Vikram Sarabhai

Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai (12 August 1919 – 30 De-cember 1971) was one of the greatest scientists of India.He is widely regarded as the father of the Indian spaceprogramme. In fact he was a rare combination of a sci-entist, an innovator, industrialist and a visionary. He isconsidered the father of India’s space programme.Vikram Sarabhai was born on August 12, 1919 atAhmedabad in an affluent family of progressive industri-alists. He was one of the eight children of Ambalal andSarla Devi. He had his early education in a private school,‘Retreat’, run by his parents on Montessori lines. Someof the great personalities like Gurudev Rabindranath, JKrishna Murthi, Motilal Nehru, VS Shrinivasa Shastri,Jawaharlal Nehru, Sarojini Naidu, Maulana Azad, CFAndrews, CVRaman et al. used to stay with the Sarabhaifamily when they visited Ahmedabad. Mahatma Gandhialso once stayed at their house while recovering from anillness. Visits by such great personalities greatly influ-enced Vikram Sarabhai.After his matriculation, Vikram Sarabhai proceeded toCambridge for his college education and took the tripos inNatural Sciences from St. John’s College in 1940. Withthe beginning of World War II, he returned home andjoined as a research scholar under Sir CV Raman at theIndian Institute of Science, Bangalore. His interest in so-lar physics and cosmic ray led him to set up many ob-servation stations around the country. He built the nec-essary equipment and took measurements at Bangalore,Pune and the Himalayas. He returned to Cambridge in1945 and completed his PhD in 1947.Back home, he became instrumental in establishing thePhysical Research Laboratory (PRL) in Ahmedabad inNovember 1947. The laboratory was established in a fewrooms in theMGScience Institute of the Ahmedabad Ed-ucation Society, which was founded by his parents. Sub-sequently, it got support from the Council of Scientificand Industrial Research (CSIR) and the Department ofAtomic Energy.The research that Vikram Sarabhai did on the time vari-ations of cosmic rays concluded that meteorological ef-fects could not entirely affect the observed daily varia-tions of cosmic rays; Further, the residual variations werewide and global and these were related to variations insolar activity. Vikram Sarabhai visualised a new field ofresearch opening up in solar and interplanetary physics.The year 1957-1958 was designated as International Geo-physical year (IGY). The Indian programme for the IGYhad been one of the most significant ventures of Sarabhai.

This gave him exposure to new vistas of space sciencewith the launching of Sputnik-I in 1957. Subsequently,the Indian National Committee for Space Research (IN-COSPAR) was formed, under his chairmanship.Knowing the unique feature of Thumba on account of itsproximity to the geomagnetic equator, Vikram Sarabhaichose this fishing village near Thiruvananthapuram on theArabian Coast to set up the Thumba Equatorial RocketLaunching station (TERLS), the first rocket launchingstation in the country. In this venture he got active sup-port from Homi Bhabha, who was then the Chairman ofthe Atomic Energy Commission. The first rocket withsodium vapour payload was launched on November 21,1963. In 1965, the UN General Assembly gave recogni-tion to TERLS as an international facility.After the sudden demise of Homi Bhabha in an air crash,Vikram Sarabhai took over as Chairman, Atomic EnergyCommission in May 1966. He always longed that thepractical application of science should reach the commonman. He worked towards acquiring competence in ad-vance technology for the solution of country’s problemsbased on technical and economic evaluation of its realresources. He initiated India’s space programme, whichtoday is renowned all over the world.Dr Vikram Sarabhai received the Shanti Swarup Bhatna-gar Medal in 1962. The nation honoured him awardingPadma Bhushan in 1966 and Padma Vibhushan (posthu-mously) in 1972.Vikram Sarabhai passed away in his sleep on December30, 1971.[3]

Vikram Sarabhai went to Sheth Chimanlal NagindasVidyalaya for his high school studies. Vikram Sarabhaimatriculated from the Gujarat College in Ahmedabad af-ter passing the Intermediate Science examination.After that, he moved to England and joined the St. John’sCollege, University of Cambridge.[4]

1 Personal life

Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai was born on August 12, 1919at Ahmedabad in an affluent family of progressive indus-trialists. He was one of eight children of Ambalal andSarla Devi. He had his early education in a private school,“Retreat” run by his parents onMontessori lines. Some ofthe great men of India such as Gurudev Rabindranath, J.Krishna Murthi, Motilal Nehru, V. S. Shrinivasa Shas-

