Fellowship: It was sometimes in the month of May 1971, that, I was offered a fellowship for a study visit to USA. The fellowship was sponsored by National Science Foundation of USA and US Agency for International Development. The fellowship was absolutely open ended. The duration of the trip was three months and we were provided full freedom to choose, individually, the universities, colleges, industries and other establishments proposed to be visited and for participation in short term courses, running in the institutions. The visit was intended to provide exposure to the teachers of Indian universities and colleges to the education system in USA and to provide some boost to the growth of science education in the country. The fellowship was offered to a group of fifteen teachers, which included the Director of IIT Madras, Vice-chancellor of Baroda University and Professors of IITs, Universities and Colleges. The group left for Washington in the middle of July 1971 by Air India with short stopovers at London and New York. During the short stopover at London, Nelson’s Column at Trafalgar Square revived the memories of the Napoleanic wars and heroic deeds of Nelson. In the mean time, the good old river Thames continued to flow silently and magnificently. At New York, the magnanimous statue of liberty was standing triumphantly, with her head high and welcoming anybody and everybody to the land of immigrants, in the pursuit of American dream.
The week at Washington: A week’s orientation programme at Washington was intended to familiarize everybody with social, economic and cultural life in USA and to enable the participants to visit specific places of their interests. All engagements during the week at Washington were arranged by National Science Foundation. White House, Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Smithsonian Institutions and Arlington Cemetery are some of the prominent landmarks of Washington and we had an opportunity to visit them during the week. We also had an opportunity to get a boat ride along Potmac River to visit Mount Vernon, the ancestral estate of George Washington. Baseball is one of the very popular games in USA. We were able to watch one of the league matches of baseball in the local stadium. We were also invited to visit some of the local families and had informal interaction with them during lunch and dinner for getting a feel of the family life in USA.
Army corps of Engineers and US Bureau of Reclamation are US Government Agencies, responsible for the development and maintenance of water and power projects and flood protection works in USA. With my background of water resources development, I was keen to have a look at the activities of US Bureau of Reclamation in the western states and that of Army Corps of Engineers in the east. National Science Foundation was happy to arrange my appointments with the chief engineers of the two agencies. Chief Engineer of Army Corps of Engineers met me with all the courtesies in his office. Thereafter, he accompanied me to the publications section and arranged to mail copies of some of the manuals of Army Corps of Engineers, picked up by me, to Jodhpur Polytechnic. Looking to my engagements in the southern states, he suggested, that, I should find time to visit the research station of Army Corps of Engineers at Vicksberg. Chief Engineer of the Bureau of reclamation was equally helpful. He arranged to mail the selected manuals of the Bureau of Reclamation to Jodhpur Polytechnic and was happy to finalize the date of my visit to Hoover Dam and the research station of the bureau at Denvar.
Boston: Boston is one of the oldest cities of USA. It is the capital city of the state of Massachusetts. Boston was in the thick of resistance during the American Revolution. American colonies had been protesting against the coercive laws of the British Parliament during 1765 and 1783 and had been maintaining their own armies during that period. Boston Massacre of 1770 was an incident when a British soldier shot and killed local people during a confrontation with them, when they were protesting against unjust laws of the British Government. Boston tea party was another political protest by people of Boston in 1973 against the taxation laws of the British government. What happened was, that, a shipload of tea, sent by East India Company was sunk in Boston Harbour as a protest against taxation. Since, the tea tinted the waters of the bay, the event was acclaimed as Boston Tea party. We had an opportunity to visit Boston harbour and most of the memorials falling along Freedom Trail, which is a 2.5 mile ( 4 km ) long track, maintained neatly with prominent marks at every turn, between Boston Common and Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown. The square on the trail, where the common people were huddled and brutally shot dead is reminiscent of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Punjab. The British were forced out of Boston in 1776, the year, when declaration of American Independence from British rule was signed by the thirteen American colonies.
