GOSPEL OF SRI RAMAKRISHNA BY "M": RULES FOR HOUSEHOLDERS

2016-44  Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna by "M": Rules for Householders

From The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna by "M" Chapter 20 

RULES FOR HOUSEHOLDERS 

Sunday, March 9, 1884

Sri Ramakrishna was sitting in his room at Dakshineswar with many devotees. 

Influence of company

Master (to the devotees): "I visited the museum  once.  I was shown fossils.  A whole animal has become stone! Just see what an effect has been produced by company! Likewise, by constantly living in the company of a holy man one verily becomes holy."

Spiritual discipline

"What are the spiritual disciplines that give the mind its upward direction? One learns all this by constantly living in holy company.  The rishis of olden times lived either in solitude or in the company of holy persons; therefore they could easily renounce 'woman and gold' and 'fix their minds on God.  They had no fear nor did they mind the criticism of others.

 

Will-power needed for renunciation

"In order to be able to renounce, one must pray to God for the will power to do so.  One must immediately renounce what one feels to be unreal.  The rishis had this will-power.  Through it they controlled the sense-organs.  If the tortoise once tucks in its limbs, you cannot make it bring them out even by cutting it into four pieces.

 

Master denounces hypocrisy

"The worldly man is a hypocrite.  He cannot be guileless.  He professes to love God, but he is attracted by worldly objects.  He doesn't give God even a very small part of the love he feels for 'woman and gold'.  But he says that he loves God.  (To Mani Mallick) Give up hypocrisy."

The ideal of a spiritual family

"A wife endowed with spiritual wisdom is a real partner in life.  She greatly helps her husband to follow the religious path.  After the birth of one or two children they live like brother and sister.  Both of them are devotees of God - His servant and His handmaid.  Their family is a spiritual family.  They are always happy with God and His devotees.  

"The longing of the worldly-minded for God is momentary, like a drop of water on a red-hot frying-pan.  The water hisses and dries up in an instant.  The attention of the worldly-minded is directed to the enjoyment of worldly pleasure.  Therefore they do not feel yearning and restlessness for God.

Different forms of austerity

"People may observe the ekadasi in three ways.  First, the 'waterless' ekadasi-they are not permitted to drink even a drop of water.  Likewise, an all-renouncing religious mendicant completely gives up all forms of enjoyment.  Second, while observing the ekadasi they take milk and sandesh.  Likewise, a householder devotee keeps in his house simple objects of enjoyment.  Third, while observing the ekadasi they eat luchi and chakka.  They eat their fill.  

"A man may live in a mountain cave, smear his body with ashes, observe fasts; and practise austere discipline; but if his mind dwells on worldly objects, on 'woman and gold', I say, 'Shame on him!' But I say that a man is blessed indeed who eats, drinks, and roams about, but who keeps his mind free from 'woman and gold'.

Rules for concentration

Manilal: "Well, what is the rule for concentration? Where should one concentrate?"

Master: "The heart is a splendid place.  One can meditate there or in the Sahasrara.  These are rules for meditation given in the scriptures.  But you may meditate wherever you like.  Every place is filled with Brahman-Consciousness.  Is there any place where  It does not exist? Narayana, in Bhali's presence, covered with two steps the heavens, the earth, and the interspaces.  Is there then any place left uncovered by God? A dirty place is as holy as the bank of the Ganges.  It is said that the whole creation is the Virat, the Universal Form of God. 

The Eternal Religion

Master: "The Eternal Religion, the religion of the rishis, has been in existence from time out of mind and will exist eternally.  There exist in this Sanatana Dharma all forms of worship - worship of God with form and worship of the Impersonal Deity as well.  It contains all paths - the path of knowledge, the path of devotion, and so on.  Other forms of religion, the modern cults, will remain for a few days and then disappear."

 

                                                                                                                         March 23, 1884

Man teaches by God's power

"I once asked Keshab, 'Why have you written about me?' He said that it would bring people here.  But man cannot teach by his own power.  One cannot conquer ignorance without the power of God. He who teaches men gets his power from God.  None but a man of renunciation can teach others.  

"To realize God is the one goal of life.  While aiming his arrow at the mark, Arjuna said, 'I see only the eye of the bird and nothing else - not the kings, not the trees, not even the bird itself.'

Ram: "I understand that Kedār Babu has recently visited the Kartabhajas' place."

