Discovery of the Hepatitis C wins the 2020 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine.

Images : courtesy Nobel Foundation and Wiki Commons.

Liver cirrhosis - a dreaded medical jargon, which affects the liver - primarily due to the Hepatitis virus, is something that has caused immense sorrow for me and other students and alumni of Sainik School Bijapur - the Ajeets. Two of my very close friends - Tipusultan and Gurupad Hegadi, fellow Ajeets, have succumbed to this dreaded disease - Liver Cirrhosis, within a year of each other on July 13, 2019 and 17th August, 2020, respectively. One of the major causes for liver cirrhosis is a virus - the Hepatitis virus, which comes in three major variants A, B and C. World Health Organisation - WHO, estimates that worldwide some 290 million people are living with the Hepatitis virus including  the Hepatitis C virus, which alone infects more than 70 million people, and kills 400,000 people annually. It is therefore no wonder that the Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute has decided to award the coveted Nobel Prize (2020) for Physiology or Medicine, jointly to three scientists, Harvey J Alter, the US National Institutes of Health, Maryland, Michael Houghton, British virologist presently at the University of Alberta in Canada and Charles Rice, Rockefeller University, New York, “ for their discovery of the Hepatitis C virus”. The three of them will share the handsome Nobel Prize  money of 10 million Sweedish Krone (8.2 Crore Indian ₹). This years laureates and their works reminds me of yet another connect with my school, where we were assigned an interesting task - treasure hunt, the finding of which depended on clues each navigating to the final destination for finding that illusive treasure. The discovery of the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) by the three scientists has followed this path with each of them - Alter, Houghton and Rice, in that order, getting a clue or to use the words of Newton in the context ‘standing on the shoulders of the other’ to reach their final treasure destination of the discovery of the HCV. 

The ultimate result - the discovery of the Hepatitis C Virus by the three scientists, has helped in decisively fighting against the blood-borne hepatitis transmission, a major global health issue, which causes cirrhosis and liver cancer in people around the world. It is perhaps this discovery and understanding the underpinnings of the Hepatitis C virus (HCV) that has prompted the UN to announce, in its Sustainable Development Goals (SDG - 2015), their aim for the elimination of this dreaded disease by the year 2030. The discovery of Hepatitis C virus is a landmark achievement in that direction. Thanks to this discovery, highly sensitive blood tests for the Hepatitis virus are now available and these tests have essentially eliminated post-transfusion hepatitis in many parts of the world, thus helping in greatly improving the global health. The seminal discovery of Hepatitis C Virus by this year’s Nobel Laureates, has also paved the way for the development of effective antiviral drugs and in the development of the HCV vaccines, which will help in not only reducing the mortality rates but also in guiding the global health workers on to the right path towards elimination of this virus. 

The significance of the discovery of the HCV and understanding of the viruses can be appreciated and well recognised in the current context of the Covid 19 global pandemic, which is caused by yet another virus - the SARS- COV2, virus, which is the cause for the current ongoing Covid 19 pandemic that is plaguing the world. The study and understanding of the viruses help the medical fraternity in bringing down the mortality with pharmaceutical therapeutics and so also finding  candidate vaccines to get rid of the virus. Scientists and pharmacists from across the world, including India, are striving hard to invent variety of pharmaceutical therapeutics like the Remdesivir, which we understand has been used for the treatment of President Trump, who is admitted with Covid infection and so also for inventing vaccines for combating the Covid pandemic. Lot of the vaccine candidates are already in advanced trials stages and it is anticipated that by next year there will be definitive vaccines to combat the Covid 19 pandemic. The rapid pace at which the medical research has progressed for Covid 19 has been aided by the understanding of the viruses including the discovery of the HCV. In all cases the beginning of the vaccine development starts with the understanding of the virus, which causes the disease and therefore it is natural that the discovery of the Hepatitis C virus, which is the cause for many global deaths, by this years Nobel laureates is destined to play a pivotal role in not only combating and elimination of the HCV virus by 2030 but also in combating the current Covid 19 pandemic.

The Hepatitis C virus is a silent killer whose mortality rates are much higher than the ongoing Covid pandemic that is caused by another virus - SARS - Cov-2 ( Severely Acquired Respiratory Syndrome - Corona Virus 2). The Hepatitis Virus adversely affects the liver and causes liver cirrhosis, which may lead to cancer and death, if not attended timely with the liver transplant.Global studies estimate that there are 8.7 million people living with chronic HCV in India. Delhi-based, Institute of Liver and Biliary Science (ILBS), in the year 2014, had highlighted the approximate number of people living with chronic Hepatitis C infection to be around 12 million. According to another analysis it is estimated that the prevalence of chronic HCV infection in India could be somewhere around one per cent. In India HCV disease is mostly prevalent in the states of Punjab, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Puducherry, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram. According to one estimate Hepatitis C is killing more people than HIV/AIDS in India. All this means that we, Indians, must hail the decision of the Nobel committee to recognise the discovery of the hepatitis C for the coveted Nobel Prize award in Physiology or Medicine for this year.

The word Hepatitis is derived from two Greek words hepar - meaning "liver", and itis - meaning "inflammation". The HCV causes the deadly liver disease and accounts for nearly 12-32 per cent of liver cancer and 10-20 per cent of liver cirrhosis cases in India alone. Most unfortunately Hepatitis is a silent killer disease and most people with chronic Hepatitis B or C are not even aware of this infection and therefore are at very high risk of developing cirrhosis or liver cancer. HCV is also a major global health issue and in its recognition and with an objective of creating global awareness about hepatitis, every year the world observes ‘World Hepatitis Day (WHD) on 28 July and this year (2020) the theme for WHD was ‘Find the Missing Millions’. The WHD theme helps in creating awareness of the global burden of viral hepatitis and hopes to influence real change in global society. As stated above, an estimated 290 million people are living with the Hepatitis Virus and therefore identifying and finding the ‘ missing millions ‘ and linking them to medical care is of paramount importance, failing which millions will continue to suffer, and many of these precious lives will be lost. In that sense the Nobel recognition this year to the three scientists, who have played pivotal role in the discovery of Hepatitis C virus, is quite befitting and this discovery is helping their fellow scientists to understand the underpinnings of not just the HCV but also other viruses like the SARS- COV2 virus which causes Covid 19 virus. 

