|
| |
'Rocket
Woman' propels India's missile mission
Main
Article page |
Beauty articles
|
Health page |
Computers|
Diseases |
Education |
Entertainment |
Family
Business |Fitness|
Fruits and Vegetables
|
Jobs |
General |
Personality|
Technology
|
Tourism |
Useful Tips
Biography Page|
Heroes & Incredible peoples
|
Inventions
The 48-year-old is the first-ever woman director of an Indian
missile project and is set to place India in an elite club of nations like the
US, Russia and China with the capability to produce their own long-range
Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs).
She did her B.Tech from the Thrissur Engineering College, Trichur and M.Tech
from Pune-based Defence Institute of Advanced Technologies
She will achieve that when India tests its 5,000-km range nuclear capable Agni-V
missile by February 2012.
Thomas also wants to see Indian women taking on combat roles in the armed
forces.
'Why not? If they are performing other roles in the armed forces so efficiently,
they can also perform combat roles,' Thomas told IANS during a chat here.
'If women are willing to get into combat roles, I think, yes, they should be
allowed to join. This, I am sure, will happen over time,' said the 'Agni Putri'
(Daughter of Fire), a sobriquet she had earned for her association with the Agni
missiles since 1988.
The scientist from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) was
in Delhi after her team had successfully tested the new-generation Agni-IV
missile Nov 15 that broke new records for India by hitting a target 3,000 km
away from the Balasore test range in the Orissa coast.
This is the first time ever the country has tested a missile to hit target at
that distance, thereby becoming the first Indian missile to cross the equator
and hit a target in the southern hemisphere.
For her achievement in missile technology, she is also fondly called 'the
missile woman' by the Indian media.
When asked how she landed in the male-dominated defence research and development
world, she promptly replies: 'Science has no gender. Defence RD is a
knowledge-based field.'
Armed with an engineering degree, Thomas joined the DRDO and was assigned to
work on the Agni missile project by none other than former president A.P.J.
Abdul Kalam, who is also known as the 'Father of Indian Missile Programme'.
She also has a masters in guided missiles technology.
She did her B.Tech from the Thrissur Engineering College, Trichur and M.Tech
from Pune-based Defence Institute of Advanced Technologies. She was then
selected for 'guided-weapon course' being offered by DRDO and soon after, her
saga with the Indian missile programme began.
Since 1988, she has worked on Agni-series missiles and is also the strength
behind the 2,000-km range Agni-II and 3,500-km range Agni-III missiles and has
been the project director of these missile programmes, contributing to the
guidance designs. During her initial years in the DRDO, she also worked on the
900-km range Agni-I missile.
Her inspiration?
'Of course, Kalam sir. He was the director of the lab I joined first and he was
the one who assigned me to the Agni project.'
Now at the helm of the Agni-V project, she supervises a work force that
comprises five other women scientists. The entire Agni programme of DRDO has
about 20 women among 250 scientists working on the missile systems.
Thomas, who works at the Missile Complex of DRDO in Hyderabad, first became
project director of an Agni system in 2008, when she was asked to head the Agni-II.
In July 2009, she was appointed the project director for the Agni-V programme.
Last December, when Agni-II Prime (it was how Agni-IV was earlier known) plunged
into the Bay of Bengal just 30 seconds after launch during its first-ever test,
Thomas was disappointed.
'The first flight was a failure, though I won't call it a total failure. We
could record the first 30 second data for analysis of some systems,' she said.
But the second flight Nov 15 as Agni-IV was a grand success.
'We had an excellent launch. It is a tremendous feeling to prove all the systems
in one shot. We have data on all stages of the flight and systems. We proved the
whole system, most of which are indigenous,' Thomas told IANS.
What next? Wait for Agni-V, Thomas signs off.
(N.C. Bipindra can be contacted at nc.bipindra@ians.in
Courtesy: http://www.calcuttanews.net/
More..
B.R.Ambedkar:
Man behind the
constitution of India. He was the first Law Minister of India.
Bhimsen Joshi:
Bhimsen Joshi is a legendary vocalist and can be described as the
'Kohinoor' of Hindustani classical music. He received Bharat Ratna in 2008
Bhagat
Singh: The most prominent faces of
Indian freedom struggle. Bhagat Singh gave a new direction to the revolutionary
movement in India.
Bill Gates- Founder of Microsoft and one
of the richest in the world
Bernard Arnault -
Bernard Arnault is a French businessman. He
is the founder, chairman, and CEO of LVMH, a large luxury goods conglomerate
consisting of over fifty luxury brands
Bupen Hazarika-
An Indian Musical Genius
Carlos Slim
Helu - Richest man in the world-2010
Col.Gaddafi: The ruler of Libya from 1969 till 2011
Kiran
Bedi:
A woman icon of heroism. She was the first Indian woman to join the Indian
Police Services
Laksmi Mittal-
Indo British Business man and Europe's richest man
Larry Ellison - Larry" Ellison
is an American business magnate, co-founder and chief executive officer of
Oracle Corporation, a major enterprise software company.
Lionel Messi - Famous
Argentine footballer.
Milkha Singh-
One of the greatest
athletes India has ever produced.
Mukesh Ambani- Indian business man and one
of the Richest men
Prathibha Patil
- President of India
Saina nehwal
- Indian Badminton Player
Steve Jobs
- the man behind the success of Apple
Computers
Venkataraman Ramakrishnan - An Indo American
who received the 2009
Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Viswanathan Anand -
World Chess Champion and a recipient of Padma Vibhushan
Warren Buffet
-An
American investor, businessman, and philanthropist. He is one of the richest men
in the world.
Hon'ble Mr. Justice S.H.
Kapadia: Chief Justice of
India
Savithri Jindal:
Top
five world's richest mothers
Articles:
| |
|
