Interesting Facts About Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

 Interesting facts about Dr APJ Abdul Kalam , The Missile Man of India

 

India’s ‘Missile Man’ Dr APJ Abdul Kalam was a teacher, writer, visionary, aerospace engineer, scientist, people’s President, Bharat Ratna awardee - all rolled into one. APJ Abdul Kalam advocated the principle of ‘Simple Living, High Thinking’. He always attempted to dedicate every minute of his life to the growth of the country in some way or other

Here are some lesser-known facts about him. In memory of Missile Man of India.

 

1.            Raised in a poor financial condition

 Kalam was the youngest of their 5 children . His early childhood was difficult because of the poor financial condition of his family. So, to support them, Kalam used to distribute newspapers in early mornings. There was a time in his school days when he didn’t have enough money to pay the fees.

2. Missed an opportunity

APJ Abdul Kalam had missed an opportunity to become a fighter pilot for the Indian Air Force. He was at the ninth place on the list, and there were only eight openings. The first eight shortlisted candidates were recruited.

3. Missile man of India

Kalam was known as the ‘Missile Man’ of India due to his continued, successful work with ballistic missiles and launch vehicle technology. Here are the reasons:

* He was the think tank behind India’s first indigenous Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV-III).
* He was the Project Director of India’s first satellite Rohini.
* When in DRDO, he was the chief of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Program and developed 5 missiles: Nag, Akash, Trishul, Agni, Prithvi.
* He was the backbone of the operation and development of Prithvi and Agni missiles and also designing indigenous weapons by bringing together various institutions.

 4. Addressed 400 students without electricity

After becoming the President of India in 2002, he was supposed to address students at a school function. But when he reached there to start his speech, the electricity suddenly went off. Instead of complaining, he asked the students to gather around to listen to him. He had inspired millions of young children, by 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.

5. A writer who inspired a generation

He has written many inspirational books, such as- India 2020: A Vision for the New Millennium, The Luminous Sparks, Inspiring Thoughts etc. 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.

6. Smiled when death stared at him

A journalist once asked him how he would 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 like any other person.”

As his wish 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 smiling and doing what he loved.

7. Simple living and high thinking      

Throughout his life, he led a simple life even after reaching to the highest post in the country. In fact, he is considered the symbol of simplicity in India. He came to the Rashtrapati Bhavan with a suitcase and left with the same.

8.Awards

In 1997, Kalam was honored with the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award of the Republic of India, by K. R. Narayanan who was then President of India. Interestingly, he was also honoured with doctorates from 40 universities.

Conclusion

On the occasion of his birthday, the United Nations (UN) in 2015 had declared to observe it as World Student’s Day. It is a proud moment for us, what a glory Dr Abdul Kalam has brought to our nation. He is a true leader, as he took the blame for failures and gave credit to the team when he succeeded. A fortune living, and a perfect motivation for all the students. His contributions to our country will never be forgotten.

THANK YOU …………

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