Dr .Kalam said : “For
the last 3,000 years India has been invaded, invaded and invaded. When guys were holding guns you were holding
swords.
“
When India’s neighbor was having nuclear weapons, the country could not afford
to do ‘tapas’.
“ We should try
whether religion can graduate into spiritualism , managers can graduate into
leaders and political leaders turn into political leaders with compassion.
“The focus would be on how to transform India into a developed nation
--- by self-reliance in science,
technology, commerce, industry and communication.
“Transform the nation into a developed nation.”
“My definition of Politics is all about -
Creating responsible leaders
To
create empowered Citizens
To
evolve policies that take the Country to higher level.”
This painting was done by my good friend Dr.
B.K.S. Verma, Bangalore. .He specializes
in painting
Spiritual, Tantric, Environmental pictures on
canvas, besides painting Spontaneously on board for any
verse recited from the public in specially
arranged programmes.
A
child prodigy, as a boy of 8, he went on drawing pictures with charcoal on
roads and the walls of
Bangaluru City, which has mesmerised the people.
The
boy’s drawings endeared so much the then
Railway Minister Kengal Hanumanthaiah, ( who later
became the Chief Minister of Karnataka and
created the magnificent Vidhan Soudha),
that he wanted to
own the boy.
But
the boy would run away ! .
Last year, one fine morning the Vice-chancellor of prestigious Bangaluru
University went to his house unannounced with a flower bouquet and
broke the news that the Senate has decided to confer Honourary Doctorate on him!
The aghast Verma said “Sir, I only studied second class!”
The reply was “The University authorities
decided so!”
I
had the good fortune of attending the function, taking photos from the
front-row of seats.
