Bereaved father wins 12-yr-long battle with courier firm

Scientist who fought against intl firm that botched up a courier containing his sons remains speaks of how his son inspired him to emulate Dr Abdul Kalam and how the expresident nudged him on Inspiration can be found in the most unexpected and unkind of circumstances and from the most unlikely of people Be it a parable from the man who was president of India or innocent curious words uttered by a dying son or a 12yearlong battle to set right the wrongsu00a0 Inspiration Prof K Venkat Rao a former ISRO scientist with Dr APJ Abdul Kalam 1 A hardwon battle Four days ago the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission NCDRC passed the verdict in an exceptional case It ordered the international courier firm FedEx to compensate K Venkat Rao a former ISRO scientist to the tune of Rs 55 lakh because it failed to deliver or return his dead sons remains after undertaking the responsibility Om Prakash Prof Raos son who died due to a rare neurological disorder on May 10 2000The son Om Prakash was a little over 16 when he passed away on May 10 2000 due to a rare neurological disorder that no expert has yet been able to pin down Rao could not rest till he found out what had gone wrong So he decided to courier his sons organs to scientists in the US for research Professor Rao head of department of aeronautics and civil at an engineering college in Coimbatore told MiD DAY After several inconclusive diagnoses in Thiruvananthapuram and negative responses from experts in the US UK and Japan Oms condition deteriorated He slipped into a coma on May 7 2010 and three days later he passed awayAn autopsy was conducted and Oms lungs brain blood and cerebral fluid were preserved by the hospital Haunted by the question of what claimed his sons life Rao decided to donate his sons brain and lungs for comprehensive research to find out what was wrong with himu00a0 As a father I wished to see him living through others So we proposed to donate all his vital organs to the deserving humanity and medical fraternity Our aim as parents was also for the scientists to diagnose the root cause of this rare ailment he saidDr Bruce H Cohen in the US showed his interest to undertake the research His associate Dr Steven J Zullo advised Rao to send his sons organ samples through FedEx Rao contacted the FedEx office in Kerala He was told that for the special packaging of the organs with dry ice he would have to visit Mumbai On June 23 2000 Rao visited the international airport in Mumbai with the required permissions Rao alleged that FedEx not only refused to fly the organs they would not even resend the package to Thiruvananthapuram The aggrieved father filed a case in the consumer court in Kerala It was set aside He then approached the consumer disputes redressal commission NCDRC where the judgment awarding him the compensation was finally passed Though Rao is satisfied with the judgment he has decided to challenge the order in the Supreme Court My intention is to ensure that a stringent message is sent through the Om Prakash case and it is used as a reference in future Our only aim was to know the reason that led to our sons death but we were deprived of this on account of FedExHe added It has been 12 years since my son passed away and we are still waiting to know the reason for his death I had been to the US in 2010 to touch base with Dr Zullo but after writing numerous mails I could not meet him or get any response2 His sons fatherRaos distressing story would have ended here with an epilogue of Raos pursuit of the case in the apex court Except that a few lines from his son and later a few more from APJ Abdul Kalam scientist visionary president and for Rao a confidante and counsel scripted the beginning of another chapter in his life Rao recalls In his last days my son asked me Daddy they say great things about Dr Abdul Kalam You say you have worked with him for some years Can you not be more like himI didnt know it then but that was my first inspiration I replied to my son I can But I have a family so my dedication to work is limited To be like Dr Kalam I have to put in extra time long hard hours and I hope to do it shortlyHe must have sensed my aspiration For to pave the way for me so his own great ambition could be fulfilled he left us when he was a tender 16 so I could put in those long hours and follow in the footsteps of Dr Kalam to do something for the society especially for the student community3 Presidents parallel In the summer of 2000 Rao visited Dr Kalam in New Delhi He told his former colleague the dialogue between him and his son Rao recalls Kalam as saying Rao you had a great son While you had wonderful things planned for him he wanted you to achieve greater things Do whatever you can to fulfil his ambitionTo give me solace Dr Kalam said Sometimes life is sour some fruits fall from the tree when they are not even fully ripe But thats nature No one can fight it or blame it But because of this parting does the tree get sad and fail to bear sweet fruit No it continues to give more That is the essence of life Sour and sweet are alternate phenomena That was my second inspiration to put in those extra hours to take up teaching and at all possible occasions to inspire students of all ages My son would always ask me why I couldnt be more like Abdul Kalam Today I think I am somewhere close to that I have chosen to serve a rural institution Oh my son let your plan and my action fulfill your ambition for me and I know you are always looking down on me smilingRao a professor in Rural Thiruvananthapuram now is helping students of all ages to achieve what they want