A.P.J. Abul Kalam _ Missile Scientist of India _ Former President of India ( ए पी जे अबुल कलाम )
Personal life
Religious and spiritual views
Islam : The Religion :
Syncretism :
Pramukh Swami as
Guru :
Writings :
Educational and
scientific institutions
Island
Other awards and
honours
References :
Avul Pakir
Jainul abeden "A. P. J." Abdul Kalam ( 15
October 1931 – 27 July 2015) was the 11th President
of India from 2002 to 2007. A
career scientist turned politician, Kalam was born and raised in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu, and studied physics and aerospace engineering. He spent
the next four decades as a scientist and science administrator, mainly at the Defence
Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Space
Research Organisation (ISRO) and was
intimately involved in India's civilian space programme and military missile development
efforts. He thus came to be known as the Missile Man of Indiafor his
work on the development of ballistic missile and launch vehicle technology. He also played a pivotal
organisational, technical, and political role in India's Pokhran-II nuclear tests in 1998, the first since
the original nuclear
test by India in 1974.
Kalam was elected as
the 11th President of India in 2002 with the support of both the ruling Bharatiya Janata
Party and the
then-opposition Indian National
Congress. Widely referred to
as the "People's President," he returned to his civilian life of
education, writing and public service after a single term. He was a recipient
of several prestigious awards, including the Bharat Ratna, India's highest
civilian honour.
While delivering a
lecture at the Indian Institute of Management Shillong, Kalam collapsed and
died from an apparent cardiac arrest on 27 July 2015, aged 83. Thousands including national-level dignitaries
attended the funeral ceremony held in his hometown of Rameshwaram, where he was
buried with full state honours.
Early Life &
Education :
Avul Pakir
Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam was born on 15 October 1931 to a Tamil Muslim family in the
pilgrimage centre of Rameswaram on Pamban Island, then in the Madras Presidency and now in the State of Tamil Nadu. His
father Jainulabudeen was a boat owner and imam of a local mosque;
his mother Ashiamma was a
housewife. His father owned a ferry that
tookHindu pilgrims back and
forth between Rameswaram and
the now uninhabited Dhanushkodi. Kalam
was the youngest of four brothers and one sister in
his family. His ancestors had been wealthy
traders and landowners, with numerous properties and large tracts of land. Their
business had involved trading groceries between the mainland and the island and
to and from Sri Lanka, as well as
ferrying pilgrims between the mainland and Pamban. As a result, the family
acquired the title of "Mara Kalam iyakkivar" (wooden boat steerers),
which over the years became shortened to "Marakier." With the opening
of the Pamban Bridge to the mainland in 1914, however, the
businesses failed and the family fortune and properties were lost over time,
apart from the ancestral home. By his early childhood, Kalam's
family had become poor; at an early age, he sold newspapers to supplement his
family's income.
In his school years,
Kalam had average grades but was described as a bright and hardworking student
who had a strong desire to learn. He spent hours on his studies, especially
mathematics. After completing
his education at the Schwartz Higher Secondary School, Ramanathapuram, Kalam
went on to attend Saint Joseph's
College, Tiruchirappalli, then affiliated
with the University of Madras, from where he
graduated in physics in 1954. He
moved to Madras in 1955 to study
aerospace engineering in Madras Institute of
Technology. While
Kalam was working on a senior class project, the Dean was dissatisfied with his
lack of progress and threatened to revoke his scholarship unless the project
was finished within the next three days. Kalam met the deadline, impressing the
Dean, who later said to him, "I was putting you under stress and asking
you to meet a difficult deadline". He
narrowly missed achieving his dream of becoming a fighter pilot, as he placed
ninth in qualifiers, and only eight positions were available in the IAF.
Career As A Missile
Scientist :
After graduating from the Madras Institute of Technology in 1960, Kalam
joined the Aeronautical Development
Establishment of the Defence Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO) as a scientist. He started his career by
designing a smallhovercraft, but remained unconvinced by his choice of a job at DRDO. Kalam
was also part of the INCOSPAR committeeworking under Vikram Sarabhai,
the renowned space scientist. In
1969, Kalam was transferred to the Indian Space Research Organisation (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; Kalam had first started work on an expandable rocket project
independently at DRDO in 1965. In
1969, Kalam received the government's approval and expanded the programme to
include more engineers.