A look back in history reveals that the first description of hepatitis dates back to approximately 400 B.C.E and this is ascribed to the Greek physician Hippocrates - father of western medicine. By the middle of the twentieth century - 1940s, the doctors knew there were two main types of infectious hepatitis. The first, transmitted by the hepatitis A virus, which could spread via contaminated food and water and caused a short-term infection that is typically resolved within weeks. Hepatitis A is far less lethal in comparison with its cousin viruses B and C. Hepatitis B and C are spread by blood and body fluids and they are more harmful and insidious, since they silently infect the patient for years before serious complications like the liver cirrhosis and cancer are evidenced. By the 1960s researchers started studying about a new variant of the hepatitis virus.  In the year 1967, Baruch Blumberg, an American scientist, discovered the hepatitis B virus, while working for the National Institute of Health, USA, for which he received the 1976 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Unfortunately, even the discovery of the hepatitis B was unable to explain all cases of chronic hepatitis infections, a disease that was becoming more common even in apparently healthy people who had received or donated blood. This pointed to the presence of yet another type of virus, which was then classified under the category of Non A Non B Hepatitis-NANBH. 

This years Nobel laureate, Harvey Alter was working as an young scientist  at the National Institute of Health in Bethesda, where his senior Blumberg had discovered the hepatitis B virus. While studying hepatitis spread by blood transfusions, during the early 1970s, the young Alter discovered that plasma from patients who didn't have hepatitis B could also transfer the disease. He observed and inferred that some patients were being infected by an unknown virus agent - NANBH. He later conclusively demonstrated that blood from these patients could transmit the disease to chimpanzees. Despite this significant progress, the identity of the new virus responsible for NANBH remained illusive. The unsuccessful search for the unknown agent (NANBH) employing all the traditional methods that had allowed the discovery and characterization of hepatitis A and hepatitis B continued for more than 10 years.

Michael Houghton, while working at a Pharmaceutical company - Chiron Corporation, was one of those scientists was in the hunt for the NANBH agent. In the year 1982, using a molecular approach based on the screening of DNA fragments, which were isolated from infected chimpanzees, Houghton and his team were able to arrive at a preliminary understanding of the illusive agent, which was causing liver cirrhosis. The initial screenings identified only genetic material from the host. Attempts to enrich viral sequences by eliminating host sequences that were also found in an uninfected control liver did not yield any result and were unsuccessful. They realised that Isolating the hepatitis C virus was harder. 

The breakthrough came in 1989, when Michael Houghton, who holds a PhD from Kings College, London, and his former coworkers, George Quo and Qui-Lim Choo, used a combination of molecular biology and immunology-based techniques to clone the virus by introducing viral DNA from an infected animal into bacteria, and using human antibodies to the virus to screen for its genetic sequence and identified  the mystery pathogen and sequenced the genetic code of the new virus. This new discovery came to be known as the hepatitis C virus. They discovered that the new virus - Hepatitis C, resembled viruses from a family called flaviviruses. These findings formally established a relationship between infection with the newly discovered hepatitis C virus and the occurrence of NANBH around the world. This discovery also led to a blood test that could screen for hepatitis C, which was quite revolutionary and it helped in vastly reducing the number of disease cases that resulted from blood transfusions worldwide.

The works of Houghton and his team were still unable to provide that conclusive answer to one question. Did the virus alone cause the disease? But then Houghton and his teams combined work had established a critical link between the unknown agent NANBH and HCV infection. The answer to this question was provided by Rice, who was then working at the Washington University in St. Louis, and his colleagues. Interestingly enough Rice had no intention to study the hepatitis C virus. He was more interested in studying yellow fever virus, which is also a family of the flavivirus, to which HCV belongs. However, by then Alter and Houghton had published their seminal papers on a ‘mysterious hepatitis virus’ in Science in 1989 and this paper fortuitously came to the notice of Rice. The paper gave that  uch needed impetus to Rice to study this new virus. To start with Rice’s interest in studying this new virus started off as a small side project and he says ‘that really nobody in lab was excited about this new study’. It was that time of the period when the scientists could not even grow the virus in cells and therefore the attenuated interest his team was understandable. From there, Rice and his team used the works of Houghton and his colleagues to build on their works and were successful in fleshing out the pathogen’s genome sequence, clone the viral RNA and infect it with animals. Rice and his teams works ultimately demonstrated that the hepatitis C virus alone was responsible for the cause of the disease. 

The combined works of the scientists has saved millions of lives and their works also demonstrate that science does not have any barriers. This years Nobel laureates  — Harvey J. Alter Michael Houghton and and Charles M. Rice — have ‘built on the discovery of the Hepatitis A and B viruses”, the Nobel Committee said, and their "discovery of Hepatitis C virus has revealed the cause of the remaining cases of chronic hepatitis and made possible blood tests and new medicines will continue to save millions of lives until this deadly HCV is eliminated as envisaged in the SDG of the United Nations. Their seminal works and their discovery has helped fast forward the development of effective antiviral drugs, which are now the need of hour in the current Covid 19 pandemic times, which is plaguing the world and India alone accounting for six million plus cases and fatalities which have just exceeded hundred thousand. The positive part of it is that close to 5.6 million people have recovered from this pandemic. Had it not been for our better understanding of the virus, part of which stems from the works of the three laureates of this years Medicine Nobel prize, there would have been that many more fatalities and lesser recoveries. 

Thanks to the pioneering work of the three laureates- Alter, Houghton and Rice, and many of their colleagues who built upon their findings to identify HCV carriers, the global health workers are now able to eliminate contaminated blood and blood products and develop effective drugs, to combat the global menace  of HCV. We have now come to a stage where HCV induced hepatitis in many cases has become a curable disease. Their works have also aided in the development of anti viral pharmaceutical medicines, which can cure more than 95% of the hepatitis patients. Therefore the joint discovery of the HCV by the three scientists and their team can be rightly characterized as a “landmark achievement in our ongoing battle against viral infections”, particularly in combating causes of cirrhosis and liver cancer in people around the world.

Long live science and scientific temper, which alone is rational and non canonical.

Commemoration and culmination of the 150th Birth Anniversary of the Mahatma : Gandhi and Science

 Commemoration and culmination of the 150th Birth Anniversary of the Mahatma : Gandhi and Science.

