It Happened in India

By Francis A. Andrew

The story is set in India around the middle of the century. It projects a country which has become fully developed in all aspects of science and technology to the extent that it can enter the space race with fully fledged confidence, and its scientists can provide solutions to issues as diverse as the worlds energy crisis and the scourge of cancer. That these magnificent achievements come at a great price can be seen by the attempts by Indias enemies to thwart this progress and bring that countrys scientific endeavours to a grinding halt. The storys central character, Aparajeet Chopra, not only has to engage himself in a campaign to save his country, but also himself from a series of terminal diseases which his enemies, in some mysterious way, manage to inflict on him. While the story presents to its readers an image of a modern, scientific and technologically advanced India, the religious and cultural traditions which weave together the rich tapestry of what makes India the marvel and jewel that it most undoubtedly is, are brought out in full panoply for the reader to enjoy

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trafford Publishing
• Release date: Jul 24, 2013
• ISBN: 9781490709727

Francis A. Andrew

Francis A. Andrew was born in Aberdeen in Scotland. Although he is not a scientist by training, he has had a life-long passion for astronomy and space technology. In his childhood years, he was influenced by the works of Sir Fred Hoyle and by Sir Patrick Moore's monthly television programme, "The Sky at Night."

Book preview

Copyright 2013 Francis A. Andrew.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written prior permission of the author.

ISBN: 978-1-4907-0971-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4907-0973-4 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4907-0972-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013913252

Trafford rev. 03/30/2016

21097.png www.trafford.com

North America & international

toll-free: 1 888 232 4444 (USA & Canada)

fax: [phone]

CONTENTS

PART I

Chapter I Why Me?

Chapter II The Magic Bullet?

Chapter III Another Magic Bullet?

Chapter IV Medicinal Application

Chapter V The Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope

Chapter VI The Worm Returns

Chapter VII Not Again?!

Chapter VIII Harvest Festival

Chapter IX Greater Clarity

Chapter X Thy will be done in space as it is on Earth

PART II

Chapter I Back on Earth

Chapter II Towards a Miracle

Chapter III Miracle!

Chapter IV Mission and Murder

Chapter V Back to the Eco-craft

Chapter VI Innovations and Discoveries

Chapter VII Forward to the Past

Chapter VIII Unmasking

Chapter IX Wonders Will Never Cease

Chapter X Decision Time

Francis A. Andrew is the author of the following books:

A Science Fantasia

Pathogens from the Cosmos

Maenan: The Second Battle of Britain

The Next Ice Age

Fiddler in the Boardroom

Intelligent Design

Journeys with Stellarman

DEDICATION

T HIS BOOK IS DEDICATED to the real character behind Jonathon Santos. He is a 24 year old Fijian Indian whose courage and bravery due to his being on permanent colostomy is an inspiration to many. Despite his disability, he pursues a life of normality in the spirit of a quality of heroic virtue of which few possess the ability to match. Yet, it would be a gross understatement to say that this man leads a normal life, for he is one of the most extraordinary of men I have ever had the delight of knowing. I have often told him that he is not disabled but rather re-abled, as his medical condition has had the effect of transferring his physical abilities to a stratospherically high intellectual and academic level which can surely only be the envy of many. As re-abled is a word that I cannot find in any dictionary, it is my sincere hope that my new lexical item, first applied by me to the real Jonathon Santos, will be taken on board by many of his fellow sufferers, that they may be encouraged to elevate their disability to the reality of their true condition of re-ability. It is my hope and prayer that through Jonathon Santos, colostomy research will receive a boost, and that workers in this area of medical research and development will be spurred on in their efforts to devise artificial intestinal organs for those whose cancer was so advanced that their entire intestinal tract had to be removed. It is also my fervent hope and prayer that sufficient numbers of medical practitioners will be inspired to think outside the box, and, influenced by the great strides taken in the field of astro-medicine by Sir Fred Hoyle and Professor Nadine Chandra Wickramasinghe ( Diseases from Space. 1979), will bring their profession to a level which re-ables them to realise that a comprehensive cure for cancer and other diseases lies in a line of research which extends to a cosmological dimension ( Evolution from Space. 1984). It is my greatest honour and privilege to know the real Jonathon Santos and to call him both brother and friend.