In 1963 to 1964, he visited NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia; Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland; and Wallops Flight Facility. Between the 1970s and 1990s, Kalam made an effort to
develop the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle(PSLV) and SLV-III
projects, both of which proved to be successful.
Kalam was invited by Raja Ramanna to witness the country's first nuclear test Smiling Buddha as the representative of TBRL, even though he had
not participated in its development. In the 1970s, Kalam also directed two
projects, Project Devil and Project Valiant, which sought to develop ballistic missiles from the technology of the
successful SLV programme. Despite the disapproval of the Union Cabinet, Prime
Minister Indira Gandhi allotted secret funds for these
aerospace projects through her discretionary powers under Kalam's
directorship. Kalam played an
integral role convincing the Union Cabinet to conceal the true nature of these
classified aerospace projects. His research and educational leadership brought him great laurels
and prestige in the 1980s, which prompted the government to initiate an
advanced missile programme under his directorship. Kalam
and Dr V S Arunachalam, metallurgist and scientific
adviser to the Defence Minister, worked on the suggestion by the then Defence
Minister, R. Venkataraman on a proposal for simultaneous development of a quiver of
missiles instead of taking planned missiles one after another. R Venkatraman was instrumental in
getting the cabinet approval for allocating 388 crores for the mission,
named Integrated Guided Missile
Development Programme (IGMDP) and
appointed Kalam as the chief executive.
Kalam played a major part
in developing many missiles under the mission including Agni, an intermediate
range ballistic missile and Prithvi,
the tactical surface-to-surface missile, although the projects have been
criticised for mismanagement and cost and time overruns.
Kalam served as the Chief Scientific Adviser to the Prime
Minister and the Secretary of the Defence Research and Development
Organisation 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. Kalam served as the Chief Project
Coordinator, along with Rajagopala Chidambaram, during the testing phase. Media coverage of Kalam during this period made him the country's
best known nuclear scientist. However, the director of the site test, K
Santhanam, said that the thermonuclear bomb had been a "fizzle" and
criticisied Kalam for issuing an incorrect report. Both Kalam and Chidambaram
dismissed the claims.
In 1998, along with cardiologist Soma Raju, Kalam developed a low cost coronary stent, named the "Kalam-Raju Stent". In 2012, the duo designed a
rugged tablet computer for health care in rural areas, which was named the
"Kalam-Raju Tablet".
Presidency :
Kalam served as the 11th President of India, succeeding K. R. Narayanan. He won the 2002 presidential election with an
electoral vote of 922,884, surpassing the 107,366 votes won by Lakshmi Sahgal. His term lasted from 25 July 2002 to 25 July 2007.
On 10 June 2002, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) which
was in power at the time, expressed that they would nominate Kalam for the post
of President, and both
the Samajwadi Party and the Nationalist Congress Party backed his
candidacy. After the
Samajwadi Party announced its support for Kalam, Narayanan chose not to seek a
second term in office, leaving the field clear. Kalam said of the announcement of his
candidature:
I am really
overwhelmed. Everywhere both in Internet and in other media, I have been asked
for a message. I was thinking what message I can give to the people of the
country at this juncture.
On 18 June, Kalam filed his nomination papers in the Indian Parliament, accompanied by Vajpayee and his senior Cabinet colleagues.
Kalam along
with Vladimir Putin and Manmohan Singh during his presidency
The polling for the presidential election began on 15 July 2002 in
Parliament and the state assemblies, with the media claiming that the election
was a one-sided affair and Kalam's victory was a foregone conclusion; the count
was held on 18 July. Kalam became the 11th president of the
Republic of India in an easy victory, and moved into the Rashtrapati Bhavan after he was sworn in
on 25 July. Kalam was
the third President of India to have been honoured with a Bharat Ratna, India's
highest civilian honour, before becoming the President. Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1954)
and Dr Zakir Hussain (1963) were the
earlier recipients of Bharat Ratna who later became the President of India. He was also the first scientist
and the first bachelor to occupy Rashtrapati Bhawan.