Gandhi ji is perhaps the most prominent leaders of the world on whom unending essays, books, films and documentaries have been written and produced the world over, yet, strangely, not much has been written or documented on Gandhi and his interest in Science and Technology and even lesser, his interest in Astronomy. Therefore we made an attempt to connect Gandhi with science during this years Gandhi Jayanti celebrations. Among other events programmes and activities that we organised, as a tribute to the Mahatma there were two webinar lectures, which were delivered by Dr. Ratnashree, Director Nehru Planetarium, Delhi on ‘Gandhi and Khagolshastra’ and Mr. Sudheendra Kulkarni, Author and Columnist, on ‘Gandhi and Science and Technology’, which were organised on 29th September and 1st October. respectively. Dr. Ratnashree, shed light on Gandhi ji’s interest in Astronomy - star gazing. In fact, his liking for astronomy became so intense that for some time it became an obsession for him. Sudheendra Kulkarni ji, based on his extensive research and monumental study and his publication of a book ‘Music of the Spinning Wheel - Mahatma Gandhi’s Manifesto for the Internet Age’, delivered an inspirational lecture on Gandhi and Science. He unravelled the enigmatic Gandhi ji and his association and interest in science, with his well reasoned articulations of Mahatma Gandhi’s Life and Work.  His lecture was so very insightful that it is bound to dispel the myth, which we all have that Gandhi ji was anti science and anti-modern, which is based on our apocryphal beliefs. Here is a brief summary of Gandhiji’s association with astronomy and science based on the two lectures.

Gandhi ji had an unprecedented influence on people and that influence perpetuates even todaय। His principles, for which he is known globally - सत्या और अहिमसा ( Truth and Non Violence), are relevant, rather more relevant, even today. It was his strength of character and of practice, as distinguished from precept, that enabled Gandhi to influence so deeply his thought on millions of his followers, not just in India but globally. Therefore, for us, the science communicators, Gandhi’s interest in science and technology and stargazing is an interesting new attribute of the Mahatma, which must mandatorily be communicated to the people, particularly the youngsters, to kindle their interest in sky observation and science and technology.  Mahatma always believed that science and technology must be used for larger social good of human society.

 

Notwithstanding the fact that so much has been written and documented about the Mahatma, yet, Gandhi ji, in a way continues to be an enigma, with so much more to know about him and his extraordinary life that touched the lives of tens of millions of people. Interestingly enough even though so much is known of the Mahatma, and that there is hardly any private life for Gandhi ji, yet there is that much more, which we can learn and be inspired from him. During the two years celebrations of the sesquicentennial birth anniversary of the Mahatma, which started on 2nd October 2018 and will be ending today, the Government has initiated many projects to bring Gandhi ji closer to the people. One such project, which was announced in the budget speech of the honorable Finance Minister was the Gandhipedia project, which I had the honour to prepare the detailed project report and get it approved from the Ministry of Culture. Incidentally this artificial intelligence based web portal that has been developed by IIT Kharagpur and IIT Gandhinagar, is likely to be launched very soon and it is hoped that this will provide a much needed platform for the Gandhian researchers to dive into understanding Gandhi ji better with AI based search that the web portal will provide to the people, when launched. There is also another exhibition ‘A Digital Tribute to the Mahatma’, which too will be opened at the Nehru Science Centre very soon. Speaking of Gandhi ji, I am reminded of a famous Poet, Bhavabhuti who had said, “Who, indeed, can claim to know the mind of the Great?" Mahatma Gandhi, in that sense, fits into the Poets classification. Although Gandhi had laid bare his life and mind in its fullness before his people and had permitted no secrecy or personal life of his own, yet there is much of an enigma that remains attached to the Mahatma, particularly when it comes to knowing him from the stand point of science.

 

Gandhi and science perhaps have not been much talked about and therefore in my limited language understanding and inability to use better words, I would say Gandhi and Science were considered  as an oxymoron.  Fortunately post the two lectures of Dr Ratnashree and Sudheendra Kulkarni, which we organised, there will be a better understanding of the Mahatma when it comes to his association with science and technology and these lectures may inspire younger generations to research more on this subject. Gandhi continues to be a role model for the nation and particularly for the students who wish to become political and social scientists but then lack of our understanding of Gandhiji’s feelings for science have not helped the scientific community in making Mahatma a role model for those who aspire to be scientist and technocrats. Hopefully  this will change with better understanding of his views in science and help us use the name of Mahatma to influence the interest of our audience in science and technology and how it can bring about transformational changes in society, which was what Gandhi ji aspired all his life.

It was also generally believed that Gandhi ji was against use of technology, which is evidenced from his sayings like Industrialise and Perish and his advocacy against industrialisation,much to the consternation of people like Sir M Visvesvaraya, whose thoughts were diametrically opposite to the Mahatma. Visvesvaraya used the slogan Industrialise or Perish to oppose the views of Gandhi ji. Despite such diametrically opposing views of Gandhi and Sir MV, both of them had the highest respect for each other’s position and often Sir MV cited his seniority in age to drive home his position but not with much success. Gandhi ji is perceived as a saintly person who had always valued faith more than reason. However, Sudheendra ji reveals that Gandhijis opposition to the ways of modern western civilisation did not imply his lack of interest in science and scientists. Sudheendra ji highlighted that the Mahatma was not anti-science and that he was always appreciative of the great scientists and how science benefits society. Incidentally it was Gandhi ji on whose instance Pandit Nehru requested Sir M V to inspect Odisha and study the floods and  suggest technological measures to combat Orissa floods. The reservoir across Mahanadi – The Hirakud dam, is an outcome of Sir Visvesvaraya’s recommendation for the construction of the reservoir, to Pandit Nehru who called such works temples of modern India.

