NIZY @ CMS

 (Please read the previous post NIZY MATHEW before reading this one, if you have not read it already)

Accepting the invitation from her alma mater, Nizy was in CMS college on the 12th of September. That was a time when she was too busy with the Chandrayan project. Yet she found some time for the visit. This was a big surprise for everyone in the college and the principal admitted this during his welcome speech.

The Great Hall (auditorium of CMS college) was jam packed. Students were eager to listen to Nizy, with the frenzy of the lunar landing still in the air with ever increasing intensity. By that time the ecstasy of every Indian was such that it had surpassed all realms of reality and transcended to sublime romantic levels. The students were very attentive and, at the end of Nizy's speech they freely asked her questions. Probably they felt the freedom of asking questions to their chechy (deedi).

Nizy gave a vivid description of the Chandrayan project. The students listened in awe every word she uttered. I was particularly struck by three comments she made, which I write here.

During her speech while mentioning the previous failures, she made the following statement. " At ISRO we need courageous people with indomitable determination, people with an indomitable spirit to excel and people who can endure with increased vigour in testing times or situations many might qualify as failures". At this point I told myself that this girl is speaking a sort of philosophy. Here I want to deviate a bit to make a point. During my 32 years in CMS college, I had to remain a mute spectator to a plethora of student's strikes. None of these strikes had to do anything with academics. These were simply part of larger political games. These political games and academics cannot coexist in campuses. That means there is no academics in campuses (politics is anyway there)? That may be a little exaggerated. I believe that the kind of academics in the campuses in Kerala is only at less than 20% efficiency. This is not just my opinion. This is what my students who continue in academics at good institutes in India and abroad tell me. During the function I wanted to draw Nizy's attention to this aspect but refrained as I did't want to destroy the jubilant mood of the students. After all they were celebrating a great victory of their nation and an important part played by their 'chechy'. If a student reading this is anguished he or she may know the following. Nizy and the scientists at the ISRO, are not resting on their laurels  nor are they any complacent. They may not be even congratulating each other anymore for the Chandrayan success. For them that is only an important point in their space odyssey. Of course a milestone, but only a milestone. They have miles to go and miles to go and never to sleep and dream. As the most revered Dr APJ Abdul Kalam said "Dream is not the thing you see in sleep but is that thing that doesn't let you sleep". If at least 10% of the college students in India pay heeds to the words of this great visionary, then we can confidently say  that India is on its way to becoming the greatest nation in the world. Then only.

PLEASE EXCUSE ME

I started writing this note with the sole intention of describing Nizy's visit to CMS College. But at a certain stage of writing I got a little emotional and inadvertently took a deviation, which I am not apologetic about. It certainly is high time the nation gave serious thought to the output-input ratio in our academic institutions. All institutions with less than 50% efficiency should be shut down. This may be done after giving sufficient time and warnings. If 50% is cruel, let it be 40%. Below that the whole exercise is meaningless.

I wanted to write about 3 things in Nizy's speech that touched me. Two, I postpone to some other time. Writing this much, I feel physically exhausted. This can happen to you too, if you are talking from your heart on an issue which you feel is imperative yet criminally neglected.