Master: "He gathers honey from various flowers.  (To Ram, Nityagopal, and the others) If a devotee believes one hundred per cent that his Chosen Ideal is God, then he attains God and sees Him.

"People of bygone generations had tremendous faith.  What faith Haladhāri's father had! Once he was on the way to his daughter's house when he noticed some beautiful flowers and vilwa-leaves.  He gathered them for the worship of the Family Deity and walked back five or six miles to his own house.

"When my father walked along the lanes of the village wearing his wooden sandals, the shopkeepers would stand up out of respect and say, 'there he comes!' When he bathed in the Haldārpukur, the villagers would not have the courage to get into the water.  Before bathing they would inquire if he had finished his bath. 

"Very strong was the faith of the people in those days.  One hears that God used to dance then, taking the form of Kāli, while the devotee clapped his hands keeping time."

Signs of Knowledge

MASTER: "There are two signs of knowledge.  First, an unshakable buddhi.  No matter how many sorrows, afflictions, dangers, and obstacles one may be faced with, one's mind does not undergo any change.  It is like the blacksmith's anvil, which receives constant blows from the hammer and still remains unshaken.  And second, manliness-very strong grit.  If lust and anger injure a man, he must renounce them once for all.  If a tortoise once tucks in its limbs, it won't put them out again though you may cut it into four pieces.

Advantage of a householder's life

"You are leading a householder's life.  That is very good.  It is like fighting from a fort.  There are many disadvantages in fighting in an open field.  So many dangers, too.  Bullets may hit you.

"But one should spend some time in solitude and attain Knowledge.  Then one can lead the life of a householder.  Janaka lived in the world after attaining Knowledge.  When you have gained it, you may live anywhere.  Then nothing matters."

Mahima: "Sir, why does a man become deluded by worldly objects?"

Master: "It is because he lives in their midst without having realized God.  Man never succumbs to delusion after he has realized God.  The moth no longer enjoys darkness if it has once seen the light.

The Master rested awhile.  A devotee sat on the end of the small couch and gently stroked his feet.  The Master said to him softly: "That  which is formless again has form.  One should believe in the forms of God also.  By meditating on Kāli the aspirant realizes God as Kāli.  Next he finds that the form merges in the Indivisible Absolute.  That which is the Indivisible Satchidananda is verily Kāli." 

After a while Adhar said humbly to the Master: "Sir, you haven't been to our place for a long time.  The drawing-room smells worldly and everything else appears to be steeped in darkness."

Master (to Mahima):  "What I said about aspirants practising continence is true.  Without chastity one cannot assimilate these teachings.

"Once a man said to Chaitanya: 'You give the devotees so much instruction.  Why don't they make much progress?' Chaitanya said: 'They dissipate their powers in the company of women.  That is why they cannot assimilate spiritual instruction.  If one keeps water in a leaky jar, the water escapes little by little through the leak."

Mahima and the other devotees remained silent.  After a time Mahima said, "Please pray to God for us that we may acquire the necessary strength."

Master: "Be on your guard even now.  It is difficult, no doubt, to check the torrent in the rainy season.  But a great deal of water has gone out.  If you build the embankment now it will stand.

Text of The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna by "M": Rules for Householders [Click Here]

GOSPEL OF SRI RAMAKRISHNA BY "M": MASTER AND DISCIPLE

2016-43  Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna by "M": Master and Disciple

The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna is the English translation of the Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita, the conversations of Sri Ramakrishna with his disciples, devotees, and visitors, recorded by Mahendranath Gupta, who wrote the book under the pseudonym of "M." The conversations in Bengali fill five volumes, the first of which was published in 1897 and the last shortly after M.'s death in 1932.

M., one of the intimate disciples of Sri Ramakrishna, was present during all the conversations recorded in the main body of the book and noted them down in his diary. They therefore have the value of almost stenographic records.

Sri Ramakrishna never clothed his thoughts in formal language. His words sought to convey his direct realization of Truth. His conversation was in a village patois. Therein lies its charm. In order to explain to his listeners an abstruse philosophy, he, like Christ before him, used with telling effect homely parables and illustrations, culled from his observation of the daily life around him.

"M" Mahendranath Gupta

The words of Sri Ramakrishna have already exerted a tremendous influence in the land of his birth. Savants of Europe have found in his words the ring of universal truth. But these words were not the product of intellectual cogitation; they were rooted in direct experience.