Gandhiji’s opposition to industrialisation or over reliance on science and technology is legendary and therefore it is no wonder that little is known about Gandhiji’s interest, albeit-short-lived, in star gazing and astronomy. Mahatma Gandhi ji, during his jail term in Yerwada jail, Pune, took sudden and keen interest in astronomy. He likened the observation of unending expanse of stars and the celestial bodies to a spiritual experience, which humbled him and made him feel how insignificant he is in comparison with the vast and unending expanse of the universe, about which he seemed-to have some basic understanding. His interest in astronomy was created by the company of Dattatreya Balkrishna Kalelkar popularly called Kaka Kalelkar, a graduate in Philosophy-from the Fergusson college. Kaka Kalelkar too was a political thinker who used to write for a nationalistic Marathi paper -‘Rashtramat’, and is believed to have walked on foot to the Himalayas. He became a follower of Gandhi and was one of the residents of the Sabarmati Ashram. Gandhiji, while incarcerated in the Yerwada Pune Jail, briefly had the company of Kaka Kalelkar, who was deeply interested in astronomy, which he rubbed on to the Mahatma. Kaka urged Gandhi to use the telescope to observe, closely, the celestial objects and this use of optical technology - Telescope, mesmerised Gandhiji and kindled his interest in astronomy. In the brief period that he spent in Pune jail, during February to May 1932, Gandhiji acquainted himself with sky charts and maps and also ended up reading quite a number of essays and books on astronomy. Gandhiji used to often sleep in the open air with his fellow jail mates Mr Desai and Sardar Patel and looked at the night sky and engaged his associates with his new found hobby of sky observations. There is also an anecdotal reference of the jailor not permitting technical persons to visit Yerwada Jail for the assembly of the new telescope, which Gandhiji wanted in the Jail. Fortunately Gandhiji appealed against the decision and managed to get the telescope commissioned.

 

Gandhiji prepared articles on his new found hobby of sky observation and titled them “Watching the Heavens I and II”, and distributed his writings to the inmates of the Sabarmati Ashram, urging his followers to observe the twinkling stars and other planets in the night sky. Mahatma, believed that a look at the unending expanse of the sky, with hundreds and thousands of twinkling stars, made him experience that humbling feeling, which was a ‘spiritual' experience for him. He even prepared some sketches of the group of constellations like the Orion constellation. Gandhi jis liking for star gazing can be appreciated in one of his statements where he says ‘My room may have blank walls; and I may even dispense with the roof, so that I may gaze out at the starry heavens overhead that stretch in an unending expanse. What conscious Art of a man can give me the panoramic scenes that open out before me, when I look up to the sky above with all its shining stars? He adds, ‘These beauties of a sunset or a crescent moon that shines amid the stars at night’ are truthful, in as much as they make me think of the creator at the back of them. How else could these be beautiful, but for the Truth that is in the center of creation? Dr. Nandivada Rathnasree, Director of Nehru Planetarium, has done fair amount of research on the interest that Gandhi ji developed during his stay at the Yerwada Jail and has managed to dig out some rare archival material from the NMML library records, which she has used to develop a new full dome planetarium show that she has tilted ‘ Gandhi and Khagolashastra’.

This new planetarium show extensively quotes Gandhiji and one such quote of Gandhi says  “Astronomy has always interested me. Now it has become a passion with me. Every free minute I get, I devote myself to it. It is a wonderful subject…”. There are records which suggest that there were two large-sized telescopes, which were placed in the open yard of the Yerwada central prison, which were used by the Mahatma for star gazing, while he was incarcerated at the Yerwada Jail. While sending the articles Gandhi wrote on astronomy ‘Watching the Heavens I and II’ to his ashram inmates in 1932, Gandhiji advised them to take up regular observations of the night sky. According to Rathnasree, Gandhiji “combines his view of the celestial objects… with practical instructions for sky observations and even sketches of the Orion constellation. Following the sketch, he goes on to say that none of the sketches he has seen in print show all the stars which he can see in the constellation and advises ashram inmates to make their own sketches, one reason being…that the constellation as seen from different locations on Earth would have differing orientations. He exhibits his understanding that sky charts vary from place to place. The “possibility of a measurement of time by looking at the changing position of the Saptarshi asterism” was also raised by the Mahatma in his article. Gandhiji also desired that lucid books be written on the life of great astronomers and their discoveries. Nehru Planetarium along with NCSM have taken initiatives to highlight Gandhiji’s writings on astronomy and his wonderment at observing stars, through Bapu Khagol Mela, which was spearheaded by Dr Ratnashree.  

As a lifelong seeker of truth, Gandhiji’s interest in astronomy was genuine and to him sky observation was a deeply spiritual experience. But the same sky observation for Meghnad Saha, was different. Saha’s observation was quest for the hidden laws of nature using the methods of modern science, which resulted in the development of the Saha Ionisation equation.  Although Gandhi ji is known to have been adversarial to use and implementation of technology for national progress, yet Sudheendra ji in his evocative lecture highlights how receptive Gandhiji was for new technology that would change the lives of the common people. Sudheendra ji even highlights a technology challenge or a competition that Gandhi ji announced and allocated a hefty prize amount of Rs 1 Lacs ( equivalents to present day 4 Crores of Rupees) for any one who could develop a improved spinning wheel that would help improved efficiency and productivity for the people. This, Sudheendra ji says, conclusively proves that Gandhi ji was not ‘per say’ opposed to the technology. All he wanted was that technology must and should serve the people in the bottom of the pyramid.

He argued that Gandhiji has often admitted that there have been contradictions in his life. Gandhiji far from excusing himself for them, he has stated, ‘I have never made a fetish of consistency. I am a votary of truth and I must say what I feel and think at a given moment on the question, without regard to what I may have said before on it’.  So one can’t summarise that he was a compulsive opponent of science or technology, rather Gandhi was a prime follower of the principles of science - ability to question and reason. 

Ratnashree briefly talked about the new planetarium show - ‘Bapu and  khagol shastra’ which is based on Gandhis interest in sky. The program uses Gandhi’s quotes, which  were curated after months of research into Gandhi jis collected works. Volume 90 of the collected works of Gandhi (CWG), which are now in public domain, says Gandhi asked his ashram inmates to observe the skies regularly as a “peace and health-giving exercise”. The works also reveal that Gandhi ji arranged for the telescope in Yerwada Jail and this was was facilitated by the Poona observatory. The archival records of the CWG show that Gandhi ji lamented about not having enough time or the wherewithal to observe the magnificence of the heavens, as much as he would have wanted. Dr. Rathshree in her illustrated lecture also showed a letter of Gandhi written to Kelkar in August 1932, where he advises Kaka Kalelkar that his book on astronomy "should give the names and short lives of Western astronomers, some of whom, were men of great courage and spirit and of noble character".  He went on to add that the book on astronomy, which he wishes to publish, should be as perfect as possible and should give an account of all discoveries to date in the field. Gandhi ji also mentioned that the book should give some knowledge about physics. All this clearly and unambiguously establish the fact that Bapu was well aware, not just about the positional astronomy aspects of watching the stars, but also his reading had allowed him to realise that physics underlay an understanding of stars. In a letter to Mathuradas Trikumji, Bapu lamented that he came rather late to this appreciation - astronomy. He says “I myself have been watching the stars every night and enjoy the experience immensely. I have woken up in old age. But what harm can there be in waking up even on death-bed if watching the stars helps one to have a glimpse of the soul?"

