Wednesday, July 13 2005 16:46 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Kolkata: Teachers were today (July 13, 2005) urged by President A P J Abdul Kalam to tap the enthusiasm of youth for the flourishing of Science and Technology.

''Science comes up not by authority. Science and technology flowers only through enthusiasm, which the youth have in plenty,'' Kalam said at the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the Jadavpur University in Kolkata.

''Youth should be recognised. And teachers should put the youth in front,'' the septuagenarian scientist-president said.

Kalam referred to the contributions of Chandrasekhar Subramaniam, C V Raman, Srinivas Ramanujan, J C Bose, S N Bose and Meghnad Saha, and said that their work had provided great inspiration for the later generation of scientists.

In the post-Independence days, Kalam made particular mention of the scientific studies by D S Kothari, H J Bhaba and Vikaram Sarabhai.

Urging youngsters and students to display 'Scientific Magnanimity', he narrated an incident involving eminent agricultural scientist Professor Norman Borlaug.

Narrating the incident on March 15, 2003, at a function in Delhi where Borlaug was conferred the M S Swaminathan Award, Kalam said that the Non-Agenarian Nobel Laureate identified scientists sitting in the third, fifth and eighth rows in the audience and recalled their contribution in ushering in India's Green Revolution.

Kalam also spoke of the seventh century Indian University of Nalanda, which attracted scholars from 90 countries, and said "This is the place where the thoughts were transmitted, discussed and integrated towards a good way of life, which people were looking for from many countries.''

''At this critical juncture of universal turbulence and instability, arising out of mutual distrust and hatred leading to violence, time has come, for us to have an institution to attract international scholars for research and training,'' he said, adding Jadavpur University perfectly fitted the bill.

After the programme ended, Kalam went up to students and greeted them, throwing aside his security cordon.