NOVEMBER 2010

Voyage
Volume 01 | Issue 07 | November 2010
Team of Eds
Travelogue : Aneesh Kumar A & V T Robin
(a_aneeshkumar@vssc.gov.in)
(vt_robin@vssc.gov.in)
Automotive : V S Syam Nath &
Sandeep R
(syam_nath@vssc.gov.in)
(r_sandeep@vssc.gov.in)
Creative Writing : Sumit Kumar ,
Geno Geo David & Ranjani K
(sumit_kumar@vssc.gov.in)
(genogeo_david@vssc.gov.in)
(k_ranjani@vssc.gov.in)
Movies : Abhilash K P & Rajesh Mohod
(kp_abhilash@vssc.gov.in)
(rajesh_mohod@vssc.gov.in)
Science : Sumit Kumar
(sumit_kumar@vssc.gov.in)
Photography : Vimal Thomas &
Dileep Chandran
(vimal_thomas@vssc.gov.in)
(dileep_chandran@vssc.gov.in)
Books : Rajesh Mohod
(rajesh_mohod@vssc.gov.in)
Puzzles : Sumit Kumar
& Bimal B S
(sumit_kumar@vssc.gov.in)
(bs_bimal@vssc.gov.in)
Design & Layout : Abhilash K P
(kp_abhilash@vssc.gov.in)
Copy Eds : Syam, Sumit,Abhilash & Rajesh

Publishers Note
Amidst all the buzz surrounding Common Wealth
Games, India quietly became non-permanent
member of the United Nations Security Council after
a gap of 19 years. By securing 187 of the possible
190 votes during the election, India demonstrated
its growing economic and political clout in todays
world.
India, the multilingual, multi-religious and culturally
diversified society, is a respected democracy all over
the world. It is the worlds 4th largest economy by GDPPPP and still growing at a much faster pace evident
from the soaring foreign investments in the country
through fields like stock market, production units and
R &D centers of various multinational companies.
There have been significant improvements in the
fields of Healthcare, education and agriculture. But
poverty still remains the biggest concern.
The roots of Indias growth can be traced back to the
socioeconomic development initiatives taken by the
first government of independent India led by our first
prime minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Panditjis
vision and dream to make India a developed nation
is a foundation on which India is standing today. His
government pioneered the industrial and agricultural
revolution of India, setting the tone of economic
growth.Education was identified vital for countrys
future and institutes like AIIMS, IITs and IIMs were
set up epitomizing this belief.
On the eve of Panditjis birthday Voyage pays homage
to his visionary leadership and great statesmanship
that inspired and guided our country through its
infancy days. A permanent seat in UNSC, will be the
fitting recognition of Indias social and economic
growth and a perfect tribute to our beloved
Chachaji.
Wishing all our readers a very happy and prosperous
Diwali.

Rajesh Mohod

on behalf of Team Voyage

Three

people play an
important role in shaping
the life of a child; his family,
friends and his primary
school teacher
-A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

Abhilash M from
IISU, shares his
experiences
during the World
Space Week
Celebrations
where he got a
chance to be one
of the resource
persons for
the Lectures
@ School
Programme
abhilash_moni@vssc.gov.in

Guru or teacher is placed before

the Almighty in Indian culture.
What if we get to play the role of
a teacher? What if we get a chance
to shape the lives of the future
generation? Lectures @ School
Programme organized as part of
the World Space Week (WSW)
Celebration provides just that
opportunity; or should I call it- a
privilege.
As a resource person for the
programme, I had covered 12
educational institutions in the
Pathanamthitta district of Kerala.
The experience was enlightening
and I consider it one of the best
services that I have rendered in
my life. The greatest contribution
that an individual can make to the
society is to impart knowledge to
children and thus train the young
minds helping them to grow as
responsible citizens.
ISRO has always been a technical
organization with a humane
face. Its roots are embedded in
changing the lives of the common
man by the use of space science
and technology. But in spite of
working in ISRO, we seldom get the