Sudheendra Kulkarni recalled an incident, when Bapu was at the Yerwada Jail, when reporters from the Associated Press set foot inside the Yerawada Jail premises to interview Gandhi. The reporters have quoted that they saw two large-sized telescopes placed in the open yard occupied by Gandhi in the Yerawada Jail and this sight presented an unusual spectacle amidst the severe simplicity of the Jail surroundings. This is also chronicled in the Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi - CWG. Gandhi told the reporters. "Astronomy has always interested me. Now it-has become a passion with me. Every free minute I get, I devote myself to it. It is a-wonderful subject, and more than anything else impresses upon me the mystery of god-and the majesty of the universe. To be lying on your back in the open air on a starry night and regarding universe after universe in the immeasurable expanse, you cannot help becoming a worshipper of God. My mind leaps with joy as I do so. Oh, it is marvellous, this incident has been quoted in a report in The Hindu, published on April 3, 1933.

Ratnashree also spoke of Gandhi jis inquisitiveness to observe a celestial object called  'Parijata', by Gandhi ji, which he was unable to do. However Dr Ratnashree was unable to connect whether the Parijata, which Gandhi ji was referring to was a star or constellation. May be researchers can throw more light on this with better study and understanding of Gandhi jis works. There are other interesting facts about Gandhi and his love with sky. Bapu has recorded practical instructions for sky observations and has even sketched the Orion constellation. Bapu writes that none of the sketches, which he has seen in sky maps and prints show all the stars that he could see through the telescope. He also says that the sky maps or sketches, vary from one region to other and cites the reason for it and says it is because the constellation as seen from different locations on earth would have differing orientations. Therefore Bapu advises the beginner stargazers to observe from a fixed place at a fixed time, and sketch the constellations. He further adds  that once they are familiar with the constellations, they would be able to identify these even if their locations and the constellation orientations change. Bapu also discusses the possibility of a measurement of time by looking at the changing positions of the 'Saptarshi', Ursa Major constellation. All this clearly shows that Gandhiji was in love with astronomy and advocated his followers to learn about it. Dr Ratnashree also said that Gandhiji refers to the constellations of Orion, Canis Major, Canis Minor,Lepus, Ursa Major, Ursa Minor, the Pole star, as also the imaginary creatures that are seen in the mythologies, which are connected with these constellations. He also immediately clarifies that the mythological creatures of constellations are "beautiful fancies", and that there are no such real figures in the sky. 

Sudheendra Kulkarni discussed  many phases of Mahatma Gandhi’s Life and Work at various levels. Based on this he articulated that Gandhi ji was not anti-modern, as many still believe. He also addressed several questions which are normally raised when speaking about Gandhi and science and technology.  ‘Was his philosophy of self-sufficiency anti development? Has the Age of Information and Communication Technology altered the meaning of swadeshi?  Has it altered the meaning to the extent of making it meaningless? Based on his research he dispels each of these myths which are associated with Gandhi and argues that Gandhi was always in sync with reality and technology for him was a life enabler, what he argued was that it must be used to change the lives of the people at the bottom of the pyramid and not used to create a larger difference between the haves and the have nots. He argued that Gandhi his thoughts on technology are more relevant in the modern world when sustainable development goals are of primary concern for the world. He recalled the prophetic statement of Gandhi ji who had said ‘Nature provides everything to fulfil the needs of the people and not their greeds’, which is so very relevant even today when we are speaking of issues like climate change, which is primarily man made. He highlighted the support that Gandhi ji advocated for telegraph and juxtaposed it to modern times to say that Bapu would have been a great advocate of the Internet which has democratised information. He highlighted how this technology can be harvested by Indians in the fourth industrial revolution which he seems to be a great advocate of. 

Kulkarni said that Gandhi can under no circumstances be dismissed as an eccentric, stuck with the Spinning wheel. Rather he must be associated with progress but a progress which is beneficial to the last man in the developmental ladder. He shared his thoughts that in the course of his studies,  he had discovered that Gandhi was not against elaborate machinery. Indeed, Gandhi is quoted as saying that he would favour the use of such machinery if thereby India’s paupers could be thereby saved from poverty. Kulkarni said that the spinning wheel may have been symbolic in the early twentieth century but actually the Mahatma would have discarded it if someone had showed him a better way of making a person self reliant. Gandhi’s primary concern was the chronic unemployment of millions of people in India’s villages and therefore Gandhi ji used the spinning wheel as  a means, to gaining economic freedom. Sudheendra ji argued with reasons that If the Mahatma was alive today, he would have embraced the Internet. 

I was one of those who had gone by those here say opinion that Gandhi and science had no commonality but after the two lectures and my own study which was compelled based on the two lectures, I am fairly convinced that Gandhi ji was a man of science who believed in questioning and central to science is asking questions and considering none but reasons and logic to be canonical. Long live the ideals of the Mahatma. On this birth anniversary of the Mahatma it is also time to celebrate the birth anniversary of another greatest leaders of India Lal Bahadur Shastri, whose slogan Jai Jawan Jai Kissan continues to reverberate in the hearts and minds of people and it is this monumental saying which kick started the green revolution in India and helped India to be self reliant on food production.

Jai Hind.

Centenary Tribute to Prof Satish Dhawan: The man who steered ISRO into the space trajectory.

Centenary Tribute to Prof Satish Dhawan: The man who steered ISRO into the space trajectory.

Image Credits : ISRO and Wiki Commons.

