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During his research days at university, Madhusudan Atre, used to watch his uncle rip down a Triumph Motorcycle, tweak the mechanics for better performance and then reassemble it in a jiffy. Love for mechanics and physics never left the teenager's spirit and he got so attached to technology that now when he looks from the perch of president and managing director at Applied Materials, he knows where it all started.If one were to draw up a chart of unsung heroes today in the Indian science & technology space, Madhusudan Atre would have to figure in it for his sheer commitment and dedication. He is an outstanding physicist, solar energy expert, a scientist who shunned big money for research throughout his life, a genius of a mathematician and a motorcycle enthusiast to boot. The difference is that today he owns a Royal Enfield Electra, as Triumph is a defunct manufacturer.Like most scientists he is a reticent personality, who prefers to let his work do all the talking. He comes from a family of brilliant scientists and research scholars and it was no surprise that he chose to align himself on the same track. Atre gave a vocational guidance test at the age of 13, and the results revealed his taste in physics and law, and people around him instantly knew he has the makings of being yet another prodigal son in the family.He joined IIT Bombay and then proceeded to do research at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), passing over an opportunity to move to the United States. "I believed in the course strength in India. I was always fascinated by the likes CV Raman, Homi Bhabha and Abdul Kalam. That's why I always stayed in India for my studies."Atre says he never felt the urge to go abroad and study, unlike many of his peers. He was always criticised by his friends for letting go of numerous opportunities to move to the United Sates and make his millions. "I was never interested in joining any company because it offered a higher salary. On many an occasion, I have turned down lucrative offers, if I found that I may not enjoy that work. I have received a lot of flak for this too," he says.Atre's passion for science and technology took him to defence organisation, DRDO, where he was working on developing high speed parallel computers. Texas Instruments beckoned him next and soon followed a 10 year stint at Lucent Technologies where he set up its microelectronics division in 1998. Presently, he is running the show at Applied Materials and is giving solar energy research, a cutting edge.At Applied Materials, he is working in tandem with the Union government on solar energy initiatives. Atre says the National Solar Mission (NSM) will trigger the development of the country's solar market and the domestic business is about to explode.NSM anticipates achieving 20GW grid parity by 2022 and parity with coal-based thermal power by 2030. "The electricity generated from other sources is beginning to become both expensive and polluting. It is in this situation that the solar imperative is both urgent and feasible to enable the country to meet long-term energy needs," says Atre.The mission targets include ramping up capacity of grid-connected solar power generation to 1,000 MW by 2013; and then an additional 3,000 MW by 2017 through the mandatory use of the renewable purchase obligation by utilities backed with a preferential tariff."The importance of this mission is not just limited to providing large-scale grid connected power. It has the potential to provide significant multipliers in transformation of India's rural economy. Already, in its decentralised and distributed applications, solar energy is beginning to light the lives of tens of millions of India's energy-poor citizens. The rapid spread of solar lighting systems, solar water pumps and other solar power-based rural applications can change the face of India's rural economy," Atre elaborates in a recently published report.His passion for his subject of choice is controlled, but there is no missing the steely determination in his eyes. "I always challenged myself differently," he says. "When I had received a low grade in one of the early exams at IIT,I told the tutor to bring down my grades even lower so that I could motivate myself better. The tutor looked stunned at my request, and I proceeded to get a very high grade in the next exam."This man walks to a different beat and it shows.
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