Wentworth Institute of Technology: was established in 1904 and is one of the oldest technology institutions of Boston. The institute was running career based courses in almost all disciplines. Electronics was an upcoming subject and the institute was conducting a six week summer course in electronics at that time. Common applications of electronic devices in day to day life of the people had been identified and the participants were busy in designing the circuits and fabrication of working models of different gadgets. National science foundation had arranged a week’s participation by me in the programme. It was very fascinating to see the participants deeply involved in their work and sinking deep into the needs of the people, leading to the development of user friendly gadgets for the common man. Electronics is all about switches and circuits and there is no wonder that, during the last thirty years the electronic devices have transformed the thinking and working of almost everybody and everything.
Harward and MIT: Harward and MIT are the world’s most prestigious institutions. Harward (University of Harward) was established in 1636 as Harward College and is now the biggest private university of USA, with endowments running into billions of dollars for the support of student activities, research and development. MIT ( Massachusetts Institute of Technology ) was established as an institution for science and engineering in 1861. It is interesting to look at the tremendous contribution of these institutions to research and development in USA. The leisurely drive through the hallowed campuses of these institutions at Cambridge was extremely exciting. Public Relations Officer of Wentworth Institute of Technology had arranged the visits and drove me round. The price of petrol in USA, during those days was 26 cents to a gallon and therefore, the PRO of Wentworth kept moving in the campus, all the time, while I visited some of the departments. His plea was that keeping the engine running and moving around in the campus was cheaper than the charges for parking tickets.
Family get-together at Galt: After a satisfying week at Boston, I got a flight for Toronto and was able to spend the weekend with my brothers Jai Narain, Krishan and Hari at Galt in Canada. Jai Narain was settled at Galt as an Opthalmologist. Kishan was working at Grandmere in Quebec as Chief Chemist with Consolidated Bathrus Paper Mills and had come all the way from there to Toronto. Hari Narain was working as a materials testing engineer at Toronto. The short family get-together at Galt was extremely enjoyable and relaxing.
Ford Motor Company: Ford Motor Company was the second biggest automaker of USA, next only to General Motors. Ford Motor Company was established in 1903 by Henry Ford as a family business and continued like that for almost hundred years. It was the vision of Henry Ford to produce affordable vehicles for the middle class and to put everybody in the world on wheels. Backed by that vision, Ford Motor Company gradually started in-house production of almost all the components and launched a number of models of Ford Cars during 1903 and 1908. T-Model Ford was launched in 1908 and mass production of the vehicle was started with the commissioning of the assembly line production at Dearborn, a suburb of Detroit in the state of Michigan in 1913. T- Model Ford turned out to be a very popular model and millions of T-Model Ford cars were sold round the world during 1908 and 1927. Ford Motor Company have dominated in the production and sales of all types of automobiles and commercial vehicles in almost all countries during the twentieth century. It is a tribute to the vision and obsession of Henry Ford that a small family business, which was started with a modest capital of $ 28000 in 1903, turned into one of the biggest automobile conglomerates of the world. It was very exciting and a great learning experience to visit the world headquarters and assembly plant of Ford Motor Company at Dearborn in the state of Michigan..
General Motors Institute at Flint: General Motors was established in 1908 and is one of the biggest corporations of USA with head quarters at Detroit in Michigan State. General Motors have been the leading manufacturers of all types of automobiles and commercial vehicles during the last hundred years. Looking to the fast expansion of their production lines during 1920 and 1926, they established General Motors Institute at Flint in 1926, for the training of plant supervisors and engineers. The focus of General Motors Institute was on producing business and industry leaders, with an obsession for innovation, development and refinement. Initially, all trainees were sponsored by production units of General Motors with six week rotations of studies in the institute, followed by six week rotations of work in the plants. General Motors Institute was fully equipped for multi-disciplinary studies at graduate level, with emphasis on research and development. Most of the classrooms had sufficient space for the display of relevent models and charts, alongwith actual components and assemblies of all past models of motor vehicles produced by General Motors. This was something unique and inspired the trainees to look forward for something better. My short visit to Flint provided me with an opportunity to have a look at all the developments going on at General Motors and to have an interactive session with research fellows and faculty members of the institute.