 The years 2019 and 2020 are special to Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), an institution which has entered the hearts and minds of all Indians. These two years - 2019 and 2020, mark the birth centenary years of the founder of Indian Space program - ISRO, Dr. Vikram Sarabhai and the man who steered and successfully placed the Indian Space program on the right space trajectory - Prof. Satish Dhawan respectively. Prof Satish Dhawan was the key architect who headed ISRO during those early testing and difficult times, which ISRO had to endear, post the sudden and untimely death of its founder, Dr. Sarabhai, on 31st December 1971. Although the foundational seeds for ISRO were sown by Dr. Vikram Sarabhai, it is a matter of fact that the man who is mandatorily to be credited for the current success of ISRO must be Prof. Satish Dhawan, the founding architect of ISRO who succeeded Dr. Sarabhai and steered ISRO to the modern times, where success and ISRO have become quite synonymous. The nation has paid a year long centenary tribute to Dr Vikram Sarabhai, the visionary of Indian Space, however we must not forget that it was Prof Satish Dhawan who lent substance to Dr Sarabhai’s vision and built the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) brick by brick. Today ISRO is rightfully known as an institution of international excellence and scientists from ISRO can rub shoulders with their counterparts in NASA and other reputed space agencies across the world. This day - 25th September, 2020, marks the birth centenary of Prof Satish Dhawan, who was born on this day in Srinagar in 1920 and as ISRO celebrates his birth centenary we as a nation must join them and raise up in reverence to this national hero of ours. 

ISRO, in a befitting tribute, is commemorating the birth centenary of Prof Dhawan by organising a centennial program in his memory, which was beamed live on You Tube this afternoon. The event started with the garlanding of the portrait of Prof Dhawan at the ISRO headquarters by the dignitaries led by ISRO Chairman, Dr. Sivan. Honorable Prime Minister of India shared his message in honour of Prof Dhawan and this message was read by the Chairman ISRO. Other distinguished guests who joined in commemoration of this event and shared their valuable thought included, Dr. Kasturi Rangan, Prof Roddam Narasimh, A S Kiran Kumar, and several other dignitaries including the beloved daughter of Prof Satish Dhawan – Dr. Jyotsna Dhawan.  

 

The best way to begin a tribute to the legendary Satish Dhawan is to recall what the former President of India – Peoples President – Dr. Abdul Kalam and Prof Roddam Narasimh had to say about their ‘Guru’ Prof Satish Dhawan with whom they worked very closely. Dr Kalam worked very closely with Prof Dhawan during his association with ISRO. They said “Professor Dhawan in his professional career has been engineer, teacher, research scientist, technologist, manager, leader and adviser — often all at the same time! His great human qualities, combining intense personal charm with a deep commitment to social values and an extraordinary objectivity in management, have led several generations of students, colleagues and administrators to efforts that they would otherwise not have taken.” In his book “The Wings of Fire” Dr. Kalam has paid flowing tributes to Prof. Dhawan and has quoted several anecdotal references of Prof Dhawan’s par excellence leadership and humane qualities. Coming from the Sainik School background where we were taught that for being a successful officer and a leader, who must command respect and not demand,  “the responsibilities must go from top to bottom and benefits from bottom to top”. Prof Satish Dhawan was an embodiment of this tenet. He stands out in these qualities and therefore it is no wonder that scientists across a broad spectrum, who worked with Satish Dhawan, vouch that Prof Dhawan was a staunch votary and a practitioner of this exemplary leadership qualities. Dr. Kalam, who was the project in charge of the SLV 3 project, which failed in its maiden attempt in August 1979, talks about how the failure and its consequences were directly handled by Prof Dhawan who shielded Dr. Kalam from the preying eyes of the journalists who had assembled to share their pound of flesh by targeting ISRO and Dr Kalam for this failure. Prof Dhawan owned up complete responsibility of the failure and took all those hard and tough questions and brickbats from the media. But then when the SLV 3 was successfully launched immediately thereafter in early 1980, here was Prof Dhawan who ensured that all that glory of success and media highlight on the success of the SLV launch went to Dr. Kalam and he preferred to lie low. Such was his exemplary leadership qualities, which shaped and sculpted the very culture of ISRO.

Similarly, Dr. Kalam quotes other anecdotal reference of Prof Dhavan’s benevolence and true leadership qualities. In one such incident, Dr Kalam says that he was again the beneficiary of Prof Dhawan’s exemplary benevolent leadership quality. He states that he had to attend a mandated meeting in Delhi with Prof Dhawan and others from the Planning Commission, for presenting a roadmap of ISRO and getting it approved. Unfortunately for Kalam, this important and unavoidable meeting coincided with the marriage of his niece. Prof Dhawan on learning why Kalam was quite stressed even after the successful meeting, immediately made arrangements for Kalam to fly from Delhi to Chennai by Indian Airlines and from Chennai to the venue of his niece’s marriage by a special helicopter, which Prof Dhawan had arranged through his contacts in defense. Dr Kalam could make it in time for the marriage of his niece courtesy Prof Dhawan. In another instance, Dr Kalam recalls that the entire team of scientists in ISRO were so very committed to their works, courtesy the infectious work and commitment ethics of their leader Prof Dhawan that almost always most of scientists forgot their commitment to their family, while working on their committed projects. Dr Kalam narrates an incident when Prof Dhawan arranged a car and a person to go to the home of a scientist who had forgotten his family commitment of taking his family on a outing on the birthday of their son. Unfortunately the scientist got so involved with his works that he forgot his sons birthday and his commitment to take him out for a dinner. Prof Dhawan knew of this but did not want to disturb the scientist who was completely engrossed in his works. He therefore preferred to send a car and a person to the scientist home for fulfilling scientists commitment to his family. The family was told that since the scientist was involved in an unavoidable work he has sent the car and the person to take them out for dinner. Interestingly the scientist knew nothing of this and when he was returning home from his office, he remembered his promise, which he thought he had failed to meet and was so very worried. Lo and behold on reaching home, the family thanked him for fulfilling his commitment even when he was so very busy, much to the embarrassment and delight of the scientist. Such was the humane leadership qualities that Prof Dhawan excelled in and therefore it is no wonder that ISRO has inherited this culture and continues to excel in what it does.    