During his term as president, he was affectionately known as the People's
President, saying that signing the Office of Profit Billwas the toughest decision he had taken during his tenure. Kalam was criticised for his inaction in deciding the fate of 20
out of the 21 mercy petitions submitted to him during his tenure. Article
72 of the Constitution of India empowers the President of India to grant pardons, and suspend or
commute the death sentence of convicts on death row. Kalam acted on only one mercy
plea in his five-year tenure as president, rejecting the plea of rapist
Dhananjoy Chatterjee, who was later hanged. n Perhaps the most notable plea was from Afzal Guru,
a Kashmiri terrorist who was convicted of conspiracy in the December 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament and was
sentenced to death by the Supreme Court of India in 2004. While
the sentence was scheduled to be carried out on 20 October 2006, the pending
action on his mercy plea resulted in him remaining on death row. He also took the controversial
decision to impose President's Rule in Bihar in 2005.
In September 2003, in an interactive session in PGI Chandigarh, Kalam supported the need of Uniform Civil Code in India, keeping in view the population of the country.
At the end of his term, on 20 June 2007, Kalam expressed his
willingness to consider a second term in office provided there was certainty
about his victory in the 2007 presidential election. However, two days later, he decided not to
contest the Presidential election again stating that he wanted to avoid
involving Rashtrapati Bhavan from any political
processes. He did not have the support of the left
parties, Shiv Sena and UPA constituents, to receive a renewed mandate.
Nearing the expiry of the term of the 12th President Pratibha Patil on
24 July 2012, media reports in April claimed that Kalam was likely to be
nominated for his second term. After
the reports, social networking sites witnessed a number of people supporting his candidature. The BJP potentially backed his nomination,
saying that the party would lend their support if the Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party and Indian
National Congress proposed him for the 2012 presidential election. A month ahead of the
election, Mulayam Singh Yadav and Mamata Banerjee also
expressed their support for Kalam. Days
afterwards, Mulayam Singh Yadav backed out, leaving Mamata Banerjee as the
solitary supporter. On 18 June 2012, Kalam declined to contest the
2012 presidential poll. He said of his decision not to do so:
Many, many citizens
have also expressed the same wish. It only reflects their love and affection
for me and the aspiration of the people. I am really overwhelmed by this
support. This being their wish, I respect it. I want to thank them for the
trust they have in me.
Post-Presidency :
After leaving
office, 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 theInternational
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.
In 2011, Kalam was
criticised by civil groups over his stand on the Koodankulam
Nuclear Power Plant; he supported the establishment of the nuclear
power plant and was accused of not speaking with the local people. The protesters were hostile to his
visit as they perceived to him to be a pro-nuclear scientist and were
unimpressed by the assurances provided by him regarding the safety features of
the plant.
Death :
On 27 July 2015, Kalam travelled to Shillong to deliver a lecture on
"Creating a Livable Planet Earth" at the Indian Institute of Management Shillong. While climbing a
flight of stairs, he experienced some discomfort, but was able to enter the
auditorium after a brief rest. At around 6:35 p.m. IST, only five minutes
into his lecture, he collapsed. He was rushed to the nearby Bethany
Hospital in a critical condition; upon arrival, he lacked a pulse or any other
signs of life. Despite
being placed in the intensive care unit, Kalam was
confirmed dead of a sudden cardiac arrest at 7:45
p.m IST. His last words, to his aide Srijan Pal Singh, were reportedly: "Funny
guy! Are you doing well?
Following his death, Kalam's body was airlifted in an Indian Air Force helicopter
from Shillong to Guwahati, from where it was flown to New Delhi on the morning
of 28 July in an air force C-130J Hercules. The flight landed at Palam Air Base
that afternoon and was received by the President, the Prime Minister, Chief
Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal,
and the three service chiefs of the Indian Armed Forces, who laid wreaths
on Kalam's body.[90] His body was
then placed on a gun carriage draped with the Indian flag and taken to his
Delhi residence at 10 Rajaji Marg; there, the public and numerous dignitaries
paid homage, including former prime minister Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi and
Vice-President Rahul Gandhi, and Uttar Pradesh
Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav.
