Born in the spiritual town of Nabadwip Dham in West Bengal, Aloknath had the influence of holy men on him from a very young age. Even though his family migrated to Kolkata soon after he turned a year old, Aloknath credits his birthplace for teaching him the lessons of renunciation, finding fulfillment in life, and cherishing it.
Aloknath’s father picked up his LLB degree out of passion while working as a gazetted officer at the Food Corporation of India. Under his tutelage, Aloknath was home-schooled till the age of six. A rigorous man, it was he who built the strong foundation of science and mathematics for Aloknath.
Aloknath recalls, “He was a very disciplined person, and he influenced my love for science. So, taking up science after 10th standard was a very natural choice.” Aloknath went to a proper school only when he was in the 2nd standard. While home-schooling provided him with the basic skills, he gained ‘interactive intelligence’ only after he went to school.
Aloknath says, “I realised that natural intelligence, or the ability to react in a situation, comes only when you interact and talk with more and more people. The more you converse, the more you grow.”
Aloknath’s mother, a homemaker, has always been soft-natured. She is an epitome of love and affection. This fusion of hard and soft behaviour of parents is what Aloknath tries to maintain in his own life as well, even today. In fact, his leadership mantra is: “Be Hard on Goal, Be Soft on Soul.”
Diligent from childhood, it was quite natural for Aloknath to be a topper in his school. But by the time he was in 6th standard, a sense of restlessness loomed over him. “It gave me a feeling of accomplishment in the beginning, but then it made me feel as if I was not being challenged enough.” This notion of not ever getting too comfortable in something was a lesson that has driven Aloknath all through his life.
On the lookout for more competition to raise his accomplishment bar, Aloknath decided to appear for a Central government merit scholarship programme, which allowed him to study in a residential school of his choice. And he got admission in Ramakrishna Mission (RKM) Residential School in Purulia—a district 250km away from Kolkata.
Though he had the option to choose a school in Kolkata and stay near his family, Aloknath decided not to base his choice on emotions, and rather grab the opportunity to live and operate independently. The pangs of separation from his parents and siblings struck him in the initial phase. But Aloknath knew that he was accountable for the decision that he had taken and that he had to stick to it—a lesson that he would recall again, years later.
Although his father was a strong influence in his life, it was his monk headmaster at RKM whom Aloknath regards as his role model. “He was a man of such purity. He had mastery over multiple languages. Once I was writing an essay about the river Ganges. I showed him the first draft and he helped me make it better—his knowledge was profound. I would say it was the best piece in Bengali that I have ever written.”
It is not surprising that science and math were his favourite subjects. But Aloknath was not excellent in academics alone, he also took active part in school debates, elocutions, recitation competitions, and so on. He even appeared on numerous TV debate shows broadcast by Doordarshan.
A rational thinker since childhood, Aloknath quickly figured out that his heart lay in engineering. When he was in the 11th standard, he decided to share this with his father, who was then disappointed with his decision. “My father wanted to be a doctor, but it was not possible due to financial constraints. He was hoping that I would become a physician, but I chose engineering. I remember it was a long-drawn evening discussion with my father and uncle. They tried very hard to change my mind.”
Aloknath did not budge from his goal and readied himself to prepare for the next chapter in his life.
A large chunk of Aloknath’s future plans began taking shape in his undergraduate years that he spent at IIT Kharagpur. While studying Electronics and Communication Engineering (ECE), he remained a high-achiever here too. Having done his secondary education in a Bengali-medium school, the fluency with which some students at IIT spoke English alarmed him. But he did not let it intimidate him. He remained headstrong and mastered the language pretty soon.
At an institute of IIT’s stature—where the brightest minds of the country came to make their dreams come true—Aloknath found there were many who were just as meritorious as him. But he took it as a blessing in disguise, as he was always looking for a more competitive space where his limits could be tested, and his mind could expand.
Aloknath says, “It’s important to accept that some people are better than you at something and it’s absolutely okay to be not as good as them. But what is important is to bring yourself to a minimum threshold level on attributes that matter in life and excel in a few dimensions.”
As his world-view expanded and he met more people, Aloknath found his calling—telecommunications—at IIT Kharagpur a fascinating field indeed! “I saw the power of communications and how it helped people stay connected remotely. I saw how it could compete with transportation and thought it was revolutionary.”
The realisation didn’t occur overnight, though. He spent months and months reading books and magazines, listening to radio, and talking to people to soak in as much information as possible and then come to this conclusion. “Inquisitiveness to explore makes a big difference. When you keep your queries alive, one fine morning you’ll come across some information that makes you pause. And you take a moment to think about it and ask further questions. It is in this process of asking and answering these questions that you realise what you are drawn to.”
A three-step process Aloknath likes to follow for his goal is ABC of Achievement: Align (your thoughts), Beam (your energy), and Collaborate (your ecosystem). As he began the seeding for his future roles, he realised how telecommunication systems could be built with hardware and then-new software elements. He also started appreciating how engineering deployment could complement technological innovations.
The unpredictability of life is enthralling. It makes you do things you never intended to, and gives you results you never expected. Although Aloknath had planned to pursue his master’s degree after IIT and even got admission to a US university, a financial crisis forced him to start working right after his graduation in 1985. Yet, he did not let this setback derail him from his plans.
Thankfully for Aloknath, he found his way to Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL). In an era when MNCs did not rule the subcontinent, PSUs were the dream job of many, and Aloknath was no different.
But, while joining BEL, he knew what his ultimate goal was—to learn telecommunication systems as much as he could.
At BEL, he was part of a team that built a low-flying target detection radar, which was the first indigenously built radar system: INDRA 1. Till date, INDRA series of radars are deployed on the borders of India.
His role in BEL, Sahibabad needed him to travel a lot to the headquarters in Bangalore (now Bengaluru). He made it a rule to take a different route during each of his trips. This was his way of having fun and exploring the country while working. As he travelled the length and breadth of India, Aloknath’s mantra to always go out of his comfort zone found more strength. “Even today, whenever I see that I’m getting too comfortable, I try to find new things to do that make me uncomfortable for a while.”
But going out of your comfort zone can be scary besides being uncomfortable. How did he tackle that? He says, “The trick is to keep yourself anchored 50% in comfort and unsettle the rest. Going completely out of your comfort zone makes it probably very risky. Bring stability from the comfort zone, and growth from outside the comfort zone.”
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