BOOK LAUNCHED TO CELEBRATE 60 INDIAN LUMINARIES
By Arun Kumar, New York, 26 September 2007 (IANS)

From freedom fighters Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru to business leaders J.R.D. Tata and Narayana Murthy to singer Kishore Kumar, a new book celebrates 60 extraordinary Indians who have shaped modern India. 'India Extraordinaire, 60 Years, 60 Luminaries' - a special edition of the noted Limca Book of Records was launched here Tuesday by Coca-Cola India to celebrate 60 years of India's independence as part of the IncredibleIndia@60 show.

The 152-page book incorporates the achievements of 60 stalwarts across 13 areas like medical science, literature, entertainment, defence and sports. The list was drawn by H.K. Dua, editor-in-chief of The Tribune and Prof Dipankar Gupta of the Jawaharlal Nehru University. The book was unveiled by Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath and Coca-Cola president and chief operating officer (COO) Muhtar Kent at an event organised in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

"India is a land where people dare to dream and have a story to tell," said Kamal Nath. "As the lines between people, places and preferences begin to blur to include a new global reality, stereotypes about India and Indian culture are beginning to break to form a mosaic of intriguing patterns."

"A new India has taken shape through these 60 years of independence. I salute the hard work of all Indians who have, over these 60 years, helped build a new India," he said.

"The book celebrates the extraordinary achievements of Indians across the globe," said Kent, noting, "India is one of the world's fastest growing economies, but what really defines the country is her indomitable spirit.

"The achievements of the 60 stalwarts captured in this special edition subtly reveal the grandeur of India's 60 glorious years of independence."

Noting that the Coca-Cola shares a long association with India, Kent hoped that India would emerge among the leading soft drink maker's top global markets in the future. To create awareness about the indomitable spirit of Indians and to connect them globally, the new website of Limca Book of Records www.limcabookofrecords.in was also launched by Sunil Bharti Mittal, CII president and chairperson and group CEO of Bharti enterprises.

Some special record holders who have done India proud were felicitated with Nath and Kent presenting them shawls. They included HSBC India CEO Naina Lal Kidwai, Sunil Bharti Mittal, filmmaker Mira Nair, Canadian MP Ruby Dhalla, Pawan Sinha of MIT, fashion designer Ritu Kumar and sand sculptor Sudarshan Patnaik.