The Hindu : Business : Kalam wants cost-effective desalination technology

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Saturday, Jul 24, 2004

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Kalam wants cost-effective desalination technology

By Our Staff Reporter

President, A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, having a word with the Chairman, Tata group, Ratan N. Tata, at the 100th death anniversary of Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata in Bangalore on Friday. — Photo: V. Sreenivasa Murthy

BANGALORE, JULY 23. President, A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, on Friday asked State governments to `take up rain water harvesting on a mission mode'. At a function organised to mark the death centenary of Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata, Dr. Kalam said governments should also look at desalination of seawater to solve the country's water problem.

"Some states have taken up rain water harvesting on a mission mode. Others should also do so to prevent water shortage in the future," he said.

"Only three billion of the world's population has access to water. By 2025, the situation will become worse. The need of the hour is to find cost effective desalination technology to utilise our abundant sea water," he said.

Pointing out that future wars could be over water, the President said, "The Indian industry including the Tata group should come up with desalination technology. This will be a befitting tribute to J. N. Tata," he said.

Stressing that recycling of water should be compulsory, Dr. Kalam said, "Just as Jamsetji Tata fought the Britishers and paved the way for setting up a steel plant, a power generating station and a research institute and dreamt of a modern independent India, the country should, on his death centenary, dedicate itself to solving the drinking water problem."

Tributes to J. N. Tata

Paying tributes to J. N. Tata, he said the "Indian industry should produce cost-effective, competitive, quality and just-in-time products to make India a developed nation.

For that to happen, the country should not only have the skilled people in manufacturing technology but also know to market the products effectively."

"My law of development is that competitiveness is the common factor between developed and developing nations. Needs of the people change from time to time and to compete with the developed world, countries such as India should produce software and hardware products that are cost-effective, of good quality and just-in-time," he said.

Stating that the country should capture the indomitable spirit of J. N. Tata to move forward, the President said people should realise that no success could be achieved without surmounting problems. "We should not be defeated by problems. We should defeat them," he added. The year 2004 holds a special significance for the Tata group. It marks the death centenary of their founder J. N. Tata and the birth centenaries of J. R. D. Tata and Naval Tata, leaders of the Tata group.

A special exhibition called the `Century of Trust', which narrates the story of Tatas in the context of key events in Indian history was also inaugurated on the occasion.

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