scorecardresearch
Friday, Mar 29, 2024
Advertisement

U R Rao demands Bharat Ratna for Vikram Sarabhai

“I believe that important institutions and organisations which are now headed by IAS officers, should be handed over to scientists for better results,” he said.

homi bhabha, vikram sarabhai, bharat ratna, vikram sarabhia bharat ratna, bharat ratna list, india news, ahmedabad news, gujarat news, latest news, PRL chairman, make in india, make in india campaign Homi J Bhabha and Vikram Sarabhai.

Demanding Bharat Ratna for Dr Vikram Sarabhai to mark his 96th birth anniversary, Professor U R Rao, the chairman of the council of management of Physical Research Laboratory (PRL), took a dig at the “Make in India” campaign on Wednesday, stating that the cost of importing each foreign-made aircraft is equivalent to the money spent on the entire Mars mission.

He said important institutions like Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) should be led by scientists, and not IAS officers. “I believe that important institutions and organisations which are now headed by IAS officers, should be handed over to scientists for better results,” he said.

Addressing the audience at PRL, where Professor T V Ramakrishnan — DAE, Homi Bhabha Chair, Department of Physics at Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi — was awarded ‘Shri Hari Om Ashram Prerit Senior Scientist Award,’ Professor Rao said, “Dr Vikram Sarabhai and Homi Bhabha were two of the greatest administrators and scientists born in India. What they did to science and its development is unmatched. Bharat Ratna should really have been given to Sarabhai and Homi Bhabha.”

Advertisement

Professor Rao is a government nominee from the Department of Space at PRL, which was founded by Dr Sarabhai in Ahmedabad in 1947, where it began with research on Cosmic Rays at Sarabhai’s residence.

Talking about the leadership qualities of Dr Sarabhai, he said, “He was a great scientist. He combined administration and science all into one. He was a great lover of the country.”

Festive offer

Dr Sarabhai was the director of PRL from 1965 to 1971 and was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1966 and the Padma Vibhushan, posthumously. In his speech, Rao also took potshots at the Make in India campaign.

“We are not doing anything. We are trying to make in India, but nothing is being made in India… HAL was one of the first institutions to be built in the country after (Jawaharlal) Nehru took over, but not a single plane has ever been built in India. Every plane is imported and costs as much as our Mars Mission, which is about Rs 400 crore.”

Advertisement

He said that India builds only “windows and doors” of such imported planes. “Is that technology?” he asked, pointing out that institutions like HAL was run at the highest level by officers from the Indian Air Force and the Indian Army who are good, but “cannot provide leadership qualities” needed for the institution.

Later, when asked to elaborate on his comment on “Make in India”, Rao told mediapersons, “More than 150 industries are contributing to space (programme). Our rockets, cryogenic engines and high quality propellants are being built by the industry here. So everything is being Made in India… Today, Antrix is a mini-ratna.”

First uploaded on: 12-08-2015 at 17:01 IST
Latest Comment
Post Comment
Read Comments
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
close