  

Prof. Satish Dhawan was born on 25 September, 1920 in Srinagar to the distinguished parents and his father was a respected Judge, who worked in Lahore in undivided India. Prof Dhawan has an interesting mix of education, which cuts across different disciplines and is a novel mix of sciences, arts, and engineering. Prof Satish Dhawan graduated with a bachelors degree in science in Physics and mathematics from the University of the Punjab in Lahore, (now in Pakistan). He then completed a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering and followed it up with a Master of Arts in English Literature. He then went abroad for pursuing his Master of Science in aerospace engineering, which he completed from the University of Minnesota. He then obtained an Aeronautical Engineering Degree from the famous Caltech - California Institute of Technology, US, which was followed by a double PhD. On completing his doctorate, Satish Dhawan returned back to India in 1951, and joined the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bangalore as a senior scientific officer. His commitment and passion helped him climb up the ladder and pretty soon he became the Dean and head of the department of Aeronautical Engineering at IISC. Under his stewardship, the aeronautical engineering department quickly became the epicenter of experimental fluid dynamics research in India. His achievements in the aeronautical engineering department helped him with a very sharp raise and by 1962, Prof Dhawan became the Director of IISc. He was the youngest person ever to have been appointed to the position of the Director of IISc when he was just 42. This coveted position was previously held by the likes of the great Nobelist Sir C V Raman. Prof Dhawan continued as the institution’s longest-serving director for 19 long years (1962-81) even while he held the additional charge of the Chairman and head of ISRO from 1972 to 1982. 

 

After serving in IISc for nearly two decades (1951-70), Prof Dhawan had taken a sabbatical to Caltech, from where he had completed his double PhD. He was scheduled to spend two years on sabbatical at Caltech during 1971 and 1972 for his committed academic works. However, his plan was short lived. December 31, 1971 was a tragic day for India. The founder and visionary of the Indian Space Programme – Dr Sarabhai died suddenly while holidaying in Trivandrum. Under such compelling circumstances, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi called on Prof Dhawan to return back to India cutting short his sabbatical to take charge of the Indian space program. The circumstances were so very tragic that Dhawan immediately accepted the offer of Mrs. India Gandhi and prematurely ended his sabbatical at Caltech to return back to India. Prof Dhawan, however put two conditions to the PM for his acceptance: that the headquarters of the space program be in Bengaluru and that he be allowed to continue as the Director of IISc. Mrs. Gandhi agreed to both his conditions and Dhawan returned to India in May 1972 to mantle the position of the Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and to head the Space Commission as the Secretary to the Government of India in the Department of Space, while also retaining his Directorship at IISc. Prof Satish Dhawan shouldered this additional responsibility of heading ISRO but took no  benefits whatsoever from ISRO. He drew a notional salary of Rs 1 for shouldering the responsibility of heading ISRO.

In the early 1970s, India had other social priorities, which among other things included providing ‘Roti, Kapada aur Makan’ to the citizens, the political slogan which had won Mrs Gandhi a major mandate to be elected as the Prime Minister of India. It was also the period when India continued to rely on a scheme called PL 480 under which the Americans sent ship loads of wheat for feeding our countrymen. Therefore, it was quite obvious that during those early years, investment in Indian space program was considered by many as not just a luxury but also a wasteful expenditure. Although Mrs. Indira Gandhi - the PM of India, had personally hand picked Prof Dhawan for the task, yet it was not an easy task to accomplish. There were too many critics who were highly vocal in their criticism of the Indian governments decision to invest in space program. The critics argued that the government had misplaced priorities and that space technology, which was rid with great challenges and failures that are an integral part of Space, is not the right priority for the government to be spending money on. Instead, the critics argued the government must spend on health and education and such other areas. It was under these testing times that Prof Satish Dhawan took charge of the Indian Space program.

One of the first important decision that Prof Dhawan took, after assuming the charge of Indian Space program, was to requisition the services of Dr. Brahm Prakash from the Department of Atomic Energy to head the newly formed Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) at Trivandrum (now Thiruvananthapuram). This was perhaps the best decision, which helped ISRO immensely. Brahm Prakash helped in restructuring the facilities at VSSC into a dynamic structure, which was capable of producing tasked results time and time again. Dhawan worked hand in hand with Brahm Prakash to create the VSSC, which continues to be one of the great technology centres of modern India and has served as the mother institution and has become the birthplace of many subsequent ISRO centres and activities. Interestingly enough Dr APJ Kalam who was working with Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), had trained under Prof Satish Dhawan at IISC in designing a hovercraft for the ADE, one of Dr Kalam’s first assignment. Prof Dhawan, however had no connection then with either ISRO or ADE. He had seen the passion and commitment of Dr Kalam when it came to applying himself for the project assigned to him. When Prof Dhawan became the Chairman of ISRO he discussed his plans to requisition the services of Dr Kalam for ISRO, with Brahm Prakash and the duo hand picked A.P.J. Abdul Kalam to lead the project that developed SLV-3, India’s first launch vehicle. They also convinced Prof U.R. Rao to return back to India to head the team that made the country’s first satellite, Aryabhata. When the SLV-3 put a small 40- kg Rohini satellite into orbit in 1980, India truly entered the space age and the major credit for this achievement must go to Prof. Satish Dhawan. 

 

Prof Dhawan was convinced that if the Indian space program is to succeed it needed the continuous patronage of the government. Therefore notwithstanding major opposition from several of his contemporaries and colleagues, he worked towards bringing ISRO under the Government of India and thus created the Department of Space. Knowing well the drawbacks of the government departments, Prof Dhawan had to create a different structure for the functioning of the newly constituted Department of Space. He therefore commissioned a new body called the Space Commission, which enjoyed a separate book of financial powers and this body had a direct link to the Prime Minister. Thus he successfully created specific mechanisms, which could help the newly developed department to address the challenges that ISRO faced. He also ensured that there will be one combined office, which shouldered the responsibility of the offices of Chairman of ISRO, Chairman of the Space Commission and Secretary for the Department of Space and that there will be one person who will head this office, which ensured seamless integration between conceptualization and funding of programmes with delivery of technologies, launchers, satellites and applications. This major policy decision, which he not only conceptualised but also successfully implemented continues to help ISRO in achieving the stiffest challenges even today. His decision to locate the ISRO headquarters away from the national capital, a condition which he had placed before Mrs. Gandhi, has also benefitted ISRO.  Although one of the reasons for Prof Satish Dhawan to position the ISRO headquarters in Bangalore was guided by his passion to be associated with IISc, but there were other reasons too, which made him chose Bangalore. These reasons included the Hindustan Aeronautical Limited HAL and National Aeronautical Laboratory, which were in Bangalore. Prof Dhawan knew that both these institutions will be of immense benefit for ISRO. Prof Dhawan hired staff for ISRO Headquarters, who were young, bright and dedicated professionals, all of who were hand-picked by Dhawan himself. The continuing success that ISRO is now known for stems from this strong foundation, which Prof Dhawan designed and developed. Even today the robustness of this design is visibly seen and appreciated by all the ISRO chairman’s who have succeeded Prof Dhawan. 

