A.P.J.

Abdul
Kalam
(1931–2015)
A.P.J. Abdul Kalam was an
Indian scientist and politician
who served his country as
president from 2002 to 2007.

Who Was A.P.J. Abdul Kalam?

A.P.J. Abdul Kalam was an aerospace scientist who joined India's defence department after
graduating from the Madras Institute of Technology. He was a central figure in the
development of the country's nuclear capabilities and was hailed as a national hero after a
series of successful tests in 1998. Kalam served as India's president for one term from 2002
to 2007, and died of a heart attack on July 27, 2015.

Early Years
Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam was born into a Muslim family on October 15, 1931, on
the island of Dhanushkodi off the south-eastern coast of India. He developed an early
fascination with flight by watching birds, which developed into an interest in aeronautics
after he saw a newspaper article about a British fighter plane.
Despite his modest beginnings – his dad built and rented boats – Kalam was a bright student
who showed promise in science and mathematics. He attended St. Joseph's College and went
on to earn a degree in aeronautical engineering from the Madras Institute of Technology.

Rise to the Presidency

His hopes of becoming a fighter pilot were dashed when he narrowly missed out on a spot
with the Indian Air Force. Kalam instead joined the Defence Research and
Development Organization (DRDO) as a senior scientific assistant in 1958. After moving to
the newly formed Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) in 1969, he was named
project director of the SLV-III, the first satellite launch vehicle designed and produced on
Indian soil.
Returning to the DRDO as director in 1982, Kalam implemented the Integrated Guided Missile
Development Program. He then became the senior scientific adviser to India's defence
minister in 1992, a position he used to campaign for the development of nuclear tests.
Kalam was a key figure in the May 1998 Pokhran-II tests, in which five nuclear devices were
detonated in the Rajasthan Desert. Although the tests resulted in condemnation and
economic sanctions from other world powers, Kalam was hailed as a national hero for his
staunch defence of the country’s security.

In 2002, India's ruling National Democratic Alliance helped Kalam win an election against
Lakshmi Sahgal and become India's 11th president, a largely ceremonial post. Known as the
People's President, Kalam set a goal of conducting 500,000 one-on-one meetings with young
people over the course of his five-year term. His immense popularity led to him being
nominated by MTV for a Youth Icon of the Year award in 2003 and 2006.
After leaving office in 2007, Kalam became a visiting professor at several universities. He
formed the "What Can I Give Movement" in 2011 with the goal of creating a compassionate
society, and in 2012, his efforts to improve healthcare led to the release of a tablet for
medical personnel to use in remote areas.

