Professor STH Abidi - A flood of Pleasant Memories

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Professor Abidi was the first member of our Physics Faculty I met with, as soon as I joined IIT KGP on May 1st 1965 (May Day was not a holiday then).

After giving my Joining Report, I was in the Physics Office to get to know  my duties.

And a fair, thin, handsome, spectacled gent of medium height arrived there to check his mails. 

And our Office Secretary, Sri Dulal Ghoshal, introduced him to me as Professor Abidi from Lucknow.

After shaking hands, Professor Abidi led me to the Co-Operative Canteen (then housed under the Netaji Auditorium) for the customary celebratory cup of tea.

There I found half a dozen of my future colleagues under the mango tree outside the Canteen; some standing, some sitting...all immersed in a group discussion of a paradox relating to the Archimedes Principle. 

That was a strange sight to me. I never saw any such thing at my university.

Professor Abidi introduced me to the group; and I came to know that it is the 'Canteen Physics Society' chaired unofficially by Professor Mohinder Singh Sikand.

And for the next 30 years till Professor Sikand retired, Professor Abidi and I were fixtures there. Just listening in would teach me the physics that is not easily found in books.

Pretty soon, I found that Professor Abidi was blessed with a charming personality. I never saw a frown on his face.

His lectures were most popular. Whether the class had 12 students or 120, he held them all spellbound. He was a most willing teacher. I guess during his 40 years there he must have taught all physics courses at all levels, except perhaps Electronics.

Professor Abidi was a silver-tongued orator. In every Farewell Function of the Department, he would be the lead-speaker, starting his speech with an Urdu Couplet composed by himself.

He was a born leader of men. When, in 1990, six of us were assigned to teach an inaugural Quantum Mechanics Course for the six  B Tech Sections, we elected Professor Abidi unanimously as our Course Coordinator for the next 3 years.

When the Old Building was renovated and turned into the Nehru Museum of Science and Technology, Professor Abidi was picked up as its Chairman. With Professor Mandakini Majumdar as the Secretary, the Museum  sparkled within a year. Numerous Working Models got housed in each and every room of that building. And a Steam Loco was brought from SE Railways as a gift. Also a Hunter plane from the Air Force Station in Kalaikunda. I specially loved an outdoor exhibit of two swings acting as Coupled Pendulums.

Monthly Exhibitions and Contests were held in which the Campus Community delighted.

Professor Abidi and Professor Mandakini Majumdar did me the greatest honor by publishing a writeup I had made for Professor GS Sanyal as the first Publication of NMST.

Professor Abidi had laudable administrative skills. Together with the legendary Professor Bhola Avasthi, his neighbor, Professor Abidi acted as Warden of several Halls of Residence. He had a way with students.

At one time the Technology Students Gymkhana used to publish two prestigious periodicals, Alankar (English) and वातायन (Hindi). I found Professor Abidi's articles and poems there once in a while.

Professor Abidi had amazing social skills. On every Diwali he would visit his friends' homes along with his wife (herself a published Urdu poet). And their friends would reciprocate their visits on every Eid. Once, Professor RS Saraswat took me to Professor Abidi's Quarters where we were fed sumptuously.

Professor Abidi's sense of humor is memorable.

Once, he was returning from the Canteen while I was heading there. He stopped me and asked me this question:

"Professor Sastry! One who has read four Vedas is called 'Chaturvedi'. Three Vedas 'Trivedi'. Two Vedas 'Dwivedi'. What about one who read zero Vedas?"

I said I didn't know. And he revealed his answer:

"A-bedi (Abidi STH)"

And then I asked him:

"What about the one who read only one Veda?"

He said he couldn't guess.

And I gave my impromptu answer:

"Bedi (Bhishen Singh)"

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