Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam www.abdulkalam

1 Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Page 1 of 17 Address and interaction with the students of Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya Indore 12 June 2013 Youth dynamics and the nation When you wish upon a star, Makes no difference who you are Anything your heart desires Will come to you I am delighted to address and interact with the students of Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya here at Indore. My greetings to all of you. Friends, today, before coming to here, in the morning, I have inaugurated a Planetarium at Ujjain. Govt of Madhya Pradesh has established this unique dynamic facility for astronomical observation and research.

2 This planetarium is being created to provide hands-on training to students in astronomy and space-science and also kindle the urge for research in young minds. I am sure, all youth of this University will visit Ujjain observatory and see the marvels of our Galaxy Milky Way. Dear young friends, today when I am with you, I would like to share some views and thoughts on the topic Youth dynamics and the nation . Dear friends, when I am in front of over thousands of youth, I am thinking what thoughts I can share with you.

3 I hope will provide a bridge for the innovative ideas of the youth with the mature experience of the experienced for the Page 2 of 17 prosperity of this region. I realize how the contributions of the youth in the past have continuously enriched the world of today in many fields. When I am with you, I would like to recall the inspiring advice to you by Swami Vivekananda, "how has all the knowledge in the world been gained but by the concentration of the power of the mind?

4 The world is ready to give up its secret if we only know, how to knock, how to give it the necessary glow. The strength and force of the glow come through concentration. There is no limit to the power of the human mind. The more concentrated it is, the more power is brought to bear on one point, that is the secret . Dear friends, this thought has indeed influenced my conscience and I would suggest that the education system must develop this faith among our youth and the youth to practice this faith in all their actions.

5 When I see the large number of students and teachers, I thought of sharing my experience of class rooms where the teaching done by two great teachers. Foundation for scientific inquiry Teacher puts the students ahead: Now I would like to discuss about my mathematics teacher Prof Thothatri Iyengar. As a young science student, I had an opportunity at St. Joseph s College to witness a unique scene of divine looking personality walking through the college campus every morning, and teaching Mathematics to various degree courses.

6 Students looked at the personality who was a symbol of our Page 3 of 17 own culture, with awe and respect. When he walked, knowledge radiated all around. The great personality was, Prof Thothatri Iyengar, our teacher. At that time, Calculus Srinivasan who was my mathematics teacher, used to talk about Prof Thothatri Iyengar with deep respect. They had an understanding to have an integrated class by Thothatri Iyengar for first year (Hons) and first year (Physics).

7 Thus, I had the opportunity to attend his classes, particularly on modern algebra, statistics and complex variables. When we were in the first year, Calculus Srinivasan used to select top ten students to the Mathematics Club of St. Joseph s, who were addressed by Prof Thothatri Iyengar. I still remember, in 1952, he gave a masterly lecture on ancient mathematicians and astronomers of India. In that lecture, my professor introduced two great astronomers and a great mathematician of India, which is still ringing in my ears.

8 They are Aryabhatta, Bhaskara and Srinivasa Ramanujan about whom we have already discussed. Let me discuss. Aryabhatta: When I was studying the chapter on Rishi scientist, one thought came to me as a student of Science. When Copernicus (15th century) and Galileo (16th century) established the dynamics of solar system, that the earth is spherical and orbits around the sun. For this scientific statement to the world, Copernicus was forced to withdraw his statement and Galileo was imprisonment for lifetime.

9 Whereas Page 4 of 17 in 500 AD, nearly a millennium before Galileo and Copernicus, Indian astronomer and mathematician Aryabhatta discovered and publicly announced that earth orbits around the sun in about 365 days, the Indian society accepted this scientific wisdom of Aryabhatta and he happily continued to propagate his scientific work. Now let me share an experience from a great teacher. Teacher who makes the student an autonomous learner A great teacher, who is a living legend now is Prof.

10 Chinnadurai. He taught me physics, particularly Nuclear Physics. The way the Professor taught, many students started loving physics, particularly Nuclear Physics. Rev Father Chinnadurai, when he was taking lessons, used to give reference articles and good reference books, which the students can refer and read. And the Physics teacher ensured that we all referred good Physics textbooks during the lecture instead of only reading the notes. This widened the horizon of the learning of the students.