On the morning of 29 July, Kalam's body, wrapped in the Indian flag,
was taken to Palam Air Base and flown to Madurai in an air
force C-130J aircraft, arriving at Madurai Airport that
afternoon. His body was received at the airport by the three service chiefs and
national and state dignitaries, including cabinet ministers Manohar Parrikar, Venkaiah Naidu, Pon Radhakrishnan and the governors of
Tamil Nadu and Meghalaya, K Rosaiah and V. Shanmuganathan. After a brief
ceremony, Kalam's body was flown by air force helicopter to the town of Mandapam, from where it was taken in an army
truck to his hometown of Rameswaram. Upon arriving at Rameswaram, his body was
displayed in an open area in front of the local bus station to allow the public
to pay their final respects until 8 p.m. that evening.
On 30 July 2015, the former President was laid to rest at Rameswaram's Pei Karumbu Ground with full
state honours. Over 350,000 people attended the last rites, including the Prime
Minister, the governor of Tamil Nadu and the chief ministers of Karnataka,
Kerala and Andhra Pradesh.
India reacted to Kalam's death with an outpouring of grief; numerous
tributes were paid to the former President across the nation and on social
media.[96] The Government
of India declared a seven-day state mourning period as a
mark of respect President Pranab Mukherjee, Vice-President Hamid Ansari, Home
Minister Rajnath Singh, and
other leaders condoled the former President's demise. Prime
Minister Narendra Modi said
"[Dr. Kalam's] death is a great loss to the scientific community. He took
India to great heights. He showed the way." Former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, who
had served as prime minister under Kalam, said, "our country has lost a
great human being who made phenomenal contributions to the promotion of self
reliance in defence technologies. I worked very closely with Dr. Kalam as prime
minister and I greatly benefited from his advice as president of our country.
His life and work will be remembered for generations to come." ISRO chairman A. S. Kiran Kumar called his
former colleague "a great personality and a gentleman", while former
chairman G. Madhavan Nair described
Kalam as "a global leader" for whom "the downtrodden and poor
people were his priority. He always had a passion to convey what is in his mind
to the young generation", adding that his death left a vacuum which none
could fill.
South Asian leaders
expressed condolences and lauded the late statesman. The Bhutanese government
ordered the country's flags to fly at half-staff to mourn Kalam's death, and
lit 1000 butter lamps in homage. Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay expressed deep sadness,
saying Kalam "was a leader greatly admired by all people, especially the
youth of India who have referred to him as the people's President".
Bangladesh Prime
Minister Sheikh Hasina described
Kalam as "a rare combination of a great statesman, acclaimed scientist,
and a source of inspiration to the young generation of South Asia" and
termed his death an "irreparable loss to India and beyond". Bangladesh
Nationalist Party chief Khaleda Zia said "as a nuclear
scientist, he engaged himself in the welfare of the people". Ashraf Ghani, the President of
Afghanistan, called Kalam
"an inspirational figure to millions of people," noting that "we
have a lot to learn from his life". Nepalese Prime Minister Sushil Koirala recalled Kalam's
scientific contributions to India: "Nepal has lost a good friend and I
have lost an honoured and ideal personality." The President of
Pakistan, Mamnoon Hussain, and Prime Minister of
Pakistan Nawaz Sharif also expressed
their grief and condolences on his death.The President of Sri
Lanka, Maithripala Sirisena,
also expressed his condolences. "Dr. Kalam was a man of firm conviction
and indomitable spirit, and I saw him as an outstanding statesman of the world.
His death is an irreparable loss not only to India but to the entire
world." Maldivian
President Abdulla Yameen and
Vice-President Ahmed Adheeb condoled Kalam's death, with Yameen naming him as a
close friend of the Maldives who would continue to be an inspiration to Indians
and generations of South Asians. Former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom,
who had made an official visit to India during Kalam's presidency, termed his
demise as a great loss to all of humankind. The Commander-in-Chief of the Myanmar Armed Forces, Senior
General Min Aung Hlaing, expressed
condolences on behalf of the Myanmar government.The Dalai Lama expressed his
sadness and offered condolences and prayers, calling Kalam's death "an
irreparable loss".
