'Dr Vikram Sarabhai not just a great scientist, but also a gifted entrepreneur'

The father of the Indian space programme, Dr Vikram Sarabhai, was also an exemplary businessman, recalls former state finance minister Sanat Mehta. Praising this lesser-known facet of the man’s life, Mehta – once a trade union leader at Sarabhai Chemicals – said that it was Sarabhai’s humanitarian approach which got the pharmaceutical firm from 300 workers to 10,000 without a single strike or discord over the years.

He was speaking at the launch of a book titled ‘Dr Vikram Sarabhai: A Visionary Industrial Entrepreneur’ in the city. Monday was Sarabhai’s 94th birth anniversary.

Speaking about the book, author KJ Divatia said that while there was a mention of Dr Sarabhai’s contribution to the industry in former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam’s autobiography ‘Wings of Fire’, it was in the briefest manner.

“So many tributes had been paid to him by various eminent personalities, but all for his scientific achievements, not entrepreneurial ones. Hence, I felt the need to share the role Dr Sarabhai played in the nascent stages of the Indian pharmaceutical industry,” he said.

Dr Sarabhai was not only a great entrepreneur but an excellent humanitarian, he added.

“Technology tends to keep us away from human beings, but we should never forget that we are working to make human lives better, he used to say,” recalled Divatia. The author is former chairman of Sarabhai Chemicals, Vadodara.