chance to mingle with the aam

aadmi. This programme presents
us an opportunity to interact with
ordinary people; especially the
teachers and students, and to
experience the amount of respect
they have for our organization.
The programme is primarily aimed
at instilling scientific temper in
children and to make them aware
of the applications of the various
physical principles that they
study in their text books. When
children realizes the fact that the
fundamentals of rocket science are
based on the very principles that
they learn in school, it inculcates
interest in them to study science
and mathematics with much more
vigour and appreciation.
The programme starts with the
identification of the resource
persons by the organizing
committee. They provide the
volunteers with the presentation
material and WSW kits, which is
to be distributed to the schools.
They also arrange for projector
and screen that is to be taken by
the resource persons to deliver the
power point presentation to the
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>> memoir
children.
The volunteers get the details of the schools
in the respective districts from the Directorate
of Public Instruction website. Usually, a set
of schools in the same area are selected
for ease of travel and most importantly to
ensure punctuality. The school authorities
are contacted and a convenient schedule is
fixed. A maximum of 4 or a minimum of three
institutions are covered per day.
A sum of Rs.5000/- per resource person team
(usually a team of two) is also given towards
travel expenses. This is utilized for hiring a
vehicle, usually a Qualis/Scorpio for travelling
across the schools carrying the peripherals
required for presentation. The agency
supplying the projector sends a person with a
foldable screen, laptop and LCD projector to
our planned location.
I will briefly describe some interesting
experiences that I had during this programme
in 2009 and 2010.
One thing that amazed me during my visits to
these educational institutions was the awareness
that students have about the developments in
space science and technology.
During the question and answer session in the
first school I visited last year at Kozhenchery,
one clever boy asked Did Chandryaan-1 find
any evidence of Helium-3? What will be its
state of existence on Moon and how are we
planning to bring it back? Surprised by his
pertinent question and awareness of one of
the mission goals of our moon probe, I could
only reply that the spacecraft is yet to find any
evidence of the element and thus its state of
existence is unknown.
I mainly dwell on three things in my presentation:
to explain what is a rocket, satellite and
payload. While describing the increasing
number of satellites that are launched all over
the world, one smart girl (should be from the
upper primary) was curious to know whether

satellites ever collide. I explained her that

they are all far apart, but in 2009, one Russian
defunct satellite collided with a working Iridium
satellite and destroyed it. So clearly, all the
nuggets of knowledge that we gather always
comes in handy during this programme.
Another question that caught me off guard was
from a college professor, about the failure of
the Apollo probes to detect water on the moon.
I could convince him by saying that all Apollo
probes mainly landed near the lunar equator
and that, water is found in large quantities at
the lunar poles due to the prevalence of low
temperature there.
During one of the visits to a school in Aranmula,

the lecture was conducted on a Youth Festival

Stage. The school authorities were kind enough
to stop their ongoing competitions and gave
us a slot in between, on the stage itself. My
colleague Deepa, made the presentation and
the response we obtained from the students
was unforgettable. The students watched with
awe the 10 minute video of PSLV C-11 launch
and Chandryaan-1 mission. Many of them
were biting their nails watching the various
stages of separation of the rocket and broke
into applause at the sight of separation of the
spacecraft.
During the second day in Kozhenchery, we
accidently went to a school that was not on
November 2010

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>> memoir
our list. To our astonishment the authorities
still agreed to give us a slot to conduct the
programme. But I had to politely deny as I had
already scheduled it in another school. This
made me realize the demand for the Lectures
@ School Programme.
During one of the afternoon sessions, one
primary school teacher, wanted to know
whether, the Rs.400 crore that was spent in
Chandryaan-1 mission, was to cater to the
whims and fancies of the bourgeois. Being
already briefed by the organizing committee

not to reply to political statements and

questions related to policy decisions of the
organization, I politely refused to answer the
question. I requested him to limit his doubts to
technical aspects of the mission. But he started
insisting. I somehow wound up the programme
and escaped.
This year I could go only for a day but it was full
of action. After finishing my first session which
was marred with power interruptions, we were
moving to the nearby school in our hired white
Scorpio. One of the important personalities I
always remember apart from Vikram Sarabhai
and Madhavan Nair during the course of these
presentations is Murphy and his famous Laws. I
especially experienced one of his famous law
throughout the programme- Anything that
can go wrong, will go wrong
While I was paying my respect to Murphy, by

