Kalam exhorts youth to meet national challenges

Hyderabad, Aug 2 (UNI) With three of his dreams -- India's Space, missile and PURA (Providing Urban Amenities in Rural Areas) -- becoming the National Mission, former President A P J Abdul Kalam today exhorted the youth to imbibe the leadership qualities for participating in the national development mission.

Addressing the students and faculty of University of Hyderabad on ''National Challenges as drivers for research'', he envisaged India becoming ''Knowledge System Powerhouse'' instead of software powerhouse.

He reiterated the need of realising Energy Independence by 2020, when India's population might touch 1.4 billion people, with energy demand increasing from 130,000 MW to about 400,000 MW.

Mr Kalam said future automotive systems would have characteristics, such as, improvement in combustion efficiency, improvement in diesel engines, systems using alternate fuels and hydrogen powered fuel cells, systems operated, using CNT-based solar cells for higher efficiency and design and development of robotic cars, which obey traffic laws, merge into moving traffic, avoid obstacles, and negotiate intersections.

He said PURA envisaged economic empowerment to a cluster of villages through physical, electronic and knowledge connectivity, leading to economic connectivity.

The rural economy will be driven by renewable energy. In this approach, the aim was to make sustainable development, using the core competence of the rural sector. The entire country will have 7000 technologically-driven PURAs, encompassing over 600,000 villages, he added.

He said in order to achieve excellence in any area or in any Institution, what we need was creative leadership. Creative leadership means exercising the vision to change the traditional role from the commander to the coach, manager to mentor, from director to delegator and from one, who demands respect to one who facilitates self-respect, he added.

''Technology is a non-linear tool for societal transformation,'' he observed, expressing confidence that the University would generate such leaders.

Mr Kalam administered a pledge to the youth to work with courage to achieve the national mission and to prepare themselves fo chasing challengs in their professional life.

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