PART I

CHAPTER I

Why Me?

I T WAS NOW ONE year since Aparajeet and Garvitha Chopra were married in great splendour in the fabulous city of Mumbai. The hills and dales of Kerala, with their luscious green vegetation and miles of tea plantations amidst a cool and temperate climate, provided a romantic backdrop for the young couple to celebrate their first year of marriage. As they stood hand-in-hand on top of a small hill overlooking a vast swathe of tropical rainforest, Aparajeet and Garvitha had the feeling of being nothing less than masters of all they surveyed. The hustle and bustle of Bombay with its bright lights, high-rise buildings, hypermarket chains, spaghetti tangles of motorways and all the forms of ultra-modern facilities which the year 2050 could provide, seemed so far away as to be unreal.

Aparajeet had finished his PhD in rocket science two years previously and now held a responsible position as a rocket engineer with the Indian Space Agency at their new research facilities on the outskirts of Bombay. Garvitha equaled her husband in academic achievements and would severely scold anyone who introduced her and Apareejat as ‘Dr. & Mrs. Chopra,’ for with her doctorate in pharmacy, she held the post of Senior Consultant at Bombay Pharmaceuticals, a world leader in pharmaceuticals and medical research.

Aparajeet and Garvitha were, no doubt, what many in India aspired to be. Apart from their brilliant academic qualifications, they had all the physical attributes of their respective genders. Aparajeet was tall, dark and handsome; years of playing cricket and soccer had given him a muscular build and a stamina which few could equal. Garvitha was a tall, slim Indian lady whose well proportioned body ensured that she carried herself with a feminine grace and with a dignity which rendered unto her the most regal of appearances. Being of the Brahmin caste, Aparajeet’s and Garvitha’s vegetarian diet was a contributing factor to their physical and mental well-being.

It would surely seem that this paradisiacal life would be the envy of most; the couple were secure in their occupations, secure in their home and assured of a brilliant future. Yet, as they looked out over the forest while standing atop the hillock and surrounded by a sea of flowers dancing and swaying in the gentle Kerala breeze, they were constantly aware that there is no rose without a thorn and that every paradise has its worm.

It was in fact a ‘worm’ that was eating away at Aparajeet. Three months previously he had been diagnosed with an unusual form of cancer; in fact it was a disease that was peculiar unto him and to him alone, for medical science had never seen anything like it.

It’s so unfair, Aparajeet would say to Garvitha. Why me? There are over one billion people in India and over seven billion in the whole world and this new and strange disease had to choose me. It’s so damned unfair! ‘God’s own country,’ the accolade so often attributed to Kerala, kept running through his mind as he viewed the gorgeous beauty around him and the gorgeous beauty standing next to him. But where was God when this disease struck him? In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve had lost favour with God, but he, Aparajeet Chopra, having eaten of no forbidden fruit from any tree off-limits to mankind, felt unjustly singled out to die in the prime of life from an unknown disease.

As they descended the knoll, Aparajeet took hold of Garvitha’s hand and squeezed it tightly in his. If this disease should prove to be of a terminal nature, then he would give Garvitha all the love he could give her in the short time allotted to him in this mortal life. They walked back to their car hand-in hand and drove to their hotel in Idukii.

They walked into the charming surroundings of the Maharajah Restaurant of the Grand Palace Hotel and sat at a table laid with the crockery and cutlery of the finest gold and silver India could offer. A waiter, in traditional Indian attire bowed to the couple as he handed them each a menu whose contents they perused in silence. A few minutes later, the waiter, having taken their orders, bowed again as he took the menus from them and poured some fresh Kerala spring water into their crystal glasses. For an hour, the young couple ate their meal in silence, trying to appear as happy as their circumstances would allow. They did not wish to contribute any air of melancholy to the place of happiness in which they now sat, for the restaurant played host to others who had come to enjoy the splendiferous beauty of Kerala. At one table sat a young couple lovingly gazing into each other’s eyes—it seemed clear to Aparajeet and Garvitha that they were newlyweds on honeymoon. At another table sat a middle aged husband and wife—perhaps celebrating their Golden Wedding anniversary. Relaxed and at ease, they contemplated each other in a manner which suggested that their years of married life had not erased that love which had, so long ago, brought them into the ties of wedlock. And there was a table with a family of four—father and mother with their teenage son and daughter. Though nothing was conveyed in words between Aparajeet and Garvitha, they seemed to emanate a telepathic communication between their so-alike loving and caring minds an understanding which if articulated would say who are we to spoil this beautiful atmosphere made by and for such peaceful and charming people.