Death and Legacy

On July 27, 2015, Kalam suffered a massive heart attack while lecturing at the Indian Institute
of Management and subsequently died at the age of 83.
Kalam was laid to rest on July 30 with full state honors in his native Tamil Nadu. In honor of
the scientist and former president, the southeast Indian state government of Tamil Nadu
created a "Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Award," which recognizes exceptional individuals who
promote the sciences, students and humanities. The government has also established
Kalam's birthday (October 15) as "Youth Renaissance Day." Discussion about building a large-
scale memorial at his burial site is underway.
Among his many accolades, including honorary doctorates from 40 universities, he was
granted the Padma Bhushan (1981), the Padma Vibhushan (1990) and the Bharat
Ratna (1997) — India's highest civilian awards — for his contributions in modernizing
government defence technology. He also wrote several books, including
the autobiography Wings of Fire in 1999.
Interesting facts about APJ Abdul Kalam
➢ APJ Kalam was born on October 15, 1931, into a poor family. His father had only one boat to support
his family.
➢ Kalam was a hardworking boy right from the beginning. At the tender age of five, he started selling
newspapers to help his father support the family. He did this job in the evenings after school. He also
spent a great deal of time on his studies.
➢ Kalam was fascinated by physics and mathematics.
➢ Kalam completed his graduation from Saint Joseph’s College, Trichurapally in 1954. In 1955, he
enrolled at the Madras Institute of Technology.
➢ Kalam missed an opportunity to become a fighter pilot for the Indian Air force. He was on the
ninth spot on the list, and there were only eight openings. The first eight shortlisted candidates were
recruited.
➢ In 1960, Kalam became involved with DRDO’s Aeronautical Development Establishment.
➢ In 1969, Kalam was made the project director for Satellite Launch Vehicles and was shifted to ISRO.
The project became successful, and India, under the directorship of Kalam, was able to launch the
Rohini satellite series into Earth’s orbit.
➢ Kalam was known as the ‘Missile Man’ of India due to his continued, successful work with ballistic
missiles and launch vehicle technology.
➢ Kalam also made significant contributions to the nuclear capabilities of India. The Pokhran -2 nuclear
tests (in 1998) were successful thanks to his organizational and technical support.
➢ Kalam was honoured with many awards, including the highest civilian award in the country, the
“ Bharat Ratna” (1997). His other awards include Padma Bhushan (1981) and Padma
Vibhushan (1990).
➢ Interestingly, he was also honoured with doctorates from 40 universities.
➢ Inspired by his life, a Bollywood movie was also produced with the title, I Am Kalam.
➢ Kalam is a source of inspiration for millions of people in India and around the world.
➢ Kalam became the President of the largest democracy of the world –India – on July 25, 2002. He was
known as “the People’s President” because of his simple and down-to-earth attitude.
➢ President Kalam also had a soft spot for students and children. He inspired millions of young children,
answering their questions and meeting with them during his tours across the country until the day of
his sad demise. He believed that children are the future of any nation.
➢ Kalam was frisked twice at JFK Airport in New York. He was checked for explosives by the airport
staff. This incident was protested by India on the international level.
➢ He was once asked by a journalist how would he like to be remembered: as a scientist, a president
or a teacher. And he replied smilingly – “I want to be remembered as a teacher first and then as any
other person.”
➢ After the term of his presidency, he became busier as a visiting professor at various institutes of
management and leadership including those located at Ahmadabad, Indore, and Shillong.
➢ Kalam’s visit to Switzerland is commemorated as Science Day in the country. This declaration in his
honour was made by the Swiss government after the sad demise of this great personality.
➢ Kalam wrote a great deal of poetry in Tamil and was very fond of playing a musical instrument known
as the Veena.
➢ A fun fact about APJ Abdul Kalam is that although he was a Muslim, he was also a strict vegetarian.
➢ During his presidency, Kalam was so beloved that people requested that he take the office again after
Pratibha Patil’s term as President. However, he politely refused.
➢ Kalam is the first unmarried president and scientist in India.
➢ Kalam is among only three presidents of India who were conferred the “Bharat Ratna” before they
were elected President.
➢ Kalam followed only one cricketer on his Twitter account – VVS Laxman. Kalam followed a total of 38
people on this social media account.
➢ Kalam would get up at 4:00 am to take his mathematics lessons. He would also take a bath before
going to class, which was a condition imposed on all the students by the teacher.
➢ Kalam valued Dr. Vikram Sarabhai as his mentor. He turned to this other great scientist of Indian
origin for advice and support.
➢ Kalam’s first major project, SLV-3, failed, and he was shattered.
➢ He was awarded the MTV Youth Icon award twice, in 2003 and 2006.
 ➢ On his last day, he was delivering a lecture at IIM, Shillong. He was standing at the podium delivering
his speech to hundreds of students when he suffered a cardiac arrest that made him fall to the floor.
He always had a passion for teaching and working hard. And at the time when death captured him,
he was doing what he loved.
➢ Kalam also acted as a scientific advisor to the government of India.
➢ He donated his presidential salary to charity. He formed a trust named PURA (Providing Urban
Amenities to Rural Areas), and donated his salaries to this trust when he became aware that the
government takes care of its presidents.
➢ He also refused to sit on special chairs during events because he was a humble man and always
promoted equality.
➢ Kalam was a great communicator. Once Kalam used Yahoo Answers to ask a question about
terrorism. He asked, “What should we do to free our planet from terrorism?” He received more than
30,000 responses.
➢ Kalam’s wish was to power the Rashtrapati Bhawan completely with solar power. However, this
could not be implemented during the term of his presidency.
➢ Kalam started his career as a boy selling newspapers and became the president of the world’s largest
democracy. He also pursued and envisioned many things during the course of his life, transforming
and inspiring millions of people both locally and globally.
➢ Kalam would take the sole blame for losses and setbacks, but gave all credit to his team when they
achieved anything under his leadership. Such were the qualities of the “Missile Man.”
➢ He also published his autobiography, Wings of Fire, which was co-authored with Arun Tiwari. It gives
a detailed account of his childhood, his personal life and career; it has been translated into 13
languages including French and Chinese.
➢ And he was an avid reader and writer. He authored no less than 15 books on various topics, including
nuclear physics and spiritual experiences.
➢ These were 39 interesting facts about APJ Abdul Kalam. He was a beloved president, mentor,
visionary, scientist and, above all, a very humble human being.

