APJ Abdul Kalam
We are deeply saddened at the sudden
demise of our former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. Kalam suffered a massive
cardiac arrest during the lecture at IIM, Shillong on Monday. He was delivering
a lecture on ‘Liveable Planet’. Dr Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam rose
from humble origin to become the President. Dr Kalam was born in Rameswaram on
October 15, 1931, to a humble family. He was a bright student, his interest in
flying led to a degree in aeronautical engineering. He came to be known as the Missile
Man of India for his work on the development of ballistic missile and launch
vehicle technology. Dr Kalam was also part of the INCOSPAR committee working
under Vikram Sarabhai, the renowned space scientist. In 1969, Kalam was
transferred to the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) where he was the
project director of India's first Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV-III) which
successfully deployed the Rohini satellite in near-earth orbit in July
1980. Dr Kalam first started work on an
expandable rocket project independently at DRDO in 1965. Kalam served as the Chief
Scientific Adviser to the Prime Minister and the Secretary of the Defence
Research and Development Organization from July 1992 to December 1999. The Pokhran-II
nuclear tests were conducted during this period in which he played an intensive
political and technological role. Media coverage of Dr Kalam during this period
made him the country's best known nuclear scientist. Dr Kalam served as the
Chief Project Coordinator, along with Rajagopala Chidambaram, during the
testing phase. Dr Kalam spent four decades as a scientist and
science administrator at the Defence Research and Development Organisation
(DRDO) and Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).Dr Kalam served as the
11th President of India, succeeding K. R. Narayanan. During his term as president from 2002 to
2007, he was affectionately known as the People's President. In
September 2003 Dr Kalam supported the need of Uniform Civil Code in India,
keeping in view the population of the country. Kalam became a visiting
professor at the Indian Institute of Management Shillong, the Indian Institute
of Management Ahmedabad and the Indian Institute of Management Indore, an
honorary fellow of Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Chancellor of the Indian
Institute of Space Science and Technology Thiruvananthapuram, professor of
Aerospace Engineering at Anna University and an adjunct at many other academic
and research institutions across India. He taught information technology at the
International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad and technology at Banaras
Hindu University and Anna University. In May 2012, Kalam launched a programme
for the youth of India called the What Can I Give Movement, with a
central theme of defeating corruption. He wrote many books. The best seller was
Wings of Fire: An Autobiography by Dr A P J Abdul Kalam. Dr Kalam was
conferred with Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour, in 1997 for his
immense and valuable contribution to country's scientific research and modernization
of defence technology. Kalam was the third President of India to have been
honoured with a Bharat Ratna. He was also awarded the Padma Bhushan. Dr A.P.J. Kalam remained unmarried
throughout his life. Dr
Kalam will be long remembered for his passion, science and innovation and his
contributions which have enabled
scientists, educationists and writers. With a heavy heart we pay our respectful
and deep homage to our great Scientist Dr APJ Abdul Kalam.
