60 years ago, on January 24, 1966, Dr Homi J Bhabha, the father of India's nuclear programme, died in an air crash on Mont Blanc. The official inquiry said the plane went off course in bad weather, but coincidences, missing evidence, and later unproven claims have kept conspiracy theories alive. A fascinating excerpt from Bakhtiar Dadabhoy's book, Homi J Bhabha: A Life.
Usually, in the western view, corporate success is attributed to efficiency, organisational structure, and scale. R Gopalakrishnan and Harish Bhat argue that philosophy, culture, and the transmission of values are more important for sustaining growth and profitability of an enterprise over a period of time.
The Vikram-I rocket will fly with its maximum carrying capacity and put the satellites in a Low Earth Orbit.
M R Srinivasan focused on the peaceful use of nuclear power at a time when the popular view among the 'hawks' was that India should build a nuclear arsenal as a deterrent.
Take the Rediff Biz Quiz and find out how much you know about India and its space satellites.
'I can't wait for the day when the market value of an actress is not judged by the heroes or the superstars she's acted with.'
After Chandrayaan-3 touched down on the Moon, the Congress on Wednesday said it is a collective success of every Indian and ISRO's achievement reflects a saga of continuity and is truly fantastic.
'When a Project Director is appointed, the whole organization -- including the Chairman ISRO -- works for his success. It is a lesson that has been of abiding value all through the other projects I have worked on,' recalls the late President, one of the earliest pioneers at ISRO.
The world's most popular source for movie content, IMDb unveiled its list of the 10 Most Popular Indian Web Series, based on their page views on the site.
The intelligently conceptualized show does more for nationalistic pride than a dozen jingoistic series, applauds Deepa Gahlot.
'The benchmark was set by Dr Sarabhai.' 'If there is a problem, everybody would be encouraged to come up with a solution.' 'The final solution will be the result of all the inputs.' 'This is passed on through time.' 'Even today, you see that nobody wants to take particular credit on a success.'
Scientists, sci-fi, stand-up, suspense, take your pick of OTT this week. Sukanya Verma makes her recommendations:
'I still remember back in 1971, the night they both got the news that Dr Vikram Sarabhai had died at his hotel in Kovalam, and rushing off with tears in their eyes.'
A nuclear scientist and a chemical engineer, Dr Sethna was pioneer in establishing India's first reprocessing plant in 1959. India's first nuclear test was possible because of the Plutonium from this plant when the country was under tremendous pressure to sign the nuclear non-proliferation treaty by the United States.
Alert: The American Corner is launched at the Ahmedabad Management Association.
The 6-metre tall launch vehicle Vikram-S is named after Vikram Sarabhai, the father of the country's space programme and lifted off at 11.30 am.
'I hope more shows highlight the unsung heroes of our rich history.' 'As for bringing the trophy home, a man can hope, but truly I am just excited to be there.'
'One thing about ISRO is that all the people who work there are passionate about their work.' 'They did not mind spending day and night over there.' 'Even today it is like that.'
Who rocked the sari style best in the British Raj? Sukanya Verma asks you to take a poll.
I suggest we build a Vigyan Mandir (Temple of Science) with the ambience of a place of worship, so that it becomes a destination for pilgrims. We should embed on its walls bronze plaques describing each scientist mentioned here along with about a dozen of our ancient mathematicians, recommends Professor Kalyan Singhal, historian of science and technology.
'Rani made it very clear when she signed the film that she would shoot only during her daughter's summer vacation so as not to disturb her role as a real life mother.'
"Progressively, you can imagine that it becomes that much more difficult, with each passing hour, the available power on the battery gets drained out, and there won't be anything left for it to power and operate", an ISRO official said.
Dr Bhabha and Dr Sarabhai didn't feel guilty for their ambitions; it was for those 'mad scientists' that India is a powerhouse -- both at the atomic level and in the vastness of space, observes Kumar Abishek.
Her daughter, Mallika Sarabhai confirmed the news on her Facebook page. The post read: "My mother Mrinalini Sarabhai has just left for her eternal dance."
The announcement comes two days ahead of the proposed historic launch of the ISRO's 100th satellite along with 30 others in a single mission from Sriharikota.
'ISRO is resilient enough to spring back and come with a solution quickly.'
ISRO's expedition to Mars is yet another breathtaking adventure for an organisation created by Dr Vikram Sarabhai and carefully nurtured by scientists like A P J Abdul Kalam and R Aravamudan.
Dr Rao accelerated the development of rocket technology which led to the successful launch of ASLV and PSLV satellites.
'In a part of the world where the government tells people what not to eat and what slogans to shout and not shout, it is beneficial to develop a mentality that is science minded and therefore open-minded.' 'That is possibly why the space programme has always had support from all sides of the political divide,' says Aakar Patel.
'ISRO facilities are very expensive and any damage caused by these start-ups can create havoc to our space programme.'
'The unique achievements have been made by engineers from small towns who have had a non elite upbringing and who have grown with the programme,' says R Aravamudan, one of the pioneers of the Indian space programme.
'When the Americans are talking about colonising Mars by 2030, India cannot be lagging behind.'
'Though she was deeply religious, she was against communalism. Whenever she got the chance, she did speak out against the communalisation of society.'
The Indian Institute of Science topped the HRD ministry's 2017 national rankings. In 2016, the IISc was ranked among the world's top 15 universities in the Times Higher Education University Rankings. In his book The Creation of Wealth: The Tatas from the 19th to the 21st Century, R M Lala recounted how Jamsetji Tata's grand vision and immense personal contribution laid the edifice of arguably India's finest educational institution.
Dr Kalam, The Dalai Lama, M F Husain. Mrinalini Sarabhai. Dancer Astad Deboo lists his favourite Indian treasures.
'What is the future of ISRO?' Professor Rao asked from his hospital bed. 'What we see now is the continuation of programmes we started long ago.' 'What are we planning in the space science arena?' 'What is our plan for human space flight?' Former ISRO chairman Madhavan Nair recalls his last meeting with Professor U R Rao, the pioneering Indian space scientist who passed away on Monday, July 24.
'India has got a unique opportunity to get more and more business from outside as India is cost-effective and reliable.'
Taking exception to Health Minister Harsh Vardhan not mentioning the death of healthcare workers due to Covid-19 in his statement in Parliament, the Indian Medical Association has published a list of 382 doctors who died due to the viral disease and demanded that they be treated as "martyrs".
20 years ago this day, May 11, 1998, India conducted its second nuclear test at Pokharan in Rajasthan. In a fascinating interview on Rediff.com, K Subrahmanyam revealed how Indian PMs reacted to nuclear ambitions.
'We have 200 million families. Parents have the responsibility to make their children righteous -- where there is righteousness in the heart, there is beauty in the character.' 'Only three people can give a good citizen before s/he turns 17. Father, mother, the spiritual environment and the primary school teacher.' President A P J Kalam on India becoming a developed country by 2020-2022, the heroes he admired; how 90 per cent of India's space programme is intended for the people and the individual's potential to become unique.
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