‘Wings of Fire’—is enough to prove his concentration in his work and dedication to it—“I would enter the assembly shop leaving my other problems outside, just as my father used to enter the mosque for prayer, leaving his shoes outside.”
Dr. Kalam had such cofidence in his calibre that he did not care to pay any attention to his critics during the performance of his duties. Some people even called him and his friends ‘a group of eccentric inventors’. He, being the leader of the team, continued to work for the success of the project, keeping in view the working capabilities of his colleagues. The building of this hovercraft assumed more importance when the then Defence Minister, Krishna Menon, flew in the ‘Nandi’ hovercraft. Where on the one hand he got maximum appreciation on the success of the hovercraft, on the other the senior scientists and the Director also became very happy. And all this appreciation and happiness was solely for the reason that he had succeeded in flying the hovercraft on an air cushion of about 40 mm with a load of 550 kg. The success on this project had made an opening for the evolution of indigenous techniques for military purposes.
Though, Krishna Menon’s leaving the office of the ministry of defence caused the project to be mired in controversies, as a result of which the project was finally shelved, it nevertheless made a great opening for Dr. Kalam’s progress in the field of technology. This helped him get a job of Senior Scientific Assistant at the Directorate of Technical Development and Production DTD & P (Air). Later, he was absorbed as a Rocket Engineer (a very important post) at the Indian Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR). This was a breakthrough he had dreamt of. Dr. Kalam made a beginning at INCOSPAR with a familiarization course at the TIFR Computer Centre.
There is a saying—
‘Errors like straws upon the surface flow,
One who is in search of truth must dive below.’
Later, when in the year 1962, INCOSPAR decided to set up the Equatorial Rocket Launching Station at Thumba, near Trivandrum in Kerala, Dr. Kalam was appointed there. Kalam established his laboratory and began with his design and drawing work.
Now, since Dr. Abdul Kalam had to work on the project of space research and was particularly very much interested in it, he was sent to America for a six-month training programme on sounding rocket launching techniques at the National Aeronauties and Space Administration (NASA) work centres. He had an unflinching faith in God even regarding his tour to America. He went abroad for training and yet he kept himself sincerely and deeply connected with his family and his motherland.
Experiences and then more powerful experiences in one’s life give new momentum and dimensions to one’s thoughts and ideas; and such experiences fill the person with more natural feelings for personal relations and active involvement in his performance of duties. Dr. Kalam, after return from America, having completed his training at NASA, realized that there was widespread prevelance of contemptuous pride in Indian organizations. Under such circumstances, the juniors and subordinates are not listened to and at the same time they are subjected to humiliations. One cannot expect positive results and constructive behaviour from the juniors in this kind of situation.
It was on 21 November 1963 that India’s first rocket was launched after Dr. Kalam’s return to Thumba. This rocket was made at NASA and it was a ‘sounding rocket’. This rocket was assembled in the church building at Thumba. The only mode of conveyance for carrying the rocket to the launch pad was a truck. The rocket was lifted by a crane and, while trying to place it on the launcher, the crane developed some technical problem resulting into leakage in the hydraulic system. Since the launch time of the rocket was fixed (6 p.m.) and there was absolutely no time for repair of the machine, the situation became very tense. Dr. Kalam, without losing a moment, despite being in charge of rocket integration and safety, decided to face the situation and, he and his friends, using their collective muscle power, lifted the rocket manually and finally placed it on the launcher. This was a bold step taken by Dr. Kalam as a leader, as a result of which the rocket was launched successfully. This successful maiden launch of ‘Nike-Apache’ helped Dr. Kalam obtain excellent flight data which filled him and his team members with a sense of pride and accomplishment.
In the field of science and technology, Prof. Sarabhai was Dr. Kalam’s mentor and guide. At the same time Dr. Kalam was learning all the methodologies of his specific field like mantras imparted by his Guru. Since Prof. Sarabhai was far-sighted, was a patriot and was, above all, a top scientist, he was encouraging and inspiring every scientist in the team and charging them with unprecedented dynamism for the sake and betterment of the country. The degrees and trainings had by the scientists mattered little to Prof. Sarabhai; what mattered most to him were the personal capabilities of the scientists in the specific field. It was because of his broadmindedness, his capability in training the scientists, and his sweet relations with the scientists that a whole new generation of renowned, industrious and sincere scientists could emerge in the field of Indian space research. He was very friendly with Dr. Kalam and had a miraculous influence on him. It was only the miracle of the team spirit of the scientists in the team that the first ‘Rohini’ rocket was launched successfully with a 7 kg. payload to an altitude of about 10 km; and then, soon, another one was subsequently dispatched, which weighed nearly 100 kg, to an altitude of over 350 km.
Such projects cannot be carried out by officers bullying their juniors and passing on orders to them and waiting for the juniors to carry out their orders. Dr. Kalam has made a mention in his book that whenever Prof. Sarabhai came to Thumba, he would talk to all the scientists with an open heart, he would review their perfomance and direct them to find solutions to problems, if any. Dr. Kalam’s claim that the solid achievement of our scientists in the field of rocketry is aimed at winning the nationwide faith of each other in the field of science and technology is one hundred per cent true.
