A. P. J. Abdul Kalam - Wiki Biography, Life, Quotes and Books

Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam (Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu, India, 15 October, 1931 - Meghalaya, India, 27 July, 2015) usually called Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam was a politician and president of India. He was a great Indian scientist. He was also a space travel expert, engineer and author, he was called the Missile Man for his work for the arms race and is considered a progressive leader, mentor, innovator and visionary, of the Muslim religion.

Dr. Kalam received his Ph.D. in aeronautical engineering from the Technological Institute of Madras in 1958. After obtaining his academic degree, he became a member of the Organization for Research and Development of the Defense of India (DRDO). Four years later, he became a member of the Indian Space Research Organization, where his team successfully launched several satellites. In 1982 he returned to the DRDO and became chairman there. He mainly focused on guided missiles. In 1992 he became a scientific adviser to the Ministry of Defense of India. On 11 May 1998, Kalam conducted successful nuclear weapons tests underground.

Kalam was a practicing vegetarian and kept to celibacy. He studied both the Quran (the most important sacred religious text within his Muslim family) and Bhagavad gita (an important sacred text of the majority religion in India, Hinduism). Kalam has received several awards for his scientific work, including India's highest civilian award, Bharat Ratna. He has also received honorary doctorates from nearly 30 universities.

Dr. Kalam has written four books:

• Wings of Fire
• India 2020 - A vision of the New Millennium
• My trip
• Discharging Thoughts - Releasing the Power within India.

Career

He studied aeronautical engineering at the Madras Institute of Technology, graduating in 1958. After graduation, he joined the Indian Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) to work on a hovercraft project. In 1962, Kalam moves to India Agency for Space Research (Indian Space Research Organization - ISRO). He had a leading role as a project manager in the development of the first Indian satellite launch vehicle (SLV-III) which successfully put the Rohini satellite into a nearby orbit in July 1980.

In 1982, Kalam returns to DRDO as director, and focuses on the development of guided missiles. He was responsible for the development and commissioning of the AGNI and PRITHVI missiles. This earned him the nickname "The missile man." He also collaborated in the development of health products using the technology developed for missiles.

In July 1992, Kalam becomes a scientific advisor to the Ministry of Defense of India. As the main scientific advisor to the Indian government, he has the rank of Cabinet Minister. His work led to the successful nuclear test called Pokhran-II in 1998, which again confirmed India's position on the list of countries with nuclear weapons. Kalam was also the head of the scientific advisory committee to Gabiente (SAC-C) and carried out the India Millennium Mission 2020 initiative.

Kalam then turned to the academic field, serving as professor of the Chair of Technology and Transformation of the Society at Anna University, Chennai since November 2001, participating in teaching and research activities. But above all, a crusade began to ignite the minds of young people with the ideal of national development, for this he held multiple meetings with young school children in various parts of India.

Political guidelines

It is possible to look into Kalam's visions and proposals on certain topics through positions he has exposed in the past. The author's book "India 2020" strongly promotes an action plan to turn India into a superpower of knowledge and reach the level of a nation developed by the year 2020. Kalam was driving the idea that India should take a more prominent role in international relations. He considered that his work in the Indian nuclear weapons program is a way of affirming India's role as a future superpower.

Kalam continued to have an active interest in developments in the fields of science and technology. He has proposed a research program to develop biological implants. He supported the software of open source over proprietary solutions and believed that the use of open source or free software on a large scale will make more people can enjoy the benefits of information technology.

Identity

Kalam comes from the Marakkar community in southern India, this community speaks the Tamil language.

Kalam has a modernist vision, believes in the power of technology to solve the problems of society and his vision is that these problems are the consequence of an inefficient distribution of wealth. He sees science and technology as areas free of ideologies and emphasizes the development of scientific character or temperament and entrepreneurial spirit. In this sense, he finds a lot of support among the new business leaders of India such as the founders of Infosys and Wipro who began their careers as technology professionals in a similar way to Kalam.

It follows a strict personal discipline, is vegetarian, abstemious and celibate. Kalam is a student of Tirukkural, and in almost all his speeches he mentions a kural appointment. Kalam has written several books in order to motivate and inspire the new Indian generations, particularly in his autobiography Wings of Fire. Another of his books, Guide of Souls: dialogues about the purpose of life shows its spiritual facet. In South Korea there is a great demand for books written by Kalam.

Death

On July 27, 2015, while reading a text for students at a local school at the Indian Institute of Management in Shillong, APJ Abdul Kalam felt ill and immediately passed out. He was rushed to a local private hospital suspected of cardiac arrest. However, although the time came and doctors tried to revive him, he was unsuccessful and died about an hour and a half later. The death of this politician surprised the country.

His death was mourned nationwide with thousands of dignitaries, including nationally attending the funeral ceremony held in his hometown of Rameshwaram, where he was buried with state honors.