Books by the remarkable ex-president APJ Abdul Kalam:

Wings of Fire [His autobiography]
2020-A Vision for the New Millennium

Envisioning an Empowered Nation

Ignited Minds
My Journey
Developments in Fluid Mechanics and Space Technology
The Luminous Sparks

The Life Tree

Mission India
Children Ask Kalam
Guiding Souls
Indomitable Spirit
 Inspiring APJ Abdul Kalam Quotes to Dream and Innovate in Life
“You have to dream before your dreams can come true”.
Most people, they raise a family, earn a living, and then they die. Never follow them.
“A dream is not that which you see while sleeping, it is something that does
not let you sleep”.
Dreaming is the first step towards achieving a goal.
“You should not give up and we should not allow the problem to defeat us”.

Difficulties are part of life. They are there to prepare you, increase you, and develop you.
“If you want to shine like a sun, first burn like a sun”.

The only thing that’s stopping you is YOU. Rests are just excuses.
“I was willing to accept what I couldn’t change”.

It’s very important for you to believe that you are the one.
“All of us do not have equal talent. But, all of us have an equal opportunity to
develop our talents”.

The sad truth is that the opportunity doesn’t knock twice.

“Man needs difficulties in life because they are necessary to enjoy success”.

Sometimes we look at broken pieces in our lives. The key is what we do in our tomes of
pain.
“Don’t take rest after your first victory because if you fail in second, more lips
are waiting to say that your first victory was just luck”.

Life has a way of pushing our dreams down. Don’t let first victory burry your biggest dream.
“Let us sacrifice our today so that our children can have a better tomorrow”.

We must globally warm our hearts and change the climate of our souls, and realize that we
are not apart from nature.
 “I am not handsome but I can give my hand to someone who needs help…
Because beauty is required in the heart, not in face…”

Beauty isn’t dependent on our external appearance. It radiates from within.

“The best brains of the nation may be found on the last benches of the
classroom”.

Backbenchers are independent learners. They learn every type of activity during the
lectures.
“Excellence happens not by accident. It is a process”.

In order to achieve excellence, a holistic roadmap with hard work and risks is required.
“Winners are not those who never fail but those who never quit”.

Quitting, and feel guilty about it is underestimating the opportunity. You cannot get it the
same as the first.
“Two rules for a peaceful life: Depression in failure should never go to heart,
and ego in success should never go to the brain”.

Depression lies, it tells you you’ve always felt this way. Mind poisons, it makes you what
you never wanted to.
“Luxury and Lies have huge maintenance costs. But Truth and Simplicity are
self-maintained without any cost”.

The lie is the only luxury man over all other animals. But repeating it, again and again, is like
multiplying the same number with zero. Whereas the beauty of Truth is in its simplicity, it
multiplies itself.
“Dream, dream, dream. Dreams transform into thoughts and thoughts result
in action.”

Think of rising higher. Let it be your only thought. Even if your object is not attained, the
thought itself will have raised you.
 “To succeed in your mission, you must have single-minded devotion to your
goal.”

Life throws so many distractions at you; some good and some bad. These distractions either
help you stay on track or push you off track. Being single-minded helps you to stay on track
and on task.
“If you fail, never give up because Fail means “First Attempt in Learning”.

No one beats the person who never gives up. There is no failure except in no longer trying.
“Creativity is seeing the same thing but thinking differently.”

Creativity is related to imagination and imagination is related to innovation. Innovation

itself is unique for everyone that conceives a fresh idea and converts the idea into a
successful business.
“Failure will never overtake me if my determination to succeed is strong
enough.”

Failure is never final to a person full of determination. Success may be the only outcome of
any endeavour but determination ensures success in the long run.
“If you salute your duty, you no need to salute anybody, but if you pollute
your duty, you have to salute everybody.”

Dishonesty or insincerity towards your duty may end you up licking shoes. But you have a
choice to do what pleases you and gives you enough pride to stand tall.
“Never be a prisoner of your past. It was just a lesson, not a life sentence.”

Past is something gone with the wind. The only thing that left is; lesson. The future is where
you have to apply that lesson in order to live your life peacefully.
“Empty pocket teaches you a million things in life, but full pocket spoils you in
a million ways.”

ISRO created history with Mangalyan — the cheapest spacecraft to reach Earth’s neighbour
— becoming the world’s only space agency to reach Mars on its first attempt.
 “Thinking should become your capital asset, no matter whatever ups and
downs you come across in your life.”

Thinking is progress. Non-thinking is stagnation of the individual, organization, and country.

Thinking leads to action. Knowledge without action is useless and irrelevant.
“When our signature changes to autograph, this marks the Success.”
Here, the signature represents Dream and the autograph represents Reality. When you use
yourself to your full potential, no matter whether you become a doctor or engineer, your
reality is that you are happy and in peace which you always dreamt of.

We thank you for being an inspiration! You have always encouraged the spirit of the young
Indian generation and taught us to be humble, and yet achieve great success. Your
presence will be missed. But the spirit to dream, chase and achieve our dreams shall remain
forever with us…

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