BHUBANESWAR: Naveen Patnaik is a person of few words. On Wednesday, speaking about Unesco-Kalinga Prize for Popularisation of Science, which his legendary father Biju Patnaik had instituted, Naveen revealed an emotional side and even wiped a tear remembering him.The Chief Minister reminisced how his father shared great rapport with eminent scientists and invited them to India. “My father had great passion for science and at the age of 36, he had instituted the Kalinga Prize in 1951. Today, the 60th anniversary of the award’s institution, is a great day for the State,” he said.Naveen, who felicitated 11 past recipients of the prestigious award at its 60th commemoration day, said Biju Babu’s role in popularising science in Odisha was immense. “I may have been a man of arts but science is equally important in life. I remember my father and mother travelling to Paris every year to attend the Unesco-Kalinga Prize,” said the Chief Minister getting overwhelmed by emotion.Recounting Biju Babu’s passion, he said, his father used to invite great scientists to India so that they could deliver lectures at universities and interact with students. Many of them came to Odisha and stayed here. Biju Babu’s efforts, he said, were to “ignite the minds” of the boys and girls of the State so that Odisha could achieve the glorious status of the ancient Kalinga.Naveen also spoke about his father’s famous association with eminent names of science like Julian Huxley, Arthur Clarke and Fred Hoyle. For record’s sake, it was at Biju Babu’s invitation that scientist JBS Haldane came to Odisha and went on to settle here.On the occasion, Naveen presented the Kalinga Chair to Prof Trinh Xuan Thuan who was winner of the Unesco-Kalinga Prize for the year 2009. For the year 2011, Dr Rene Raul Drucker Colin of Mexico has been selected for the prestigious award which includes $ 20,000 in cash and a Unesco Albert Einstein Silver Medal and a citation. However, Colin could not attend the function.Assistant Director-General of Unesco, Paris, Gretchen Kalonji, Rajya Sabha member Pyari Mohan Mohapatra, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology T Ramasami and Bhabani Charan Patnaik, chairman of Kalinga Foundation Trust, were present.
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