explaining my experiences to my colleague

Femina, a KSRTC bus scratched past our brand
new Scorpio. The driver got tensed (as he was
not the owner) and he accidentally drove the
vehicle into a nearby drain. We somehow
pulled the vehicle out and moved forward. But
the driver stopped the vehicle and informed
that he cannot take the vehicle further without
registering the case with police. With very less
time to reach the next school; three of us me,
Femina and Shibu (the person who was carrying
the projector) decided to move. We could not
find an auto and was thus were forced to enter
a crowded local bus. Hail Murphy!!! The bus
caught up in a traffic jam due to a demonstration
staged in the town during that time. We
abandoned the bus, walked for some distance
and picked up an auto and reached the school
35 minutes past the scheduled time. While
KSRTC has already blessed us on the way,
at the school the boon was from KSEB: no
power. Coming out of all the confusion, shock
and tension, my colleague Femina handled the
class without a microphone. I could hear her
voice breaking at the end of the session. But
we pulled it off successfully.
The greatest gift one can get from the
programme is to experience the respect
people have for the ISRO. We have seen that
the entire nation celebrated with us during
the successful launch of Chandryaan-1. More
importantly, the support prevailed even when
we reported the premature demise of the
mission. The support was also evident during
the failure of GSLV-D3. A slice of that support
and appreciation can always be seen in all the
educational institutions that I visited during
the course of the programme. This makes one
more responsible and highly motivated to do
ones duty. As one person in the organizing
committee said succinctly this is an annual
recharge programme.
Hail Murphy!!
November 2010

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>> talkies

Ek Ruka
Hua FAISLA
|Rajesh |

rajesh_mohod@vssc.gov.in

Directed by

Basu Chatterjee

Year of Release 1986

Running time

130 min

Country

India

Language

Hindi

Basu Chatterji is well known for his middle class

oriented movies like Chitchor, Chhoti Si Baat,
Rajnigandha, Piya Ka Ghar, Khatta Meetha,
etc. He along with Hrishikesh Mukherjee
dominated the 70s and 80s of Hindi cinema
through movies that told stories about middle
class families by treading a path between
mainstream and art cinema. However, with
Ek Ruka Hua Faisla Basuda walked altogether
different path exploring the various aspects of
human psyche, and with it touched upon a dark
fact of our lives; how the prejudices and biases
cloud our judgemental powers. This movie was
basically produced for television and released
on Doordarshan. It never had any theatrical
release.
Ek Ruka Hua Faisla made in 1986 is an Indian
adaptation of Oscar nominated Hollywood
classic 12 Angry Men (1957). The story is
about twelve male member jury appointed
by the court to deliberate their decision on a
charge of murder against a young man accused
of killing his own old father. The movie starts
from the juncture where the entire proceeding
of the court is over and the court assigns the
task of taking the final decision on the case
to the jury. The jurors are then locked inside
a room to consider together the finest details
of the case and are not allowed to leave the
room till the time they arrive at a unanimous
decision pronouncing the verdict as guilty or
not guilty. Initial voting reveals that all barring
one juror (Juror no.8 played by K. K. Raina)
are convinced about the heinous crime of the
young man with the lone juror wanting to
deliberate the case as its a matter of life and
death. What follows is attempt by the other
jurors to convince their fellow juror about the
crime committed by the young man through
the evidences and witnesses presented by the
prosecution in the court and the young jurors
November 2010

