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Dr A P J Abdul Kalam
Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam was the 11th President of India, who hails from a popular religious pilgrimage town Rameswaram in the southern Indian part of Tamil Nadu State. He is a product of St. Joseph’s College, Tiruchirappalli and Madras Institute of Technology (MIT), both from Tamil Nadu.
Mr. Kalam is known for his down to earth philosophy and motivational messages to the youngsters of the country, which is of great inspirational value for the student population. He was an Aerospace Engineer attached to Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and also Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), also he shot to fame due to his adventurous Pokhran II nuclear tests conducted in 1998.
Early Life
A P J Abdul Kalam was born on 15th October 1931 in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu. After his school education at his native place, he went to Tiruchirappalli to study physics at St. Joseph's College. Later, he joined Madras Institute of Technology (MIT), Chennai, to study Aerospace Engineering. He comes from an economically poor family background, which had necessitated him to go for job at an early age and while studying, he supplemented the family income by working as a newspaper boy.
Mr. Kalam wanted earlier to join IAF and could not make it because he stood 9th in the admission test, while there were only 8 vacancies. However, he became a space scientist, gaining a name as the Missile man by getting into the development work in space vehicle related technology. His contribution to nuclear technology was praiseworthy and he was considered to be a dedicated follower of Homi J Bhaba and Vikram Sarabhai in this field.
Dr. Kalam’s life prior to taking over as the President of India was mostly in the academician such as the Chancellor of Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Anna University’s Professor of Aerospace Engineering, and few other faculty positions he held in other universities.
Political Career
Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam had hardly had any political history and it is right to say that he was never involved in active political affairs. In fact, he was a rare specimen of a person who was supported by both the ruling group and opposition group of the members of Parliament, namely Bhartiya Janata Party and Indian National Congress for his election as the President in the year 2002.
At the same time, Dr. Kalam’s involvement in development work in advanced missile programme that the country took up in 1980s, IGMDP, a 388 crore project and later, he became the Chief Scientific Adviser to the Prime Minister.
As President
During his term as the President of India, he acquired fame as People’s President. It is true that he was conspicuously acting on matters in such a manner that the people’s first attitude was that he was vibrant in his actions. However, he was going with matters of justice with great care and caution. Out of 21 mercy petitions upon Supreme Court verdicts of death sentence, he casted his favour on just one petition, he was strict with the principles of morality.
Dr. Kalam did not choose to contest for a second term of office, although speculations were there that he would continue in the office. He noticed that he would not get the support of Shiv Sena and UPA members and did not want to meet an embarrassment through an election process. He withdrew his nomination just two days before the Election.
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