I opened my eyes in the laps of lofty mountains of Himalayas and Karakorum where life demands industrious efforts and

the inhabitants are vulnerable to several natural perils. Living in this kind of tough region has shaped me as a courageous person with moral higher than the Himalayas itself. It has taught me to pursue my dreams and aims with hard work and smart actions. There was only one Government School in my village with inadequate standard of education. Fortunately, my father, despite of being illiterate, had the vision of sending me to the nearest town of Skardu for a better education. In pursuit of quality education, I left my home and family which deprived me from maternal love and essence of family and life for me became much harder. But with the passage of time, I was able to turn this into a learning experience and every day became a stepping stone towards personality development and self improvement. This created inside me a person with resolute will, sense of self reliance and responsibility and strong emotional stability. I acquired the power of making decision, differentiate between right and wrong and chose the path best suited for me. Self management and less dependence on others make me a tough person ready to confront any kind of challenge. In our schools the general practice of study was to remember things by heart and when asked in the exams, answer it as you have learned it by heart. I improvised a different technique of study focusing on developing concepts and most important of all, trying to apply my knowledge in practical life. Here, I would like to narrate a small incident in my life. While I was in 9th grade, our chemistry teacher taught about electrolysis which is chemical process using electricity. The first thing I did after that lecture was an experiment. I took some discarded dry cells and pulled the carbon rods out of them. Put them into a glass of saline water and connected them to fresh

batteries. Voila, I made an electrolytic cell with gases fuming at the carbon rods. Every one told me, You are a scientist. And that was me, experimenting and testing things. I got an opportunity to participate in the National Mathematics Olympiad held at Abdus Salam School of Mathematical Sciences, GCU Lahore in 2006. I proved my mathematical aptitude by securing third position in this nationwide contest. Though my family background and economic conditions did not allow me for higher education, going for an engineering program was only possible because of the generous donation from the Government of Japan. I received scholarship from Higher Education Commission of Pakistan through a program funded by the Japanese International Cooperation Agency. This scholarship covered all my expenses including tuition fees, boarding and messing for the whole 4 years of my undergraduate studies. In university, my focus was mainly on academics to achieve professional excellence. Here was what I was actually looking for. To conceive natural phenomenon, translate into mathematical language, manipulate and create wonders. I learned the scientific methods that defy gravity, push heavy structure through the air and put tons of metals into air and beyond. I studied the basic principles of fluid flow and methods to analyze flow and predict flow patterns. The fluid mechanics courses gave me fair understanding of fluid statics and dynamics and different kinds of flow (e.g. compressible, incompressible, internal, external, isentropic, adiabatic, flow through variable areas and convergent-divergent nozzles etc. I have the essential background and competence for knowhow and analysis on thermodynamic concepts, laws and their applications to various systems in conjunction with the understanding of gas laws, equations of states, entropy, reversible and irreversible processes and power cycles. I had a course in turbomachinery which covered the mechanics and thermodynamics of the

moving parts in turbomachines that include stage dynamics and characteristic performance of turbine and compressors. In structural mechanics courses, I have studied mechanics of materials, structural analysis, mechanical vibrations and aeroelasticity along with finite element methods used for structural analysis. Besides the theoretical knowledge, I had courses which gave me hand on experience of solving engineering problems using the commercially available computational software (ANSYS and FLUENT) along with experimental techniques used in fluid mechanics and structural analysis. I had an appointment letter in my hand couple of months before I graduated. Working at the National Space Agency of Pakistan, I have to apply my knowledge of structural mechanics and manufacturing technology to design, analyze, fabricate and test mechanical components of satellite and equipments for space applications. My responsibilities include use of commercially available CAD/CAE/Computational software such as Pro Engineer, NASTRAN/PATRAN, ANSYS, etc. for 3D modeling, FEA modeling and structural analysis. The purpose of structural analysis is to verify the design for strength and stiffness to avoid detrimental deformations and catastrophic failure because of inertial loads and mechanical vibrations. Working among the most talented engineers and scientists of the nation, it is a great opportunity for professional development, sharing technical knowledge, learning work ethics and boosting team spirit. Apart from job, living in Lahore, the cultural capital of Pakistan, is a great experience because it provides a lot of social interactions through which my interpersonal and communication skills have improved significantly. In my life, I had few chances to interact with foreigners. Some I have met while flying from Islamabad to Skardu and some at Alliance Franaise de Lahore, a French cultural centre in Lahore. These interactions told me that what the terms of engagement among nations at

diplomatic level is, when it comes to common people, there is only one thing that we are human being with a sense of mutual respect and honor. And the bond of humanity penetrates the barb wire across borders despite difference in religion, culture and race. Well thats my story so far and now I plan to engage myself in scientific research in the field of hydropower and wind energy. To become a researcher has been my dream since childhood and what a better place can one find than a university for research. I plan to be part of the teaching faculty of a university and conduct research projects with students. In the long run, I envision to establishing a department exclusively dedicated for research and development in the area of renewable energy techniques. I will bring various departments together at a single platform in order to broaden the horizons of renewable energy. In order to materialize the above mentioned plan, I need to enhance my understandings of fluid mechanics and foster my skills in use of the state-of-the-art computational and experimental techniques used in this field. A graduate program form a renowned US university will bring me up to this level and this will be another step towards my ultimate goal of playing a vital role in steering Pakistan out of the current energy crisis which is denting the socioeconomic growth of the underdeveloped nation.