People

Distinguished science missionary

Currently CSIR-Bhatnagar fellow of the department of organic chemistry at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Prof. Goverdhan Mehta is the winner of the prestigious annual Gujar Mal Modi Innovative Science and Technology Award 2007, which will be presented to him in Delhi on August 7. Instituted by the G.M. Modi Science Foundation, Modinagar (Uttar Pradesh) in 1988 to commemorate industrialist, educationist and philanthropist, the late Rai Bahadur Gujar Mal Modi (1902-1976), the annual award celebrates research scientists who make notable contributions to the development of science and technology in India. Awardees receive a cash purse of Rs.201,000, a commemorative silver salver and a citation.

According to a foundation spokesperson, Mehta’s original research in the area of organic and natural product synthesis over the past three decades has led to cost reduction, quality improvement, and synthesisation of new medical formulations in India’s booming pharmaceuticals industry. Moreover Mehta is actively involved in popularising the study of pure sciences among youth around the world in his capacity as president of the Paris-based International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU).

"There is a pronounced worldwide decline in the number of young people opting to study pure sciences. First world countries make good this decline by importing students from developing nations like India, China etc. But the problem here is that only a very small percentage of youth have access to higher education and most of them are not interested in science. Ideally one-sixth of our population should be involved in scientific enterprises if we are to transform into a developed nation," says Prof. Mehta, former director of the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore (1998-2005) and vice-chancellor of Hyderabad University (1994-1998).

With more than 400 research papers published in globally respected scientific journals, Mehta has drawn up a credible road map to rejuvenate research and the spirit of scientific enquiry in India. "We need to urgently expand research capabilities in our education institutions. This requires total revamp of our higher education system with research being made mandatory at the Masters level and science projected as a lucrative and satisfying career option among youth. Generous awards also play a major role in attracting youngsters into science," says Mehta, the recipient of over 30 international awards including the Padma Shri (2000) and Chevalier de la Legion d’Honneur of the French government (2004).

A universally acknowledged authority on organic chemistry, Mehta is a regular on the lecture circuit of the globally networked scientific community and is also a member of the editorial board of several prestigious scientific journals including European Journal of Organic Chemistry, Indian Journal of Chemistry, Journal of the Iranian Chemical Society, among others.

"There’s a huge latent reservoir of scientific talent in India," says Mehta. "One of my top priorities is to ignite this dormant talent pool."

A consummation devoutly to be wished!

Srinidhi Raghavendra (Bangalore)

Visionary educationist

Shweta Katariya (25), director of the Nashik-based Ashoka Education Foundation (AEF), is a qualified architect and interior designer who discovered that education was her true calling. Although she began her career in 2004 with Ashoka Buildcon Ltd (annual sales: Rs.250 crore), a pioneer infrastructure development company promoted by her father Ashok Katariya, following her graduation from Nashik’s College of Architecture in 2004, she simultaneously became involved in the company’s philanthropic venture — Ashoka Education Foundation (estb. 2002). Now it’s AEF that drives her and takes all her time and attention.

"The objective of AEF is to revolutionise education in India. I started working as a facilitator, doing a variety of jobs including designing the interiors of our flagship school, interviewing and recruiting teachers, finalising the curriculum and getting the infrastructure facilities up and running," recalls Katariya. "In the process I discovered that my aptitude and interest were in education, rather than the construction industry."

Since then, AEF has promoted the Ashoka Universal School (AUS) which now sprawls across three campuses in Nashik and the Ashoka Centre for Excellence in Mathematics and Science, which coaches talented children for competitive examinations like the Homi Bhabha Young Scientists Awards, the maths and science Olympiads etc. The co-ed AUS with an aggregate enrollment of 835 students instructed by 77 teachers has established itself as Nashik’s showpiece primary-cum-secondary school with excellent infrastructure facilities including contemporary classrooms, well-equipped laboratories, a computer lab with 110 PCs and 24x7 wireless internet access.

"Our objective is to facilitate the holistic development of students by tapping and developing each child’s innate potential," says Katariya. Currently AUS admits children from nursery to class VIII. The AEF management has applied for ICSE affiliation and will transform AUS into a fully-fledged K-XII academy by 2009.

Right now Katariya and AEF trustees are focused on the inauguration in September of a state-of-the-art teacher’s training college offering B.Ed and D.Ed study programmes. While Katariya is busy putting the final touches to this institution, she is also looking to extend AEF’s activities beyond Nashik. "Interior Maharashtra beyond Mumbai urgently needs high quality education institutions to feed the skilled personnel needs of industry in Maharashtra — India’s most industrialised state. Our vision is to make a significant contribution to this nationally beneficial cause," says Katariya.

Wind in your sails!

Gaver Chatterjee (Mumbai)

Tireless teacher

At the newly commissioned Mahila Vidyalaya Nursery and Primary School (MVNPS), Chennai which admitted its first batch of bright-eyed tiny tots on June 20, there’s a strict ban on heavy school bags and homework. That’s because the school is committed to the Concept Learning Integrated Programme (CLIP), an innovative pedagogy which uses multimedia, visuals, classroom activities, sports, toys and picture charts to teach children from low income families. Promoted by the Andhra Mahila Sabha (AMS) trust (estb. 1948) at a project cost of Rs.5 lakh, the school provides subsidised education to children (Rs.3,000 per child per annum) and plans to create an endowment fund of Rs.1 lakh for every child. MVNPS which is affiliated to the state board, recently admitted its first batch of 30 students instructed by nine teachers, into its nursery and kindergarten sections.

"Our objective is to develop thinking skills, promote higher levels of learning and creative expression in socially disadvantaged children. The prime focus is on developing early childhood language and life skills utilising video and multimedia technologies. The 36-week school year is equally divided into academic and non-academic activities, and every weekend students take home a file of academic work. There are no exams but we follow a system of continuous evaluation and systematic grading," says Jaya Venugopal, a highly qualified educationist with a string of degrees from Andhra and Annamalai universities; XLRI, Jamshedpur, and a doctorate in education from Las Atlas University, USA and also chairperson of the AMS Trust.

Venugopal’s curriculum vitae features 35 years of work experience as a teacher and principal in premier schools countrywide, with her last assignment being principal of the highly regarded Chinmaya International Residential School, Coimbatore. In 1997 she co-promoted the Pappus Academic and Cultural Trust (PACT), a voluntary organisation which runs the International Council for Educational Research and Training (INCERT) for training K-XII teachers, and the Ammarao Institute of Managerial Skills (AIMS) which trains corporate executives in life skills, together with her husband Dr. P.V. Venugopala Rao.

Since then INCERT and AIMS have researched and designed several innovative pedagogies including CLIP, GRIP (Group Recreative Innovative Productive Programme) and LOIC (Life Oriented Inquiry Centre), which have been adopted by over 100 schools across the country. In fact, LOIC which advocates minimal usage of texts and notebooks, was first developed by Venugopal in 1985, for which she received a national award from the National Council of Education Research and Training in 1992. The CLIP pedagogy developed in 1998 after five years of thorough research offers learning materials and programmes for implementation from lower kindergarten to class III. CLIP workshops have been conducted for teachers in 400 schools across the country.

Currently, Venugopal is focused on conducting workshops for school teachers and college professors in several areas of skills development, and refining CLIP through implementation at MVPNS. "We have already secured government recognition for MVPNS and hope to expand the school to middle, high and higher secondary levels. Providing high quality, enabling education to gifted students from lower income groups is an article of faith with us. To this end we have set up a merit and means endowment scholarship fund to sponsor their continuous education," says the indefatigable Venugopal.

Right on, sister!

Hemalatha Raghupathi (Chennai)