SUPERCOP!
Our Director, Mr. Vyankatesh Prabhudessai, once again outdid himself. Long has he been known to invite eminent personalities such as the the Honourable Dr. Mashelkar and others, but our guest today walked above the crowd. The morning before the talk was marked by the sound of police whistles down in the street below. Our idea of such an eminent person was in disarray as we did not know what to expect; but as Dr. Muktesh Chander , The DGP of Goa walked in, a silence fell over the class. He was warmly welcomed by the Director and Dr. Ajay Vaidya, Vice President of Mushtifund Saunstha and was formally introduced by the Administrative Officer, Mr. M.B.S. Kakodkar.
At first, the students were on edge, uneasy, not knowing what to expect. Dr. Chander’s Introductory speech caught everyone’s attention. His speech was different. In a way, it appealed to everyone of us on another level, a level that we could relate to. He talked not about studies or academic achievements, but about life. He made usrealize the importance of safety in our lives and how fragile our lives truly are. All the students of class 11 then realized that they could do more to stay safe, for our time on Earth is limited and we must make the most out of it.
Echoing through the remnants of his last topic, Dr Chander’s passion to spend time with the youth of tomorrow was clear and conspicuous. It was this passion that caught the attention of all the students during his time with us. He also gave us a glimpse into the life of a policeman. It was, although brief, a very inspiring and thought provoking paragraph, that made us change our views about our police force.It made us, in a way, feel responsible for them and thankful to have them around to keep us safe through the day and night. Dr. Chander also made the point that more policeman have died in the line of active duty than all the deaths of the armed forces in every engagement combined. This sentence echoed in the minds of the students of class 11 as they gazed actively at him. The very fact that we do not acknowledge the sacrifices made by our policemen, but instead criticize and ridicule them , disgusted me. It gave me a new perspective on people, on the shortcomings that the men and women overcome as they leave their home everyday to serve us, not knowing whether they would return.
As soon as Dr. Muktesh Chander asked the students if anyone had a question, not less then a stunning collection of hands flew up into the air. One by one, Dr. Chanderanswered all of our questions with passion. The students put forward all kinds ofquestions- questions relating to politics, police affairs, cyber safety, over congestionof roads, etc. One of my favourite moments was when Dr. Chander was asked abouthis position relating to the ministers and whether or not he could carry out the ordersof a minister. To our delight (and mine too), his reply was received with a round ofapplause. He stated that he had rejected such orders many a time.
Concluding the interactive session, Dr. Chander asked us whether we knew who invented the first Intel chip, or the USB standard, or Hotmail. He said that Indianstheorized all of the aforementioned inventions and, through their hard work andeffort, made them a reality. However, he said that, these inventions are not owned byIndians, instead are owned by the company that they worked for. Dr. Chanderrequested each one of us, should we invent anything, no matter how big or small,patent it for ourselves, but more importantly, for our country. A country does notachieve fame and prosperity by itself, its citizens achieve the above mentioned fameand prosperity, which makes our country’s name echo in the minds of everyone on the lanet. Such should be our country where Indians who create something, do it for ourcountry and not some international multi national corporation. We are Indians. Being Indian is something the world will never understand. I believe that, one day, Indiawill be better than it ever was.
Prepared by David Velho ( student of STD XI, M.A.H.S.S.)