Kathleen Wynne, the Premier of Ontario, which Kalam had
visited on numerous occasions, expressed "deepest condolences ... as a
respected scientist, he played a critical role in the development of the Indian
space programme. As a committed educator, he inspired millions of young people
to achieve their very best. And as a devoted leader, he gained support both at
home and abroad, becoming known as 'the people's President'. I join our
Indo–Canadian families, friends, and neighbours in mourning the passing of this
respected leader." United States President Barack Obama extended
"deepest condolences to the people of India on the passing of former
Indian President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam", and highlighted his achievements as
a scientist and as a statesman, notably his role in strengthening US–India relations and increasing
space co-operation between the two nations. "Suitably named 'the People's
President', Dr. Kalam's humility and dedication to public service served as an
inspiration to millions of Indians and admirers around the world. Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed
sincere condolences and conveyed his sympathy and support "to the near and
dear ones of the deceased leader, to the government, and entire people of
India". He remarked on Kalam's outstanding "personal contribution to
the social, economic, scientific, and technical progress of India and in
ensuring its national security," adding that Dr Kalam would be remembered
as a "consistent exponent of closer friendly relations between our
nations, who has done a lot for cementing mutually beneficial Russian–Indian
cooperation." Other
international leaders—including former Indonesian president Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, President of
the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Khalifa bin
Zayed Al Nahyan, and Vice-President
and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and emir of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin
Rashid Al Maktoum—also paid tribute
to Kalam. In a
special gesture, Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon visited
the Permanent Mission of
India to the UN and signed a
condolence book. "The outpouring of grief around the world is a testament
of the respect and inspiration he has garnered during and after his presidency.
The UN joins the people of India in sending our deepest condolences for this
great statesman. May he rest in peace and eternity", Ban wrote in his
message.
Personal life
Kalam was the
youngest of five siblings, the eldest of
whom was a sister, Asim Zohra (d. 1997), followed by three elder brothers:
Mohammed Muthu Meera Lebbai Maraikayar (b. 1916; aged 99), Mustafa Kamal (d.
1999) and Kasim Mohammed (d. 1995).
He was extremely
close to his elder siblings and their extended families throughout his life,
and would regularly send small sums of money to his older relations, Himself
remaining a lifelong Bachelor.
Kalam was noted for
his integrity and his simple lifestyle. He never owned a
television, and was in the habit of rising at 6:30 or 7 a.m and sleeping by 2
a.m. His few personal
possessions included his books, his veena, some articles of
clothing, a CD player and a laptop; at his death, he left no will, and his
possessions went to his eldest brother, who survived him.
In the 2011 Hindi
film I Am Kalam, Kalam is portrayed
as a positive influence on a poor but bright Rajasthani boy named Chhotu, who renames himself
Kalam in honour of his idol.
Religious and spiritual views
Religion and
spirituality were very important to Kalam throughout his life. In
fact, he made his own spiritual journey the subject of his final book, Transcendence: My Spiritual
Experiences with Pramukh Swamiji.
Islam : The Religion :
A proud and
practising Muslim, daily namāz and fasting during Ramadan were integral to
Kalam's life. His father, the imam of a mosque in his hometown of
Rameswaram, had strictly instilled these Islamic customs in his children. His
father had also impressed upon the young Kalam the value of interfaith respect
and dialogue. As Kalam recalled: "Every evening, my father A.P.
Jainulabdeen, an imam, Pakshi Lakshmana Sastry, the head priest of the
Ramanathaswamy Hindu temple, and a church priest used to sit with hot tea and
discuss the issues concerning the island." Such early exposure convinced Kalam
that the answers to India's multitudinous issues lay in "dialogue and
cooperation" among the country's religious, social, and political leaders. Moreover, since
Kalam believed that "respect for other faiths" was one of the key
cornerstones of Islam, he was fond of
saying: "For great men, religion is a way of making friends; small people
make religion a fighting tool."
Syncretism :
One component of
Kalam's widespread popularity among diverse groups in India, and an enduring
aspect of his legacy, is the syncretism he embodied in
appreciating various elements of the many spiritual and cultural traditions of
India. In addition to his faith
in the Koran and Islamic
practice, Kalam was well-versed in Hindu traditions; he learnt Sanskrit, read the Bhagavad Gita and he was a
vegetarian. Kalam also enjoyed
writing Tamil poetry, playing the veena (a South Indian string instrument), and listening to Carnatic devotional music every day. In 2002, in one of
his early speeches to Parliament after becoming President, he reiterated his
desire for a more united India, stating that "During the last one year I
met a number of spiritual leaders of all religions ... [and] I would like to
endeavour to work for bringing about unity of minds among the divergent traditions
of our country". Describing Kalam as a unifier of
diverse traditions, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor stated, "Kalam was a complete
Indian, an embodiment of the eclecticism of India's heritage of
diversity". BJP leader L. K. Advani concurred that Kalam
was "the best exemplar of the Idea of India, one who embodied the best of
all the cultural and spiritual traditions that signify India's unity in immense
diversity. This was most strikingly evident in the second-to-last book he
published, presciently titled Transcendence: My Spiritual
Experiences with Pramukh Swami.