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2 7 DEATH

tri, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sarojini Naidu, Maulana Azad,C. F. Andrews, C. V. Raman et al. used to stay withthe Sarabhai family when they visited Ahmedabad. Ma-hatma Gandhi also once stayed at their house while re-covering from an illness. Visits by such great men greatlyinfluencedVikram Sarabhai.[5] Hemarried the celebratedclassical dancer Mrinalini in 1942. The couple had twochildren. His daughter Mallika and son Karthikeya toobecame famous personalities in their own rights. [6]

Spouse: Mrunalini sarabhai (हिंदी:मृणालिनी साराभाई),famous classical dancer, she is sister of India’s freedomfighter and revolutionary Dr Laxmi Sahgal.Daughter: Mallika Sarabhai, (Film and Theater artist,classical dancer, leading social activist, owner of populerart Academy “Darpan” (हिंदी: दर्पण)[7][8][9][10]

2 Physical Research Laboratory

Known as the cradle of space sciences in India, thePhysical Research Laboratory (PRL) was founded on 11November 1947 by Dr. Vikram Sarabhai. PRL had amodest beginning at his residence, the RETREAT, withresearch on cosmic rays.The institute was formally established at the M.G.Science Institute, Ahmedabad, with support from theKarmkshetra Educational Foundation and the Ahmed-abad Education Society. Prof. Kalpathi RamakrishnaRamanathan was the first Director of the institute. Theinitial focus was research on cosmic rays and the prop-erties of the upper atmosphere. Research areas were ex-panded to include theoretical physics and radio physicslater with grants from the Atomic Energy Commission.Today PRL is actively involved in research, related to fivemajor fields of science. PRL is also instrumental in thePLANEX planetary science and exploration programme.Looking at the needs of the country, he persuaded chari-table trusts controlled by his family and friends to endowa research institution near his home in Ahmedabad. Thisled to the creation of the Physical Research Laboratoryin Ahmedabad on November 11, 1947.

3 Vikram A Sarabhai CommunityScience Centre

Vikram A. Sarabhai Community Science Centre(VASCSC) established in the 1960s by the eminentspace scientist, Dr. Vikram A. Sarabhai is workingtowards popularizing science and mathematics educationamong students, teachers and the laypublic. Its mandateis to stimulate interest, encourage and expose the princi-ples of science and scientific method and also to improve

and find innovative methods of science education.[11]

4 Indian Space Research Organi-zation

Dr. Sarabhai was convinced and envisioned that the re-sources in space have the potential to address the realproblems of man and society. As Director, PhysicalResearch Laboratory (PRL) located in Ahmedabad, Dr.Sarabhai convened an army of able and brilliant scien-tists, anthropologists, communicators and social scien-tists from all corners of the country to spearhead the In-dian space programme.[12]

5 Darpan Academy for PerformingArts, Ahmedabad

Darpana was established as a dance academy by Mri-nalini and Vikram Sarabhai in 1949. For nearly twodecades it taught classical dance. With Mrinalini as thelead dancer, and ChatunniPanicker as her partner, theDarpana dance company toured across the world. Afew years later the great Kuchipudi guru, c R Acharyelujoined the faculty.[13]

6 Indian Institute of Management(IIM), Ahmedabad

The decade following independence in 1947 was witnessto a surge of innovative ideas to build a fledgling inde-pendent nation into a model democratic state commit-ted to growth with equity in the development of its peo-ple. The establishment of Indian Institute of Manage-ment Ahmedabad (IIMA) was the outcome of one suchinnovative initiative.Led by Dr. Vikram Sarabhai, Shri. Kasturbhai Lalb-hai and proactively supported by the then Chief Ministerof Gujarat, Dr. Jivraj Mehta, a group of enlightened in-dividuals set up IIMA. This group ably wove together acoalition of five actors - the governments at the centre andthe state, the local industrialists, the Ford Foundation andthe Harvard Business School, in a true spirit of public pri-vate partnership to establish the Institute.[14]

7 Death

He was visiting Thiruvananthapuram to attend the foun-dation stone laying ceremony of the Thumba railway sta-tion being built to service the newly created Thumba

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Equatorial Rocket Launching Station. Sarabhai empha-sized the importance of a space programme in his quote:

“There are some who question the relevance ofspace activities in a developing nation. To us,there is no ambiguity of purpose. We do nothave the fantasy of competing with the eco-nomically advanced nations in the explorationof the moon or the planets or manned space-flight.”