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>> talkies
battle quizzing every evidence and account of
witnesses. As he deliberates each aspect of
the case and one by one quashes the points
on which the case is build on through logical
and technical reasoning, he is one by one
joined by his fellow jurors in his quest thereby
reaching the unanimous decision.
The film is less about the case and more about
how simple or difficult it is to give a free and
fair judgement. It is about the fact that we as
a human being tend to judge people based
on the emotions that we have been through
in life and not on their individual merits. For
example, one of the jurors in the movie who
has been abandoned by his own son is certain
that the accused has killed his father because
he thinks the current generation doesnt care
about their elders. Another juror who hails
from upper stratum of the society is convinced

about the young mans deed because he is

poor and the juror is prejudiced about the
underprivileged section of the society.
The films cast does not boast of big names but
consist of one of the finest character actors
of the country. Noted among them are K. K.
Raina, S. M. Zaheer (juror no.4), Annu Kapoor
(juror no.9), and Pankaj Kapur (juror no.3).
The film has some very intriguing moments
of arguments between S. M. Zaheer, Pankaj
Kapur and K. K Raina. The screenplay is the
real hero of the film taking us on enthralling
ride through the minds of the jurors as they
argue on the case and one cannot afford to
miss even a single moment of the movie.
The direction is crisp and brilliant. To show
entire film in a single room and still keep the
audience engrossed is no small feat. Basuda,
thanks for this visual delight.

|Rajesh |

rajesh_mohod@vssc.gov.in

12 Angry Men is a 1957 American drama film adapted

from a teleplay of the same name by Reginald Rose.
Directed by Sidney Lumet, the film tells the story of a
jury made up of 12 men as they deliberate the guilt or
innocence of a defendant on the basis of reasonable
doubt. The film is notable for its almost exclusive use
of one set: with the exception of two short scenes
at the beginning and the end of the film set on the
steps of the court building and two short scenes in an
adjoining washroom, the entire movie takes place in
the jury room. The total time spent outside of the jury
room is three minutes out of the full 96 minutes of the
movie.
In 2007, 12 Angry Men was selected for preservation in the United States National Film
Registry by the Library of Congress as being culturally, historically, or aesthetically
significant.
November 2010

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>> books

corner

City of Joy
A famous dialogue from a mallu movie says

| Abhi |
kp_abhilash@vssc.gov.in

Web Intro

It loosely transalates as the real author in one of the most

India is not the one about which you pathetic slums of Kolkata. It
have learnt from textbooks, there is tells the stories of the poorest
a real India unknown to you. India of the poor in India rickshaw
belonging to the underprivileged, pullers, lepers turned beggars,
India belonging to the poor who scrap collecting kids and slum
struggle for their daily bread,
mafia. The author intertwines
India belonging to the rickshaw
several stories into the book and
pullers who spit blood doing their
narrates it through the life of
daily chores
the protagonist Stephen Dada,
For all those who never knew
a polish priest and Hasari Pal, a
about this India, here is a book
rickshaw puller.
which beautifully portrays the
Rarely in our life do we feel a
not so beautiful face of india.
lump in our throat, after reading
City of joy, written by Dominique
books. City of Joy is one book
Lapierre, narrates the story of
that will surely grab you by
the people in a slum in Kolkata
your neck and shake you. The
which is ironically named as
incidents & characters in the
Anand Nagar City of Joy.
book will surely make as think
The book is a result of extensive
about the many underprivileged
research carried out by the
people around us.

www.gconnect.in

gconnect.in is a community website for government officers. This site is maintained

by government officers and it aims at providing useful information related to service
matters to all the central goverment employees across India. You can have access to lot
of valuable informations like :
News that are of use for government
employees
Clarification on administrative matters
Tips for income tax savings.
Latest Government orders
Discussion forums dealing with service
matters
November 2010

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|8

>> auto

hub

Etios, Toyotas reply to Suzukis Swift

|Syam | syam_nath@vssc.gov.in
After exhibiting the concept model at 2010 at around 7.5 lakhs. Its competing against
Delhi Auto Expo, Toyota is all set to have its Volkswagen Polo and Vento, Mahindras Logan,
most exciting launch, the Etios, this December. Tata Indigo Manza and most importantly against
The car is specifically developed for India and market leader, the Suzuki Swift and Dezire.
it took almost 4 years for Engineers at Toyota Pros of Etios are Toyotas brand Quality and
to do that. Its companys first endeavor into commitment (proven through existing models)
the mid level segment eyeing at mass volume at much lower cost compared to its next highly

of sales. Etios emphasizes Toyotas attempt to

provide the high standards of quality for which
the company is known for, at competitive prices.
For reducing prices, there has been lot of stress
on locally sourcing out major percentage of the
spare parts.

priced model. Better interiors and comfort are

expected compared to its leading competitor
Swift.