Within one hundred years of his birth and fifty years of his death his message has spread across land and sea. Romain Rolland has described him as the fulfilment of the spiritual aspirations of the three hundred millions of Hindus for the last two thousand years. Mahatma Gandhi has written: "His life enables us to see God face to face...Ramakrishna was a living embodiment of godliness." 

From The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna  Chapter 1

MASTER AND DISCIPLE

February 1882

M.'s first visit to the Master

"There is a charming place on the bank of the Ganges where a paramahamsa lives.   Should you like to go there?" said Sidhu. M.  assented and they started immediately for the Dakshineswar temple garden.   They arrived at the main gate at dusk and went straight to Sri Ramakrishna's room.   

And there they found him seated on a wooden couch, facing the east.  With a smile on his face he was talking of God.  The room was full of people, all seated on the floor, drinking in his words in deep silence. M. stood there speechless and looked on.  

It was as if he were standing where all the holy places met and as if Sukadeva himself were speaking the word of God, or as if Sri Chaitanya were singing the name and glories of the Lord in Puri with Ramananda, Swarup, and the other devotees. 

Formalities and essentials of religion

Sri Ramakrishna said: "When, hearing the name of Hari or Rāma once, you shed tears and your hair stands on end, then you may know for certain that you do not have to perform such devotions as the sandhya any more.  Then only will you have a right to renounce rituals; or rather, rituals will drop away of themselves.  

Then it will be enough if you repeat only the name of Rāma or Hari, or even simply Om." Continuing, he said, "The sandhya merges in the Gayatri, and the Gayatri merges in Om."

M. looked around him with wonder and said to himself: "What a beautiful place! What a charming man! How beautiful his words are! I have no wish to move from this spot." After a few minutes he thought, "Let me see the place first; then I'll come back here and sit down."

As he left the room with Sidhu, he heard the sweet music of the evening service arising in the temple from gong, bell, drum, and cymbal.  He could hear music from the nahabat, too, at the south end of the garden.  The sounds travelled over the Ganges, floating away and losing themselves in the distance.

A soft spring wind was blowing, laden with the fragrance of flowers; the moon had just appeared.  It was as if nature and man together were preparing for the evening worship.  M. and Sidhu visited the twelve Siva temples, the Radhakanta temple, and the temple of Bhavatarini.  When they reached Sri Ramakrishna's door again, they found it shut, and Brinde, the Maid, standing outside.  

M., who had been trained in English manners and would not enter a room without permission, asked her, "Is the holy man in?" Brinde replied, "Yes he's in the room."

M: "How long has he lived here?"

Brinde: "Oh, he has been here a long time."

M: "Does he read many books?"

Brinde: "Books? Oh, dear no! They're all on his tongue."

M. had just finished his studies in college.  It amazed him to hear that Sri Ramakrishna read no books.  

M: "Perhaps it is time for his evening worship.  May we go into the room? Will you tell him we are anxious to see him?"

Brinde: "Go right in, children.  Go in and sit down."

Entering the room, they found Sri Ramakrishna alone, seated on the wooden couch.  Incense had just been burnt and all the doors were shut.  As he entered, M. with folded hands saluted the Master.  Then, at the Master's bidding, he and Sidhu sat on the floor.  After a little conversation M. saluted the Master and took his leave.  "Come again", Sri Ramakrishna said. 

On his way home M. began to wonder: "Who is this serene-looking man who is drawing me back to him? Is it possible for a man to be great without being a scholar? How wonderful it is! I should like to see him again.  He himself said, 'Come again.' I shall go tomorrow or the day after."

Second Visit

MASTER: "Well, do you believe in God with form or without form?"

M., rather surprised, said to himself: "How can one believe in God without form when one believes in God with form? And if one believes in God without form, how can one believe that God has a form? Can these two contradictory ideas be true at the same time? Can a white liquid like milk be black?"

M: "Sir, I like to think of God as formless."

MASTER: "Very good.  It is enough to have faith in either aspect.  You believe in God without form; that is quite all right.  But never for a moment think that this alone is true and all else false.  Remember that God with form is just as true as God without form.  But hold fast to your own conviction."

God the only real teacher

MASTER: "That's one hobby of you Calcutta people - giving lectures and bringing others to the light! Nobody ever stops to consider how to get the light himself.  Who are you to teach others? 

"He who is the Lord of the Universe will teach everyone.  He alone teaches us, who has created this universe; who has made the sun and moon, men and beasts, and all other beings; who has provided means for their sustenance; who has given children parents and endowed them with love to bring them up.  The Lord has done so many things - will He not show people the way to worship Him? If they need teaching, then He will be the Teacher.  He is our Inner Guide.  