University of Texas at Austin: Texas is the second biggest state of USA, which is located in the south central region of the country. Texas was a part of Mexico upto 1936. Thereafter, it became an independent republic and subsequently joined USA in 1945. Texas had an agricultural economy at that time, but, after the discovery of oil in the twentieth century, economic boom started and it became a highly industrialized state. Austin is the capital of Texas and one of the biggest and fast growing cities of USA.
University of Texas was established in 1881. It has a number of campuses. The main campus of the university is at Austin, where it has a number of museums, libraries and research facilities. Lyndon Baines Johnson Library was established there as a presidential library after the retirement of Lyndon Johnson as president of USA.
Optimisation was an upcoming subject at that time. It had its beginnings with operations research during the second world war, for getting better management decisions, through the application of analytical methods. Subsequently, operations research found applications in almost all fields of production and development for getting optimal solutions. University of Texas at Austin was conducting a three week course on optimisation at that time. Looking to my interests, National Science Foundation had sponsored me for the course. It was a great learning experience, with lectures supported by blackboard, chalk and duster, lectures with overhead projection, and a number of interactive sessions. Basics were more like a refresher course in mathematics. Wide ranging applications followed and kept everybody glued to the desks. Some computer programmes were written, followed by card punching and preparation of decks for running the programmes in the main frame computer of the university. Those were the days, when operating programmes of the main frame computer were recorded on 35 mm film rolls and were stored in cans placed on racks, which were picked up manually by the operator from there and fed into the computer for running the programme decks of punched cards.
Vicksberg: Vicksberg is a flourishing city located on the banks of Mississippi River in the state of Mississippi. Army Corps of Engineers had a coastal and hydraulics research station at Vicksberg. During my stay at Austin, I received detailed travel instructions from Vicksberg about my visit to the research station. I was to take a flight from Austin to Jackson City, the capital city of Mississippi and thereafter to travel from there to Vicksberg by road. On the conclusion of my course on optimization at Austin, I took the flight from Austin, which landed me at Jackson City at night, in the early hours of the morning at 1.30 AM. Thereafter, I travelled by bus from Jackson City, reaching Vicksberg at about 5.00 AM. The research station was about 4 miles away from the bus stand. Refreshing air of the early morning hours induced me to take a stroll. I was on the move at 6,00 AM and was at the research station at 7,00 AM. Incidentally, some people were scouting for me on the highway. They saw me during my leisurely stroll and I saw them in their vehicles. I did not know that they were looking for me and it was difficult for them to assume that the man moving on foot could be their guest. One of the research scholars at the research station, who happened to be an Indian, told me, that the programme of my visit had been displayed on the visitors board for the last three weeks and there were all types of preparations for the conduct of the visit. Everybody met me there with all the courtesies during my visit to the facilities, in the morning. The model studies of ongoing projects reminded me about the problems being faced on similar projects in India. The interactive evening session was extremely interesting and a great learning experience.
Southern Technical Institute at Marietta: Georgia is the south eastern state of USA with Atlantic Ocean and South Carolina on the east and Florida on the south. It is one of the most populous and fast growing states of USA. Atlanta is the capital of Georgia and is the transportation hub of the south eastern states. Atlanta airport is one of the busiest airports of the world and a network of rail and roads passing through Atlanta, links most of the southern states.. Georgia Institute of Technology at Atlanta is a leading public research university of USA.
Southern Technical Institute is located at Marietta, about 20 miles north-west of Atlanta, in the state of Georgia. It was established in 1948 and was primarily devoted to the teaching of technical arts and applied sciences. A number of teachers of the institute were involved in the activities of National Science Foundation and US Agency for International Development for the conduct of summer programmes for polytechnics in India and had come in contact with us, during the summer programmes of Jodhpur Polytechnic. When I landed at Atlanta from Vicksberg, Professor Eller of Southern Technical Institute of Marietta picked me from the airport and drove me to Marietta. After a short visit to the facilities available at the institute, we had an interactive session with the teaching staff and senior students of the institute. Comparisons and exchanges are absorbing topics and everybody thoroughly enjoyed the interactive sessions. Thereafter, Professor Fowler, who had stayed with us at Jodhpur, took us to his sprawling apple farm in the rockies during the weekend. The homely visit was extremely enjoyable and relaxing.
