‘Misconception, that more opportunities lie abroad’

PANAJI: It is a complete misconception that there are more opportunities abroad than in India, Padma Vibhushan awardee Raghunath Mashelkar, said in Panaji on Thursday, during an interaction with school students. He said that India has excelled with pathbreaking technological development in recent years.
“It is no more a brain drain. It is a brain gain,” said Mashelkar, speaking at Mushtifund Aryaan higher secondary school, while responding to a question by a student.
The scientist, who had to struggle for the bare minimum in his younger days, said that the world needs ‘affordable excellence.’ “We need to think on more from less for people. It is possible to be or make something out of ourselves with limited means also,” he said.
Calling himself a ‘dangerous optimist’, Mashelkar said, of his struggles with poverty as a child, “When you are hungry, you run but when you are full, you sleep.”
Highlighting the importance of the power of ideas, on which his book ‘Reinventing India’ is based, Mashelkar said that we always underestimate what our brains can do. “It is of utmost importance to reach our potential and then excel. It is not the size of the budget, but the size of the idea that matters,” he said.
The Fellow of the Royal Society, London (FRS), Mashelkar, fought a ferocious fight when he battled for the patent rights of haldi, neem and basmati rice. Speaking about the battle he said, “To quote the former Prime Minister Atalji ‘India matters more to us, but we want to matter more to India’ and this was my driving force.”
Mashelkar completely transformed the CSIR, world’s largest chain of laboratories when he headed them, he told the students that it was only possible because he could build the spirit of oneness among all the scientists, technicians and administrative staff.
The students and the director of Mushtifund Aryaan higher secondary school expressed to Mashelkar that it was their dream come true to have their role model at their institute.