"Suppose there is an error in worshiping the clay image; doesn't God know that through it He alone is being invoked? He will he pleased with that very worship.  Why should you get a headache over it? You had better try for knowledge and devotion yourself."

This time M. felt that his ego was completely crushed.  He now said to himself: "Yes, he has spoken the truth.  What need is there for me to teach others? Have I known God? Do I really love Him? 'I haven't room enough for myself in my bed, and I am inviting my friend to share it with me!' I know nothing about God, yet I am trying to teach others.  What a shame! How foolish I am! This is not mathematics or history or literature, that one can teach it to others.  No, this is the deep mystery of God.  What he says appeals to me."

MASTER: "You were talking of worshiping the clay image.  Even if the image is made of clay, there is need for that sort of worship.  God Himself has provided different forms of worship.  He who is the Lord of the Universe has arranged all these forms to suit different men in different stages of knowledge. 

"The mother cooks different dishes to suit the stomachs of her different children.  Suppose she has five children.  If there is a fish to cook, she prepares various dishes from it - pilau, pickled fish, fried fish, and so on - to suit their different tastes and powers of digestion. "Do you understand me?"

Need of holy company & Meditation in solitude

M. (humbly): "Yes, sir.  How, sir, may we fix our minds on God?"

MASTER: "Repeat God's name and sing His glories, and keep holy company; and now and then visit God's devotees and holy men.  The mind cannot dwell on God if it is immersed day and night in worldliness, in worldly duties and responsibilities; it is most necessary to go into solitude now and then and think of God.  To fix the mind on God is very difficult, in the beginning, unless one practises meditation in solitude.  When a tree is young it should be fenced all around; otherwise it may be destroyed by cattle. 

"To meditate, you should withdraw within yourself or retire to a secluded corner or to the forest.  And you should always discriminate between the Real and the unreal.  God alone is real, the Eternal Substance; all else is unreal, that is, impermanent.  By discriminating thus, one should shake off impermanent objects from the mind."

God and worldly duties

M. (humbly):"How ought we to live in the world?"

MASTER: "Do all your duties, but keep your mind on God.  Live with all - with wife and children, father and mother - and serve them.  Treat them as if they were very dear to you, but know in your heart of hearts that they do not belong to you. 

"A maidservant in the house of a rich man performs all the household duties, but her thoughts are fixed on her own home in her native village.  She brings up her Master's children as if they were her own.  She even speaks of them as 'my Rāma' or 'my Hari'.  But in her own mind she knows very well that they do not belong to her at all. 

"The tortoise moves about in the water.  But can you guess where her thoughts are? There on the bank, where her eggs are lying.  Do all your duties in the world, but keep your mind on God. 

"If you enter the world without first cultivating love for God, you will be entangled more and more.  You will be overwhelmed with its danger, its grief, its sorrows.  And the more you think of worldly things, the more you will be attached to them. 

"First rub your hands with oil and then break open the jack-fruit; otherwise they will be smeared with its sticky milk.  First secure the oil of divine love, and then set your hands to the duties of the world. 

"But one must go into solitude to attain this divine love.  To get butter from milk you must let it set into curd in a secluded spot; if it is too much disturbed, milk won't turn into curd.  Next, you must put aside all other duties, sit in a quiet spot, and churn the curd.  Only then do you get butter.

"Further, by meditating on God in solitude the mind acquires knowledge, dispassion, and devotion.  But the very same mind goes downward if it dwells in the world.  In the world there is only one thought: 'woman and gold'.

"The world is water and the mind milk.  If you pour milk into water they become one; you cannot find the pure milk any more.  But turn the milk into curd and churn it into butter.  Then, when that butter is placed in water, it will float.  So, practise spiritual discipline in solitude and obtain the butter of knowledge and love.  Even if you keep that butter in the water of the world the two will not mix.  The butter will float. 

Practice of discrimination

"Together with this, you must practise discrimination.  'Woman and gold' is impermanent.  God is the only Eternal Substance.  What does a man get with money? Food, clothes, and a dwelling-place - nothing more.  You cannot realize God with its help.  Therefore money can never be the goal of life.  That is the process of discrimination.  Do you understand?"

M: "Yes, sir.  I recently read a Sanskrit play called Prabodha Chandrodaya.  It deals with discrimination."

