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Saturday, Sep 22, 2007
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At home away from home

Manas Dasgupta

Finds among the unknown faces of schoolchildren future astronauts

— Photo: AP

Down to earth: Indian-American astronaut Sunita Williams dances the Garba folk dance during a felicitation function in Ahmedabad on Friday.

AHMEDABAD: The little girl in Indian-American astronaut Sunita Williams sprang out when she visited her ancestral village, the obscure Jhulasan in Mehsana district in north Gujarat on Friday..

While the villagers, all dressed up for the big occasion, gave her an unforgettable warm reception, she was equally responsive, finding among the unknown faces of schoolchildren future astronauts.

“The space science has to grow further and the world will need many more astronauts. I am getting older, there is potential among every one of you to become an astronaut and be prepared to accept any challenge,” she told a group of children at the Jhulasan primary school.

Ms. Williams regretted that she did not know enough Gujarati beyond “kem chho’ (how are you?) for free communication with the children. “But I can see your love for me in your eyes and the promise and determination to become an achiever in your faces,” she said through an interpreter.

Her message

To the girl students, her message was, “do not feel anyway discriminated against. If I am flying a helicopter, the machine does not know I am a man or a woman. The limitations are in your mind; you only have to have control on what you are doing.” She profusely thanked the school children and the administration for organising prayer meetings at the local temple for her safe return to earth.

Later, she visited schools in Kadi, also in Mehsana district, and in Gandhinagar. “My parents were my inspiration. They wanted me to achieve something and create a name for myself and my family. As an astronaut, I do not belong to any particular country but to the entire universe and the humanity,” she said repeatedly refusing to be drawn into any political controversy attempted to be created over her visit in view of the murder four years ago of her cousin, the former Gujarat Minister of State for Home, Haren Pandya.

In the evening, the Vishwa Gujarati Samaj presented her the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Viswa Pratistha Award, for achieving excellence in international field by a person of Gujarat origin. At a function attended by a large number of prominent citizens, Ms. Williams showed the gathering video clippings of her space mission and explained what was going on. She also took some questions from the children and answered them in encouraging notes.

Privately, Ms. Williams told some close relatives that she was tired of her celebrity status and was missing the little things she could enjoy during her last visit to Gujarat when she was not known and there was no rush of people. “My little adventure in the outer space has made my face known to the people and I have lost my privacy,” she said. But she hoped that the next time she would regain her “non-entity status” to enjoy her “freedom.”

Manmohan’s invitation

New Delhi Special Correspondent reports:

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday called up Indian-American astronaut Sunita Williams and congratulated her for her contribution to the human quest for a better understanding of the universe.

Inviting her for a meeting, he described her as a role model for Indian children and a source of inspiration for women. India was proud of her achievement, he said.

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