Pramukh Swami as
Guru :
Kalam's desire to
meet spiritual leaders to help create a more prosperous, spiritual, and unified
India was what initially led him to meet Pramukh Swami, the Hindu guru of theBAPS Swaminarayan Sampradaya, who Kalam would
come to consider his ultimate spiritual teacher and guru. The
first of eight meetings between Kalam and Pramukh Swami over a fourteen-year
period took place on 30 June 2001 in New Delhi, during which Kalam described
being immediately drawn to Pramukh Swami's simplicity and spiritual purity. Kalam stated that he
was inspired by Pramukh Swami throughout their numerous interactions. One such
incident occurred the day following the terrorist attack on BAPS' Akshardham, Gandhinagar complex in September 2002; Pramukh
Swami prayed for, and sprinkled holy water upon, the sites of all of the
deceased, including the terrorists, demonstrating the view that all human life
is sacred. Kalam recalled being moved by Pramukh Swami's equanimity and
compassion, citing this incident as one of his motivations for writing Transcendence: My Spiritual
Experiences with Pramukh Swamiji. Summarising the
effect that Pramukh Swami had on him, Kalam stated that "[Pramukh Swami]
has indeed transformed me. He is the ultimate stage of the spiritual ascent in
my life ... Pramukh Swamiji has put me in a God-synchronous orbit. No
manoeuvres are required any more, as I am placed in my final position in
eternity." Following Kalam's
death a month after his final book was released, co-author Arun Tiwari pointed
to this passage as potentially prophetic and premonitory of Kalam's death.
Writings :
A P J Abdul Kalam
delivering a speech
In his book India 2020, Kalam strongly
advocated an action plan to develop India into a "knowledge
superpower" and a developed nationby the year 2020. He
regarded his work on India's nuclear weapons programme as a way
to assert India's place as a future superpower.
I have identified
five areas where India has a core competence for integrated action: (1)
agriculture and food processing; (2) education and healthcare; (3) information
and communication technology; (4) infrastructure, reliable and quality electric
power, surface transport and infrastructure for all parts of the country; and
(5) self-reliance in critical technologies. These five areas are closely
inter-related and if advanced in a coordinated way, will lead to food, economic
and national security.
Kalam describes a
"transformative moment" in his life when he asked Pramukh Swami,
the guru of the BAPS Swaminarayan Sampradaya, how India might realise
this five-pronged vision of development. Pramukh Swami's answer—to add a
sixth area developing faith in God and spirituality to overcome the current
climate of crime and corruption—became the spiritual vision for the next 15
years Kalam's life, which he describes in his final book, Transcendence: My Spiritual
Experiences with Pramukh Swamiji, published just a
month before his death.
It was reported that
there was considerable demand in South Korea for translated versions of books
authored by him.
Kalam took an active
interest in other developments in the field of science and technology,
including a research programme for developing biomedical implants. He also supported open source technology over proprietary software, predicting that
the use of free software on a large scale would bring the benefits of
information technology to more people.
Kalam set a target
of interacting with 100,000 students during the two years after his resignation
from the post of scientific adviser in 1999. He explained,
"I feel comfortable in the company of young people, particularly high
school students. Henceforth, I intend to share with them experiences, helping
them to ignite their imagination and preparing them to work for a developed
India for which the road map is already available." His dream is to let every student to light up the sky with
victory using their latent fire in the heart.
Awards and honours :
Kalam received 7 honorary doctorates from 40
universities. The Government of
India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 1981 and the Padma Vibhushan in 1990 for his work
with ISRO and DRDO and his role as a scientific advisor to the Government. In 1997, Kalam
received India's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, for his
contribution to the scientific research and modernisation of defence technology
in India. In 2013, he was the
recipient of the Von Braun Award from the National Space Society"to recognize
excellence in the management and leadership of a space-related project".