MASTER: "Yes, discrimination about objects.  Consider - what is there in money or in a beautiful body? Discriminate and you will find that even the body of a beautiful woman consists of bones, flesh, fat, and other disagreeable things.  Why should a man give up God and direct his attention to such things? Why should a man forget God for their sake?"

How to see God

M: "Is it possible to see God?"

MASTER: "Yes, certainly.  Living in solitude now and then, repeating God's name and singing His glories, and discriminating between the Real and the unreal - these are the means to employ to see Him."

Longing and yearning

M: "Under what conditions does one see God?"

MASTER: "Cry to the Lord with an intensely yearning heart and you will certainly see Him.  People shed a whole jug of tears for wife and children.  They swim in tears for money.  But who weeps for God? Cry to Him with a real cry."

"God reveals Himself to a devotee who feels drawn to Him by the combined force of these three attractions: the attraction of worldly possessions for the worldly man, the child's attraction for its mother, and the husband's attraction for the chaste wife.  If one feels drawn to Him by the combined force of these three attractions, then through it one can attain Him. 

"The point is, to love God even as the mother loves her child, the chaste wife her husband, and the worldly man his wealth.  Add together these three forces of love, these three powers of attraction, and give it all to God.  Then you will certainly see Him. 

"It is necessary to pray to Him with a longing heart.  The kitten knows only how to call its mother, crying, 'Mew, mew!' It remains satisfied wherever its mother puts it.  And the mother cat puts the kitten sometimes in the kitchen, sometimes on the floor, and sometimes on the bed.  When it suffers it cries only, 'Mew, mew!' That's all it knows.  But as soon as the mother hears this cry, wherever she may be; she comes to the kitten."

For the full text of the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna by "M" [Click Here]

YouTube Audio: The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna by "M": [Click Here]

DR ALOK SAGAR: A GREAT HUMANITARIAN LIVING INCOGNITO

2016-42  Dr Alok Sagar: A Great Humanitarian living Incognito

Dr Alok Sagar working for the wefare of tribals since 1982

If you happen to be in the densely vegetated area of Betul and Hoshangabad districts in Madhya Pradesh, you are likely to stumble upon an unassuming old man with a scraggly white beard, quietly making his way through the wilderness on his bicycle. He goes by the name Alok Sagar and was once a resident of New Delhi. For the last 34 years [in 2016] however, this man has been working untiringly for the betterment of tribals in Madhya Pradesh. Sagar has single-handedly planted more than 50,000 trees in Betul district. The eco-conscious citizen also spreads his message of a greener world by collecting and distributing seeds among the tribals. 

Over the last three decades, none had any idea of this great man. He was just another rights activist for the people of that area. No one would ever know of the great mind in their midst, had it not been the Betul district administrator, who asked him to leave the area citing the security reasons during a by-election. It was only then that Alok Sagar revealed his true identity which completely shocked every police officer present there.

He is a son of an IRS officer father and a physics professor mother. Moreover, he himself had a degree of M.Tech from IIT-Delhi in 1973. Adding to his educational excellence, he has a PhD from Houston University in Texas and a post doctorate in dental science from Texas university, following a fellow of sociology department at Dalhousie university of Canada.

After resigning from his post of professor at IIT Delhi in 1982, Sagar started working for tribals in the Betul and Hoshangabad districts of Madhya Pradesh. Since then, he has been living in Kochamu, a remote village with 750 tribals, lacking both electricity and roads, and with just a primary school where he teaches tribal children. Sagar believes that people can serve the country better by working at the grassroots level. 

What makes Sagar's story truly inspiring is his simplicity. He owns just three sets of kurtas and a cycle, and spends his day collecting and distributing seeds among tribals. Sagar can speak many languages and dialects used by tribals in the region. Closely associated with the Shramik Adiwasi Sangathan, he spends most of his time working for their upliftment.

YouTube Video1: Dr Alok Sagar: Social Activist [Click Here]

YouTube Video2: Dr Alok Sagar: Social Activist [Click Here]

DR R VASUDEVAN: THE PLASTIC MAN OF INDIA

2016-41  Dr R Vasudevan: The Plastic Man of India

Rajagopalan Vasudevan is an Indian scientist who has worked mainly in waste management. He developed an innovative method to reuse plastic waste to construct better, more durable and very cost-effective roads. This method will help in making roads much faster and also will save environment form dangerous plastic waste. The roads also show greater resistance to damages caused by heavy rains. His road construction method is now widely used to construct roads in rural India. He obtained his B.Sc, M.Sc and Ph.D degrees from the Madras University and in 1975, joined Thiagarajar College of Engineering, Madurai where he is currently the Dean, ECA. His research mainly deals with waste management specifically use of waste plastics for road construction.

