ISRO Chairman pens autobiography; wants to inspire people chase their dreams
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): He may have helped the country conquer the moon, is making a similar attempt for the Sun and is busy preparing sending Indians to the space--all multi-crore rupee ventures, but ISRO chairman S Somanath's humble beginnings included an old bicycle and a modest lodging to cut transport and hostel expenses while in college.
These little details, among many others, find a mention in his upcoming Malayalam autobiography, which he calls an attempt to inspire the talented, yet not so confident.
The autobiography in Malayalam titled "Nilavu Kudicha Simhangal," - loosely translated as - Lions that drank the moonlight - promises to be a tale of motivation. The book focuses on the power of hard work and perseverance in the face of difficulties. It was inspired by the massive success of Chandrayaan-3, ISRO's moon mission headed by Somanath, that catapulted India to an elite league of nations.
After the successful lunar mission and amidst back-to-back launches of Aditya-L1 solar mission and the Gaganyaan test vehicle, 59-year old Somanath has managed to find time to chronicle his life story.
Being published by Kerala-based Lipi Publications, the book is slated to hit the shelves in November.
Though it is the story of his eventful saga from an impoverished village youth, growth through the ISRO, elevation to the current coveted post and his journey till the Chandrayaan-3 launch, Somanath said he would like to call it as an inspirational story rather than an autobiography.
"It is actually the story of an ordinary village youth who doesn't even know whether to join engineering or BSc...about his dilemmas, right decisions he made in life, and the opportunities he received in a country like India," he told PTI.
"The book is not intended to teach my life story. Its only intention is to inspire people to chase their dreams while battling adversities in life," the ISRO Chairman added.
The veteran recalled his humble rural background, but said the country opened immense opportunities before him, and the autobiography is an attempt to highlight this.
It was the historic success of the Chandrayaan-3 that persuaded him to come out with a book soon.
"The lunar mission has made such a great impact in the society. When we looked around, we could see how many people, especially children, were inspired by its success. They understood that India and Indians could do such great things," he explained.
Lack of confidence is one of the major issues faced by many talented people, and the aim of his book is to showcase them that, he said.
Pointing out his life as an example, Somanath said that despite conflicts and dilemmas, it is very important to make use of the right opportunities in life and choose the best career options.
In the book, he describes in detail how he was forced to stay in a tiny lodge room in Kollam district as there was no money to pay hostel fees while studying at TKM Engineering College there decades ago.
He commuted to the college by riding an old bicycle as he could not afford the bus fare and was forced to skip the study tour due to poverty in the family.
Somanath said there was no one to guide him in the initial years of his studies, and if a person had not bought him admission form of the engineering college unexpectedly, he would have joined BSc or some other course.
If you ask him what worked more in his life-luck or hard work, he would turn philosophical and recite some Sanskrit slokas from the epic Mahabharata.
"We should have some luck initially, but we should also be mentally prepared to accept and make use of opportunities that come our way. Similarly, several people will also come our way with a purpose, and we should be able to realise their role in our lives," Somanath said.
That would help in our career growth, he added.
In his life, there were several such people who came with a purpose, including his father, the person who bought him admission form for the engineering course, his first boss, Ramakrishnan, former ISRO Chairman K Radhakrishnan, and so on.
The autobiography would evolve through such phases of his personal life and develop through his journey in ISRO till the launch of Chandrayaan-3.
The stories of rocket manufacturing, PSLV, GSLV Mark III and Chandrayaan-3 are also mentioned in the book in parallel.
When asked why he chose to write the book in Malayalam, Somanath had a quick reply.
"Because I am a Malayali and I am more comfortable writing in my mother tongue," he said with a smile.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