Cons could be the conservative styling and

lesser dealership networks for Toyota Etios
against the Sporty and flamboyant Swift with
In Etios, the company has tried for better much wider dealer networks. In addition there
styling, roomy interiors and passenger comfort. isnt any diesel model yet.
Its planned in both sedan and hatch variants; It would make more sense to launch a diesel
the sedan will be launched first followed by the version of Etios especially with the ever raising
hatch within 2 to 3 months. Sedan version is petrol prices and expected higher fuel economy
set to be driven by 1.5 litre petrol engine while from the diesel engines. Proper pricing and
the hatch is expected to have smaller 1.2 litre diesel variant is a must for Etios to be the right
engine.
competitor for the Suzuki Swift and Dezire.
The pricing of Etios is expected between the
lower end hatch at 4.5 lakhs to high end sedan
November 2010

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>> lens

view

Childhood Blues

The boy on the Goan beach had his eyes fixed on the elders of his group having fun in the sea.
The belongings by his side and his partly wet clothes suggest that he was pulled out of the sea
before time to keep a watchful eye on the things left at the beach.
All of us, as children would have passed through phases in life when we felt that we were denied
simple things, like the one in the boys case, for not being a grown-up.

Photo : Vimal Thomas, PPFF,MME,VSSC

For publishing your snaps in Voyage, Send them to

vimal_thomas@vssc.gov.in or mail2voyage@gmail.com
November 2010

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>> view

Hey! Coming for tea?,

queried my colleagues, as
the clock ticked to our usual
tea time. I nodded in assent and
rose after switching the PC to standby
mode. An accidental, fleeting glance at my
neighbours PC revealed that it was in full
power mode. Hastily, I turned it into sleep mode
and switched off the lights, on my way out. A
friend, who happened to witness my actions,
commented mockingly, You are really stingy!
I retorted indignantly,This is conservation of
energy, not miserliness.
Such is the attitude of many among usunknowingly,
unintentionally,
we
are
contributing to the colossal waste of electricity
in this world. Despite the advent of nuclear
power, Kerala still relies primarily on our water
bodies for meeting a huge chunk of our power
needs. About 2100MW of the total 2350MW
electricity generated here is from the 24 hydel
plants in our state. In Kerala, conventional
non-renewable resources (like coal) and
emerging renewable resources (wind, solar,
wave energy) constitute only a tiny portion of
the generated power. The steady growth of
population, coupled with wanton deforestation

point

and pollution, has caused much of our hydroresources to dry up. Conscious avoidance of
power wastage is a very simple, but highly
effective means by which we can contribute
our mite in energy conservation. Let us always
remember to switch off all the lights, fans
and other electrical equipment while leaving
rooms, both at home and office. Switching the
PC to sleep/standby mode saves considerable
power. For instance, the PC (combined with
monitor) consumes about 175W when it is
operated in full power mode. In the sleep
mode, this is brought down to 35W. When it is
known apriori that we will be absent for a few
hours from a room, (while attending meetings,
etc.), the PC can be shut down and the AC can
be turned off. At home, the TV can be switched
off while it is not being watched by anybody.
Use of CFL lamps in place of incandescent
bulbs, taking care to switch off unnecessary
lamps, keeping the fridge turned off for 2-3
hours everyday- all can go a long way in saving
power. With the entire country plagued by
power drought and prolonged hours of power
cuts, such practices are the need of the hour.
Whenever I go to the canteen or bathroom, I
perceive mindless wastage of water- from taps
October 2010