Armed with all these foundational edifices, which were developed by Prof Dhawan, ISRO began designing the first Satellite Launch Vehicle – SLV 3, which was indigenously designed and built by ISRO under the leadership of our former President, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam. As discussed earlier in the essay, the first attempt to launch the SLV 3 failed. The improved version of the SLV the Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle - the ASLV, built by ISRO, also started on a wrong note with many failures. These early failures did not miss the attention of the Indian media and other intelligentsia who went hammer and tongs and highlighted the ‘misplaced priorities’ of the government and its decision to back the ISRO. The media also invented and coined a very catchy phrase to draw the attention of Indian public to oppose the Indian government to support ISRO. They  termed the early launch vehicles of ISRO - the SLV and ASLV experiments, as ‘Sea Loving Vehicles’ and ‘Always Sea Loving Vehicle’, in consideration of the fact that the SLV and the ASLV launch vehicles more often than not failed and ended up in the sea rather than going into the space. It was during those early turbulent years that the grit and determination and the ISRO Culture was incubated and shaped by Prof Satish Dhawan. 

Prof. Dhawan was the first to set up the supersonic wind tunnel in India and pioneer research on relaminarization of separated boundary layer flows, three-dimensional boundary layers and trisonic flows. He also carried out pioneering experiments in rural education, remote sensing and satellite communications. His efforts led to operational systems like INSAT- a telecommunications satellite, IRS - the Indian Remote Sensing satellite and the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), the work horse of ISRO, which has placed India in the league of space faring nations. Most of what ISRO does so well today – the IRS and INSAT satellites with their associated Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) and Geostationary Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) systems — are outcomes of these carefully thought out processes. Prof Dhawan was a great advocate of indigenous development. From the very beginning, he emphasised on the importance of developing indigenous industry and including them in the projects of ISRO. Today, hundreds of industrial units, both in the public and private sectors, manufacture a wide range of space-quality hardware for ISRO to make ISRO ‘Atmanirbhar’.

Today, ISRO receives a national reverence and every Indian is so very appreciative of the achievements of our space scientists, who have made India proud and for this we must credit Prof Satish Dhawan whose exemplary leadership and resilience to stay on course, even under adverse conditions, has made this possible. ISRO now has developed an extraordinary resilience to face any challenge even in the face of a few setbacks here and there, thanks to the early culture and outlook that was shaped by Prof Dhawan. It is therefore befitting that following his death in Jan 2002, the Indian satellite launch centre at Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, has been renamed as the Prof. Satish Dhawan Space Centre - SHAR. 

Courtesy the ISRO culture, which Prof Dhawan helped in establishing, ISRO today is able to achieve some of the most eye catching successful space programs that have caught the attention, not only of all Indians but also the global community including space experts in NASA and the European Space Agency. These space missions include among others ; Chandrayaan 1 and 2 and the Mars Orbiter Mission, which India could successfully launch in its maiden attempt and that too at frugal cost. These space missions and so also several other successful missions of ISRO have not only inspired many young people and given the nation a sense of justifiable pride in the achievements of the Indian space programme, but it has also provided the nation its rightful place in the international space arena. Amidst the euphoria surrounding such glamorous space successes and events, on this special day, which happens to be the birth centenary of Prof Satish Dhawan, it is our rightful duty that we remember the gentle yet a colossus leader who made all this possible - Prof Satish Dhawan. 

It must also not be forgotten that all through this period, when Prof Satish Dhawan was heading and steering the ISRO, he also served as the Director of the Indian Institute of Science, the position he held from 1962 to 1981. Dhawan loved teaching and research. Perhaps it was his love for teaching that compelled him to pose a condition to the Honourable Prime Minister that he will continue to be associated with IISc and that ISRO must be headquartered in Bangalore and not Delhi, which could have been a natural choice. Dhawan, notwithstanding his immense and stellar contributions to ISRO, always believed that his most productive years were spent at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, which always remained his first and greatest love. Dhawan during his nearly two decades of service as the director IISc, transformed the institution and he also managed to bring some fresh faces to IISc prominent among them include the great Prof GN Ramachandran and Prof CNR Rao. He established several new areas of multidisciplinary research at IISc. 

Prof Dhawan had an extraordinary interest in nature and in particular he admired the flights of the birds. This passion for observing and falling in love with bird flights led him to undertake a comprehensive study the ‘flight of birds’. He was often found roaming around the Pulicat Lake, Nelapetu and other bird sanctuaries near ISRO’s Sriharikota Range, which were frequented by lot many birds. His hobby or a casual interest in observing birds flight turned into a professional study, which resulted in the publication of a classic monograph called ’Bird Flight’. In the seventy plus pages article, which he published in 1991, Dhawan writes humbly in his preface : “I lay little claim to originality and acknowledge my debt to the many distinguished researchers on animal flight who have made the subject a new branch of science. I am no less indebted to the birds...”. Many of the drawings of birds that appear in this monograph were sketched by Dhawan himself.

The handsome and elegant Prof Dhawan had an extraordinary impact on all those who he interacted with, which he never seemed to realise. His impact was so very profound that most of them ended up doing whatever he wanted them to do. Prof Dhawan has received innumerable awards and accolades and primary among them include the Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan awards from the Government of India, fellowships of all the Academies of Sciences in India and several from outside the country. He is also the recipient of the Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration and the distinguished alumnus award from the Indian Institute of Science and Caltech. Prof. Dhawan after serving the nation for more than eight decades left for his heavenly abode on 3rd January 2002. The Indian Academy of Sciences, of which he served as the President, in one of its publications ‘Resonance’, has carried a befitting tribute to Prof Dhawan in its October 2003 issue where stalwarts like Dr Abdul Kalam, Dr Kasturi Rangan, Prof Roddam Narasimha and others have written flowing tributes to Prof Satish Dhawan. Today when the nation is celebrating the birth centenary of Prof Satish Dhawan, which was kick started by ISRO this afternoon,  it is time for all of us to raise in reverence for this great nation builder, who selflessly and tirelessly worked towards our nation building. 

May you continue to rest in peace in the heavenly abode which is now home to you Prof Dhawan and may you continue to inspire generation of youngsters and may several of them tread the path which you have shown.