Bureau of Reclamation at Denver: Denver is the capital of the state of Colorado and is one of the fast growing cities of USA. Bureau of Reclamation was established in 1902 and is responsible for the construction of dams, powerhouses, canals, drainages and flood protection works in western states of USA, thereby, making the desert bloom. It has the onerous responsibility of maintaining a vast network of water and power resources systems, spread over seventeen states, serving a population of 30 million people and 10 million acres of farmland. The activities of bureau of reclamation are supported by a group of world class laboratories, which are involved in research, innovation and development. The visit to the facilities of the Bureau of Reclamation at Denver and the interactive sessions were extremely absorbing and provided tremendous learning experience.
Las Vegas: Las Vegas is the most populous city in the state of Nevada. It is a resort city, well known internationally for its casinos and hotels and associated activities like gambling, shopping, fine dining, entertainment and nightlife. Las Vegas is a city of lights, which never sleeps. I happened to pass through Las Vegas at night during my trip from Denver to Hoover Dam and could see, why it is known as the Gambling Capital and Entertainment Capital of the world.
Hoover Dam: Hoover dam is a concrete arch gravity dam, which used to be one of the highest in the world. It is located on Colorado River on the border between US states of Newada and Arizona. Colorado river runs through deep gorges or canyons. It was originally proposed to be built at boulder canyon and was known as boulder dam. However, later on black canyon was considered as a better site and the dam was finally built there during 1931 to 1936. The dam was known as boulder dam from 1933 to 1947, thereafter, it was renamed as Hoover dam. Looking to the times, the construction of Hoover Dam was a technical marvel. Expertise and experience in investigations, design and construction for such a work was not available at that time. Bed rock and the side hills had to be grouted to make them water tight. Diversion tunnels had to be constructed on both sides to facilitate the construction of cofferdams. All types of hauling and handling equipments had to be improvised. Cooling arrangements had to be made for the dissipation of heat of hydration from concrete poured in the blocks of the dam. The diversion tunnels were sealed after construction of the dam, but steel pipes running through the tunnels were utilized for feeding the turbines of the underground power house for the generation of hydro-electric power. Hoover dam is a multi-purpose, multi-state project, which has transformed the lives of the people in the south western states of USA. Bhakra Dam benefitted substantially from the experiences of Hoover Dam. I had an absorbing day at Hoover dam, wondering about all that had been achieved in those good old days, due to sheer obsession and undying spirit of the people.
Disney Land: Los Angeles is one of the most populous cities of USA. and Los Angeles Airport is one of the busiest airports of USA. The city was founded in 1781 but with the discovery of oil in 1890, it had a phenomenal economic growth. Los Angeles is well known for its diversity in educational, cultural and professional fields. It is the land of Hollywood and Disney Land and a host of entertainment enterprises. Walt Disney was born in 1901 and died in 1966. He was fond of drawing and sketching cartoons and caricatures. Starting with modest beginnings, he moved into animation, films and television. He shifted to California in 1920 and started his studio. His cartoon character Mickey Mouse was a hit and became household name in 1928 and thereafter, a regular chain of professional hits and awards followed. Disneyland was the brain child of Walt Disney. He developed Disney Land as a theme park, at Anaheim in 1955. Anaheim is a part of Los Angeles Metropolitan Area in California. I had an opportunity to visit Disney Land during a stop over at Los Angeles. Disney Land brings live almost everything from the past, present and future at one place and is full of entertainment with hotels, restaurants, theme parks, lakes, boats and all types of rides. Disney train takes you from the entrance to the main street and then you are on your own for having a taste of all the wonders created by Walt Disney. Jungle cruise in Adventreland, Haunted Mansion in New Orleans Square, Pioneer days in Frontierland, Childrens classic stories and fables recreated in Fantasy Land and a glimpse of the shape of things to come in Tomorrowland are big attractions. More than hundred Disney Land theme parks spread all over the world, stand as the living monuments of the creativity, innovation and vision of Walt Disney.