“But we are convinced that if we are to play ameaningful role nationally, and in the commu-nity of nations, we must be second to none inthe application of advanced technologies to thereal problems of man and society.”

Homi Jehangir Bhabha, widely regarded as the fatherof India’s nuclear science program, supported Sarab-hai in setting up the first rocket launching station inIndia. This center was established at Thumba nearThiruvananthapuram on the coast of the Arabian Sea,primarily because of its proximity to the equator. Af-ter a remarkable effort in setting up the infrastructure,personnel, communication links, and launch pads, the in-augural flight was launched on November 21, 1963 with asodium vapour payload. As a result, the first Indian satel-lite, Aryabhata, was put in orbit in 1975 from a RussianCosmodrome.He led the Sarabhai family’s diverse business conglomer-ate. His interests varied from science to sports to statis-tics. He set up Operations Research Group (ORG), thefirst market research organization in the countryMost notable among them are the Nehru Foundation forDevelopment in Ahmedabad, Indian Institute ofManage-ment Ahmedabad (IIMA), which is considered a worldclass management institute. Also, he helped establish thePhysical Research Laboratory (PRL), which is doing acommendable job[15][16] in R&D in physics. Sarabhaiset up Ahmedabad Textiles Industrial Research Associ-ation (ATIRA), which helped the booming textiles busi-ness in Ahmedabad. He also set up the Center for Envi-ronmental Planning and Technology (CEPT). Not stop-ping with all these, he went ahead and set up the BlindMen Association (BMA) which helps visually-challengedpeople with the necessary skills and support. Along withhis wife Mrinalini Sarabhai, he founded the DarpanaAcademy of Performing Arts. Other well-known insti-tutions established by him include the Faster BreederTest Reactor (FBTR) in Kalpakkam, Variable EnergyCyclotron Project in Calcutta, Electronics Corporation ofIndia Limited (ECIL) in Hyderabad and Uranium Corpo-ration of India Limited (UCIL) in Jaduguda, Jharkhand.

8 Distinguished Positions• President of the Physics section, Indian ScienceCongress (1962)

• President of the General Conference of theI.A.E.A., Viennaa (1970)

• Vice-President, Fourth U.N. Conference on 'Peace-ful uses of Atomic Energy' (1971)

Memories== The Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre,(VSSC), which is the Indian Space Research Organiza-tion’s lead facility for launch vehicle development locatedin Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum), capital of Keralastate, is named in his memory.Along with other Ahmedabad-based industrialists, heplayed a major role in setting up of the Indian Instituteof Management, Ahmedabad.In 1973, the International Astronomical Union decidedthat a lunar crater Bessel A in the Sea of Serenity will beknown as the Sarabhai crater.[17][18]

9 References[1] mapsofindia.com on Vikram Sarabhai

[2] iloveindia.com on Vikram Sarabhai

[3] The Visionary- Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai

[4] Welcome To ISRO :: Former Chairman :: Dr.VikramSarabhai - Biodata. Isro.org. Retrieved on 2013-07-28.

[5] http://www.iloveindia.com/indian-heroes/vikram-sarabhai.html#4IeTjVTRsRllVqaO.99

[6] The famous peopel - Vikram Sarabhai

[7] http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2008-12-30/ahmedabad/27929298_1_plane-crash-mallika-medical-reports

[8] http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Vikram-Sarabhais-love-affair-gave-birth-to-IIM-A-book-says/articleshow/28534030.cms

[9] http://www.tribuneindia.com/2006/20060121/saturday/above.htm

[10] Vikram Sarabhai: A Life by Amrita Shah, 2007, PenguinViking ISBN 0-670-99951-2

[11] http://www.vascsc.org/

[12] ISRO - Genesis Page

[13] Darpan Academy History

[14] IIMA - Aboutus

[15] “Vigyan Prasar, Dr. Vikram Sarbhai”.

[16] “ISRO Dr. Vikram Sarabhai”.

4 10 EXTERNAL LINKS

[17] Antonín Rükl: Atlas Měsíce, Aventinum (Praha 1991),chapter Bessel, page 74, ISBN 80-85277-10-7 (Czech)

[18] Crater Sarabhai on Moon Gazetteer of Planetary Nomen-clature, IAU, USGS, NASA

10 External links• Interview with biographer Amrita Shah recorded inAugust 2013

• Great Scientists at freeindia.org

• Hindu Newspaper

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11 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

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