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| 11

>> view
carelessly left running or not closed properly.
My friends watch amused, as I go around the
wash area, closing the taps. Water is a precious
resource and it is our duty to conserve it.
There are millions of people deprived of water
even for their basic needs- drinking, bathing,
cooking and washing. Water is also inevitable
for irrigation. Every drop of water saved by
each one of us counts. As the saying goes- tiny
drops of water make the mighty ocean.
Another invaluable resource that is squandered
commonly in offices is paper- as printouts,
xerox copies etc. Manufacture of paper
requires felling of trees. Thus, wastage of paper
is equivalent to mindless destruction of trees.
Let us vow to minimise the use of paper to
essential purposes alone. Instead of printouts
of pages for verification, correction or reading,
the soft copies can be utilised. Only the final,
corrected copy needs to be printed out. Similar
is the case with xerox copies. Further, for rough
work or calculations, unwanted one-sided
sheets can be utilised. We can exhort our kith
and kin to keep these simple points in mind and
follow them. This will assist in safeguarding our
environment.
As all of us are aware, petrol and diesel are fossil
fuels, on the verge of extinction. By relying more
on public transport and walking or cycling to
places of close proximity, vast quantities of fuel
can be saved. Walking and cycling have positive
implications on our health also. Instead of four

|Ranjani |

point

or five individuals travelling alone in separate

cars, pooling of vehicles can be practised in
offices. Such measures can decelerate the pace
of depletion of the reserves of fossil fuels.
Let us also lend our hands in alleviating
the problem of plastic menace. The plastic

wrappings of toffees and snacks are often

carelessly flung onto the pavement by many
of us. Throwing such non-biodegradable waste
in garbage bins is the first step in solving this
pressing issue.
This earth was a beautiful, clean place when
we arrived. It is our responsibility to ensure
that the future generations inherit atleast as
much and not a deteriorated planet.

k_ranjani@vssc.gov.in
October 2010

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| 12

7
The President of a SPACE YUVA club is elected through several
rounds of voting by the members of the club. Only members of the
club can contest for the post of the President.
Four members A, B, C and D are the candidates in the fray.
In each round of voting, the candidate getting the least number
of votes is eliminated and the candidate getting more number
of votes in the final round of voting is designated the President.
While voting, in each round, each member must vote as long as
he/she is eligible to vote and must vote for exactly one candidate in
contention. But the candidates who are themselves in contention
are eligible only as long as they are still in the fray.
The following table shows some of the information regarding the
voting pattern in the different rounds of voting that happened:
Round

1
2
3

Total
Votes

163
147

The solution to the

puzzle can be mailed to
sumit_kumar @ vssc.gov.in.

Maximum Votes for Minimum Votes for

Candidate Votes
Candidate Votes
A
B

60
64

D
C

24
39

Puzzle Solvers for the

month of October
Amit Arya
HSP/TERLS
VSSC

It is also known that;

A member is eligible to vote for at most two candidates in all
the rounds combined.
Candidates A and B retained their votes from all previous
rounds as long as they were in contention.
25% of those who voted for candidate C in round 1, voted for
candidate B in round 2.
Half of those who voted for candidate C in round 1, voted for
candidate B in round 3.
In every round, all contestants who are in contention voted for
themselves.
1. What is the number of votes cast for candidate C in round 1?
2. How many members who voted for candidate D in round 1,
voted for candidate B in round 2?
3. What is the difference between the number of votes cast in

Hemendra
Kumar
Dhurandher ,
CSUSD/CSCD/CSC, LPSC
Satya Priya Mittal
RAD/REG/SRA
Space Applications
Center
Sukrat Gupta
FCD/AVN
VRC/VSSC
Praveen K S
AVN Accts/AVN
VRC/VSSC

round 1 and that in round 3 for candidate B?

|Sumit|
Solution of Puzzle from Voyage October Edition (Puzzle #6)
1. Four & 2. Sixty Nine

and..
Atul Vikram | Md Moinuddin Hassn
| Surya Mani Tripathi | Vijesh T V |
Anandu.A.S

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