NATION PAYS TRIBUTE TO DR ABDUL KALAM

NATION PAYS TRIBUTE TO DR ABDUL KALAM

Dr. AbdulKalams journey from a News paper boy to the first person of India- is truly an inspiration for generations.

President Pranab Mukherjee said that APJ Abdul Kalam, who worked to strengthen the country's defence and security backbone, was also a poet at heart."He enhanced defence capabilities of the country. He used to write poems. Sometimes when we used to go to pay respects to the departed soldiers at Amar Jawan Jyoti, he would compose a poem, he would not recite it there, but he would quietly pass on the poem. I received two or three poems," Mukherjee said.

The President said his personal interaction with him was very deep. During the UPA-I,  was the Defence Minister and Kalam was the Supreme Commander of the armed forces."Besides, he was interested in the Bramhos missile and asked me how to promote it. Now with his direct encouragement, we are having Bramhos missiles for all three services."Earlier, it was only surface-to-surface, now surface-to-air, air-to-air and from navy to air. It is the only indigenous cruise missile. It was completely done by him and his other colleague. A. Sivathanu Pillai was chosen by him," he said."I felt some sort of vacuum when I heard the news. I did not expect this. Although he was ageing, he was hail and hearty. He was always jovial, brilliant and his mind never ceased to function. He had a mighty mind," Mukherjee added.

When asked about Kalam being called the 'People's President', Mukherjee said, "He was the People's President. Even during his Presidency, he was people's President. Even after his death he will continue to be people's President. No President was ever loved so much. Sometimes when he was with children, it appeared to me that he is Nehru in another form. He always inspired new ideas and new thoughts."Recollecting his first interaction with Kalam, Mukherjee said, "My first interaction with Dr Kalam was when he was scientific advisor to Raksha Mantri. After the Pokharan blast, the then Prime Minister Vajpayee invited the Congress Party leaders - Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi, me and a couple of others were present and the technical aspects of explosions were explained by Kalam. It was an impressive presentation."The President said his formal interactions with Kalam started from 2004 onwards when he became Defence Minister in UPA and developed because the two had great affinity with books."He loved books and he lives with them. His world was around books. Besides he was such a prolific writer, so that was the commonality," he said.Kalam even coaxed Mukherjee to write books and said, "Your production compared to your reading is much less.”Some of Kalam's well known works are Wings of Fire, Ignited Minds, Turning Points, Mission India: a vision for Indian youth and The Scientific Indian. He also penned 'The Life Tree,' a collection of poems.

            Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday expressed his deep condolences over the death of former president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, saying he was a leading light who will be always remembered for his services to the country.'India mourns the loss of a great scientist, a wonderful president and above all an inspiring individual. Rest in peace Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam,' Modi said.'My mind is filled with so many memories, so many interactions with him. Always marvelled at his intellect, learnt so much from him,' he said.Modi said Kalam enjoyed being with people and they, in turn, adored him.'He loved students and spent his final moments among them,' the prime minister said, adding that Kalam's work as president, his life and his words have given direction to the country.

'In personal capacity, I have lost a valuable guide. India has lost a great son who worked to make it strong, who spent each moment of his life to empower the youth. I don't think that the void left by the great man will ever be filled.''I again bow to the work of the great man... I do not have words to say,' Modi said.Kalam, who was India's president from 2002 to 2007, died in a Shillong hospital on Monday evening. He was delivering a lecture at IIM-Shillong.alling it a nationhttps://2.bp.blogspot.com/-g's 'loss of a visionary', BJP today paid glowing tributes to former President A P J Abdul Kalam with party chief Amit Shah describing him as the 'best exemplar' of the idea of India.Shah said Kalam was a 'rare combination' of science, education and morality and his personality and achievementswill inspire the coming generations.

'He served Mother India literally until the last breath of his life. He was truly a 'karma yogi' par excellence. I alwaysregarded Dr Kalam as 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.'Dr. Kalam's personality uniquely harmonised science and spirituality. As the President of India, he also harmonized the agendas of security and development.Shah said Kalam dreamt of a developed, prosperous and strong India and dedicated his life to realising this dream.

'Nation will always be in debt for his contributions. His death has caused an irreparable loss to the nation,' Shahsaid, recalling that Kalam played a key role in making India a space and nuclear power.BJP patriarch L K Advani said the void left by his absence cannot be filled.'His belief that India would become a developed nation by 2020 inspired millions of Indians. He was a lifelong learner and a lifelong teacher. He was also unparalleled in his ability to motivate young minds,' Advani said.
'His demise has left a void in our national life, which cannot be filled. Nevertheless, he will be affectionately remembered by generations to come as an ideal Indian,' the veteran leader said.In his condolence message, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari described the Bharat Ratna as a great scientist, a true nationalist and a wonderful human being.'In his death the nation has lost a visionary and the scientific community a missile expert,' he said.Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu said Kalam was a 'self-made man', who inspired generations of scientists and the youth of
our country.people's President. He extensively  across thecountry with the mission of inspiring the students and the youth. As President, he discharged his constitutional responsibilities to perfection and to the admiration of all,' he said.Kalam was a true nationalist and the pride of the nation, Naidu said in his tribute. 'He was a great son of India.'He said the government was looking to either shift him to Delhi or to dispatch a team of doctors to Shillong, where hehad suddenly collapsed at an event yesterday, but 'he was snatched away from our midst so suddenly that there was no time'.  Former President A P J Abdul Kalam completed seven chapters of a book in Tamil with a vision for the growth of Tamil Nadu and almost till his end he had discussed about the initiative, his aide said tonight.Similar to Kalam's Vision 2020, which aimed at transforming India into a developed nation, he was in the process of writing a similar book for Tamil Nadu in particular.The book was titled 'Ennathil Nalamirunthal Kanavu Tamilagam Uruvagum, Puyalai Thandinal Thendral,' and sevenchapters of the book was completed after detailed discussions, co-author of the book and scientific advisor to Kalam when he was President, V Ponraj said.On July 23, he said he had a last discussion with Kalam on the book.'He dreamed of a developed Tamil Nadu and wanted such a State to blossom, the book had his vision for such a transformation,' Ponraj told Puthiya Thalaimurai, Tamil TV News channel.Kalam was active till the end. In his twitter account he spoke of his Shillong lecture which turned out to be his last.

Prof. John Kurakar