Garvitha dear, said Aparajeet at the end of their meal, I want to return to the knoll.

Why do you want to return there, my love? inquired Garvitha.

I don’t know. Something is drawing me back there; perhaps it’s because I want to see a Kerala sunset.

As they walked across the restaurant towards the exit, their gazes fell upon an elderly man whom they had failed to see during their perusal of their fellow diners. He was much older than any of the other guests and appeared to be around 70 to 75 years of age. However, the dignified looks of this elderly gentleman were not lost on Aparajeet and Garvitha. The couple commented on their fellow guests as they drove towards the knoll.

We are quite a mixed bunch, said Aparajeet.

Indeed we are, replied Garvitha. But I wonder who that old gentleman was who was sitting at the far end.

I don’t know but he seemed to have an air of importance about him.

I also felt that. I never noticed him until we were on our way out of the restaurant.

Same here.

Once again the couple stood on top of the knoll and watched the gorgeous sunset embrace with its orange glow the great biodiversity of Kerala. The coconut trees, the palm trees, the jack fruit and mango trees all seemed to be as much aware of this precious moment of sunset as Aparajeet and Garvitha were. One fourth of the 10,000 plant species of India which are located in this state, obeyed the command of the gentle breeze to show, by their swaying and rustling, their appreciation of the magnificent solar farewell as the Earth’s life-giving star dipped in graceful splendour below the green Kerala horizon. The hoot of distant elephants, the roar of far—off tigers and leopards and the scurrying of the giant squirrels, added to nature’s praise of the wonder of its father, the sun.

How many Aparajeets and Garvithas on the countless other inhabited Earths of this vast Universe are standing on their planets’ knolls and basking in the warmth of their sunsets’ glowing embraces? speculated Aparajeet.

It’s an intriguing thought, responded Garvitha in dreamy tones of reverie.

It was with a kind of moving from the sublime to the mundane when Aparajeet broached the issue of his medical condition back in their hotel room.

This strange illness I have does not seem to be contagious, said Aparajeet. You have tested negative and it appears that in eight months time our baby will be born clear of this dreadful malignancy.

You know darling, I’m not trying to humour you or infuse any sort of complacency into this situation, but I’m not convinced that this thing that is inside you is cancerous or that it is terminal. We just don’t know enough about it.

True, true, said Aparajeet nodding his head. I just don’t want this child to be orphaned and thus go through the traumas that so many orphaned children do. The childhood sweetheart love we had for each other never died, but rather blossomed into marriage. If this illness should ever result in my demise Garvitha, just promise me that your remarriage will be to a man of upright stature who will be a good and caring father for our child.

At this, Garvitha burst into tears. I can never marry anyone else; you know that Aparajeet. Though the practice of Sutee has long since been discarded, and I cannot join you on your funeral pyre, I vow to you my own ‘sutee’ which is to live in the chastity and purity of widowhood lovingly devoted to the rearing of our child.

CHAPTER II

The Magic Bullet?

W ELL, GARVITHA, BEGAN PADMAT Ahaja, Chief Executive Officer of the world famous Bombay Pharmaceuticals, this is something that will not only put Bombay Pharmaceuticals on the map, but India itself, and, as director of the research team, you have played the biggest part in all of this, continued Padmat. Padmat Ahaja was a generous man in

Reviews for It Happened in India

[Aditya Chaplot · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great Book Loved it too much Francis A andrew
-Aditya Chaplot