The most-sought after and highly acclaimed TEDx Coimbatore was inaugurated this morning at Hotel Le Meridien. The fifth edition of Tedx Coimbatore saw a brilliant start this morning following a brief introduction by Shankar Vanavarayar, Co-Curator of Tedx Coimbatore.
Several Speakers of various genres enthralled the audience through their engrossing speech. Among them, Dr.K.Vijayakarthikeyan, IAS, Commissioner of Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation and Managing Director of Smart City Project was the first speaker.
Dr. Vijayakarthikeyan is the youngest Corporation Commissioner the city has ever had, he is known for breaking the stereo-types and believes in supporting and galvanizing the citizens towards change.
An interactive session was hosted with Dr.Vijayakarthikeyan by Anusha, Curator of Tedx Coimbatore to get his insights on 'Change' and his Journey from a Doctor to IAS Officer.
Question: You aspired to become a doctor but now you are an IAS officer. How did that happen?
Dr.Vijayakarthikeyan: The journey was not an easy one. Everyone faces civic issues in some form or the other in our daily lives. All people crib about it and point fingers on others.
I din't want to whine about the situation or point fingers at someone. But, I choose to be a part of the change.
Question: At what point you decided to take up IAS?
Dr.Vijayakarthikeyan: It was after my final year of MBBS, a day I was supposed to handle my first patient. At that time, the patient along with his ailment talked to me about the water issues in his ward and that they had a pipeline problem unaddressed. It was at that moment, I realized the calling.
Question: Being a doctor, has it helped you to solve civic issues in anyway?
Dr.Vijayakarthikeyan: Being a doctor helps me a lot. t helps in breaking complex situation into simpler one and solve problems sequentially. And, also it taught me to handle pressure.
Question: What motivates you the most?
Dr.Vijayakarthikeyan: It's the day to day challenges that drives me combined with the ability to learn from my past mistakes.
Question: Your ultimate vision for 'Smart Coimbatore'.
Dr.Vijayakarthikeyan: The grand vision for Smart Coimbatore will be to make things more easier for the citizens. Smart city doesn't mean big infrastructures but its all about providing a easy living, easy commutation to all.
Question: The one idea, which you think can change Coimbatore?
Dr.Vijayakarthikeyan: The one idea which can change the city will be the theme of Tedx 'Merge'. Just one officer, one corporate, one NGO or one individual cannot accomplish big things. Change should be inclusive. Involvement of all citizens will bring the real change, indeed an enduring change!
Lastly, when asked what are the parameters for a happy city? Very optimistically, Dr. Vijayakarthikeyan said, 'Happy Citizens make Happy City'!