Dr. Nanadkumar M Kamat
A doctorate in Micro-biology, is a scientist and science writer.
When I went to meet him in July 2017 with a copy of ‘Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow’ by bestselling author, Yuval Noah Harari, Manohar Parrikar just smiled, looked at the book and said: ‘I have already read it”. One would meet very few Indian politicians who could read such books. That was the man who could land in controversy over whether the ancient Indian sages like Dadhichi were scientists or spiritualists when he addressed the scientists of DRDO as Minister for Defense.
But in his personal life he was absolutely rational and took decisions from hard technical angles. The nation observes the 65th birth anniversary of former CM of Goa and former Minister of Defense on December 13. Having seen him very closely from 1995 it would be appropriate for me to check out his contributions for development of science, technology and research.
I used to gift him good books and magazines on science and technology because he used to say that he did a lot of reading during travel. Parrikar was fascinated by the world of numbers, figures, statistical calculations and was fond of reeling out a lot of statistics during assembly sessions or government meetings. Those who have worked with him know his technical mind and the ‘gestalt’ approach to see through the maze of the issues and focus precisely on what is required.
As an industrialist he excelled in hydraulics and could convince the engineers in the water resources department about interlinking of rivers within Goa to augment the supply of Assnora, Amthane, and Opa reservoirs and the respective water treatment plants fed by different reservoirs. By just looking at the hydrographic map of Goa he could see the potential of diverting freshwater from rivers to deficient watersheds by laying down large diameter pipelines and building
pumping stations.
In his final days while fighting painful pancreatic cancer, he spared time to see that his dream project – the third bridge on Mandovi River, named as Atal Setu – got completed during his lifetime. Before that he had shown that in record time, steel bridges like the wonderfully designed iconic Aldona-Corjuvem bridge could be built.
A whole generation remembers him for the popular ‘Cyberage’ scheme which made a desktop computer or a laptop computer reach even the remotest villages in Goa. As teachers we have seen the tremendous impact the ‘Cyberage’ scheme had made on the students from rural areas and especially from the tribal communities.
He readily pushed the popular Goa Science Centre and later the Planetarium project at Miramar and was successful in establishing a modern solid waste treatment plant at Saligao which came into national prominence.
AFA-the NGO popularising amateur astronomy in Goa, received a big boost during his tenure by sanction of more space at Junta House, Panaji to expand the observatory and library and by way of higher allocation of funds to diversify its activities and take astronomy to the rural masses.
He was more particular in strengthening science laboratories and libraries in government and aided educational institutions. Today we can see the results of these positive steps at several government colleges and particularly at Government Colleges at Sankhali, Quepem and Khandola.
Even before he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, he had understood the needs of Goans for development of medical super specialties. If Goa is now ready to inaugurate the modern 500 bed super specialty block at the GMC campus, Bambolim, the credit goes to Manohar Parrikar. The new block will have neurosurgery, neurology, cardiology, cardiothoracic, nephrology, urology, plastic surgery, gastroenterology, liver transplant facilities and will be a force multiplier for existing facilities in tertiary care. Perhaps a new virology laboratory will also be established in the premises.
As for his contributions to indigenisation and modernisation of the defence forces of India as compared to his predecessors in just 859 days, he could achieve a lot. He laid particular stress on development of missiles indigenously. The DRDO got a tremendous boost under him. He had foreseen the impact of an anti-satellite weapon system (A-SAT) developed by China and took steps to create a
matching response leading to India testing an indigenous A-SAT. He initiated the steps to form a separate ‘Space command’ for future space battle readiness. By ordering a technical audit of all available global missile systems before the purchase of S-400 Triumf air defence missile systems from Russia he managed to save `49 thousand crores by eliminating short range
missile systems.
Today, the USA has shown interest in a trainer version of made in India- Tejas- the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA).Parrikar made it possible to induct Tejas aircrafts in the air force. In July 2018, while launching state information technology policy he said in Panaji :”Lot of things have been done during my tenure as a Defense Minister… Make in India for example was one of the best. Tejas fighter aircraft was introduced because of my efforts. It was not going anywhere and had stuck up. Fighter helicopter version has been developed during my tenure”.
In his honor the autonomous New Delhi-based think tank- Institute of Defense Studies and Analysis was named as Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA). The defense experts had stamped their approval on his contributions. It was a rare gesture for a politician born in India’s smallest state serving for just 859 days. He was one of the rare politicians who could see the power of science and technology to transform India and
the future.
Courtesy: The Navhind Times, Goa. www.Navhindtimes.com