UC Berkeley: University of California at Berkeley was established in 1868. It is a public university deeply involved in innovation, research and development. It is the most prestigious university of the world. I had an opportunity to stay at the faculty club of UC Berkeley during the concluding week of my visit to USA. I utilized it for visiting some of the departments of the university and interacting with the faculty. That was the time, when Lawrence Hall of Science, which is one of the units of UC Berkeley was working on SEED Project ( Science Education for Economically Disadvantaged ) for the benefit of children of black community. With a view to boost up the thinking and morale of the teachers and children of black schools, the institution was inviting leading scientists and teachers from prestigious institutions and establishments of the country, to deliver lectures to students of schools for black people. Einstein was one of the guest speakers and he had delivered a popular lecture on relativity to students of grade IV, in one of the black schools under this project. The result was a tremendous boost in the IQ and confidence level of the students, as also that of the teachers. During our stay at Berkeley, we were also invited to deliver lectures to these students on topics of our choice. I had two sessions with Grade IV students in a black school under the project. The first one was on critical path method, which is mostly used for optimal solutions in production and in construction projects. I asked the students to write out all the activities in which they are involved from the time they reach their homes, to the time they are back at school next morning. Thereafter, I asked them to record approximate time taken in each activity, followed by sequencing of the activities. Without exception, every student was able to identify the critical activities, which led to delays and came to the conclusion that most of the critical activities should be finished in time, before going to bed, to enable them to leave for the school in the morning without unnecessary delay and stresses.
Under the project, some batches of students were also provided with an opportunity to appear before the legislators of different states, in question and answer sessions, arranged in the capitol buildings of the states, to demonstrate, that, with proper support and environment, everybody, whatever be his origins and whatever be his upbringing, has the IQ, talents and capacity to go up the ladder.
Stanford University: Stanford University is a private university located at Stanford, California. It was established in 1885 and is dedicated to research and innovation and is one of the most prestigious universities of the world churning out outstanding sportsmen, path breaking entrepreneurs, astronauts, nobel laureates and a host of distinguished persons, in all walks of life. During my stay at Berkeley, I had an opportunity to visit the sprawling campus of Stanford University and to interact with the faculty of the water resources department on the topic of water transfer projects in Indo-Gangetic basin in India.
San-Francisco and Golden Gate Bridge: San Francisco is the most prominent city of USA in northern California. It is a great tourist destination with its islands and rolling country. Golden Gate Bridge was built during 1931 and 1937 over San Francisco Bay. It connects San Francisco with the coastline of northern territory. It has facilities for six lanes at two levels, with one deck above the other. Golden Gate Bridge used to be the longest bridge in the world and was treated as one of the structural wonders, with its suspended main span of 4200 feet ( 1288 m) and a total length of 8981 feet (2737 m). The height of supporting towers is 746 feet (227 m) and the clearance below the deck during high tide is 220 ft ( 677 m) to enable unhindered movement of ships from the Pacific Ocean to San Francis Bay. It was always very mesmerizing to witness the unending stream of traffic passing through the Golden Gate Bridge, almost at all hours of the day, with all types of ships, steamers and boats gliding leisurely under the bridge.
Toronto: After the final visit at Berkeley, I spent a week with my brothers at Toronto. It was extremely enjoyable and relaxing, with short hops to Washington, New York and other nearby places with my brothers. During this period we had an opportunity to stay with Professor Steele of Community College at Binghamton. Prof Steele had stayed with us at Jodhpur during summer programmes of Jodhpur Polytechnic. They were running two year career oriented courses leading to associate degree in engineering, with facilities to go ahead for completion of the degree after two years study in a university. The courses of community colleges, running in different states of USA were extremely popular as they were trying to turn out hands on people, who could work freely on the shop floor or in the field.
Back to India: All members of our family, which included Jai Narain and his two children Sharad and Shalini, Krishan and his two children Meeta and Vivek and Hari and his two children Sanjay and Anita were with me, when I was taking my return flight from Toronto to Delhi. I happened to have some travellers cheques with me and I offered US $ 20 dollar cheques to each child. Suddenly there was a burst of loud shouts. The buoyant children were jumping and dancing with joy, with a feeling, that, they had become rich. Those were the little joys of children in those days.