With approx. 9 million metric tons of plastic garbage being shoved into the world's streams and inadequate waste management, it is tough to say whether plastics were actually a boon. This talk presents a low cost disruptive technology to convert plastic waste of any kind into paved roads that are twice as strong, are waterproof, last up to 60 years and have almost zero maintenance cost. This technology will go a long way in curbing the plastic pollution of the world if implemented diligently.

Dr R Vasudevan is fondly called the 'Plastic Man of India'. He has patented a technique to convert common waste plastic litter into a coating for bitumen - the main component in asphalt – used for the construction of roads. 

YouTube Video: TEDx Talk by Dr R Vasudevan: Waste Plastic Bitumen Road:
[Click Here] 

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx

YouTube Video: India's 'Plastic Man' Turns Plastic Litter Into Paved Roads: [Click Here]

Details and History of Dr R Vasudevan's Patented Process: 

The gravel is heated at 170 degrees C and shredded plastic sprayed over the hot stone aggregate. The plastic instantly melts and coats the gravel without releasing toxic gases into the atmosphere. Immediately, bitumen heated at 160 degree C is mixed at 155 degrees C and used for laying the road. Molten plastic with liquid tar has proven to be more resistant to water permeation, heat and high pressure than the normal mixture of stone aggregate and bitumen, without the plastic.

Dr. R. Vasudevan, Dean and Head of the Chemistry Department, Thiagarajar Collefe of Engineering, Madurai, India, is better known as a man with a mission, and “Clean India” is his campaign. After a decade's hard work and persistent efforts, his simple invention of a technology to use plastic waste to lay roads, patented by TCE, finally got a shot in the arm with the Centre approving its wider application.

When Dr. A.P.J. Kalam visited TCE in 2001, the professor presented his project on the good bonding and binding factor of plastic and its potential use as a coating over pebbles for laying roads. He recalls with a gentle smile, “he told me, one day your test will become the convention. Don't worry if people don't approve or get convinced. You just do your work at your place. As a sample, lay a plastic road within your campus first. Once the results are there to see, people will come automatically.”

Dr. Kalam's words proved prophetic. With full support from the college correspondent Mr. Karumuttu T. Kannan, Dr. Vasudevan laid the first 60-feet-long plastic road within the campus. “Application of knowledge is very important,” he says. “We learn and know so many things but on most occasions fail to see how and where our knowledge could be implemented. That is wisdom.”

Getting his technology patented was the next hurdle. After four years and numerous visits to the Chennai office, the technology was registered in 2006. “An officer advised me that I should not apply for the product's patent because it is not new, the road is already there. Instead, I should patent the process,” he says. “God has always sent the right people to me at the right time.”

Though plastic waste has been a nagging problem for civic authorities, with thousands of tonnes of garbage generated every day, it took years of discussion for Dr. Vasudevan to be acknowledged by organizations like the Central Pollution Control Board, National Rural Roads Development Agency, Central Road Research Institute, Indian Centre for Plastic Environment and the National Highways Authority of India. In every forum, he painstakingly explained and demonstrated the benefits of road laying using a polymer-aggregate-bitumen mix.

Even as his technology was being debated in the government, Dr. Vasudevan started receiving offers from private companies both within and outside the country to sell the patent. “But I think it my duty to serve my country first and therefore, I gave it free to the Indian Government.” What he laments is the slow progress, “the plastic binding with bitumen is an ideal option for roads that bear the brunt of torrential rains.” Also, he underlines, if citizens treat their waste properly by segregating and collecting the plastic, the country will soon be free of plastic litter and boast safer and better roads.

His department is now evolving a cold process technology as well. The Department of Science and Technology has sanctioned a ‘green chemistry' project at TCE for producing a 'cold emulsion' to coat the aggregate instead of using hot bitumen. Such a process would be highly useful in laying roads in cold regions. Widener University, Philadelphia, has already shown interest in the cold process.

With a low-cost technology that finds a ready solution for plastic waste management, Dr. Vasudevan's invention undoubtedly offers a lesson for all municipal corporations. “It serves the twin purpose of increasing quality of roads and also solves the problem of plastic disposal. The vision should be to eventually replace all existing roads and lay every new road with this technology,” says the professor.