Following his death,
Kalam received numerous tributes. The Tamil Nadu state government announced
that his birthday, 15 October, would be observed across the state as
"Youth Renaissance Day;" the state government further instituted the
"Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Award," constituting
an 8-gram gold medal, a certificate and 500,000 (US$7,400).
The award will be awarded annually on Independence Day, beginning in 2015, to
residents of the state with achievements in promoting scientific growth, the
humanities or the welfare of students.
On occasion of his
birth day (2015), CBSE has given the topics
on his name in the CBSE expression series.
The Prime Minister,
Mr. Narendra Modi released the commemorative postal stamps on the former
President of India, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, on his 84th birth anniversary
celebrations, at DRDO Bhawan, in New Delhi on October 15, 2015.
Educational and
scientific institutions
Several educational
and scientific institutions and other locations were renamed or named in honour
of Kalam following his death.
·
An agricultural
college at Kishanganj, Bihar, was renamed the "Dr. Kalam Agricultural
College, Kishanganj" by the Bihar state government on the day of Kalam's
funeral. The state government also announced it would name a proposed science
city after Kalam.
·
Uttar Pradesh Technical University (UPTU) was renamed
"A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Technical University" by the Uttar Pradesh state
government.
·
A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Memorial Travancore Institute of Digestive Diseases, a new research institute
in Kollam city, Kerala attached to the Travancore Medical College Hospital.
·
A new academic
complex at Mahatma Gandhi University in Kerala.
·
A new science centre
and planetarium in Lawspet, Puducherry.
·
India and the US
have launched the Fulbright-Kalam Climate Fellowship In September 2014. The
first call for applicants was announced on Friday March 12, 2016, for the
fellowship which will enable up to 6 Indian PhD students and post-doctoral
researchers to work with US host institutions for a period of 6–12 months. The
fellowship will be operated by the binational US-India Educational Foundation
(USIEF) under the Fulbright programme.
·
Kerala Technological University, headquartered at Thiruvananthapuram where Kalam lived
for years, was renamed to A P J Abdul Kalam Technological University after his death.
Island
Wheeler Island, a
national missile test site in Odisha,
was renamed Abdul Kalam Island in September 2015.
Other awards and
honours
Year of award or
honour
|
Name of award or
honour
|
Awarding organisation
|
2014
|
||
2013
|
||
2012
|
Doctor of Laws (Honoris Causa)
|
|
2011
|
||
2010
|
||
2009
|
||
2009
|
||
2009
|
International von
Kármán Wings Award
|
|
2008
|
Doctor of
Engineering (Honoris Causa)
|
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
|
2008
|
Doctor of Science
(Honoris Causa)
|
Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh
|
2007
|
Honorary Doctorate
of Science and Technology
|
|
2007
|
King Charles II
Medal
|
Royal Society, UK
|
2007
|
Honorary Doctorate
of Science
|
|
2000
|
Alwars Research
Centre, Chennai
|
|
1998
|
||
1997
|
Indian National
Congress
|
|
1997
|
Government of
India
|
|
1995
|
Honorary Fellow
|
|
1994
|
Distinguished
Fellow
|
|
1990
|
Government of
India
|
|
1981
|
Government of
India
|
References :
4.
"Kalam's unrealised 'Nag'
missile dream to become reality next year". 30 July 2015. Retrieved 30 July 2015.
5.
"India and the
Bomb". In M. V. Ramana; C. Rammanohar Reddy.Prisoners of the Nuclear Dream. Sangam Books.
7.
"India Pays Tribute to
'People's President' A.P.J. Abdul Kalam". Time Inc. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
8.
"'People's President' APJ
Abdul Kalam Buried with Full State Honours in Rameswaram". International
Business Times. IANS. Retrieved 20 August2015.
10.
"Dr Abdul Kalam, People's President in Sri
Lanka". Daily News via HighBeam
Research. 23 January 2012. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
11.
Kalam, Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul; Tiwari,
Arun (1 January 1999). Jump up^ Jai, Janak Raj (1
January 2003). Presidents of India, 1950–2003.
12.
"Bio-data: Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam". Press Information
Bureau,Government of India. 1 March 2012. Retrieved 1 March 2012.
