The Missile Man of India

Former National President,  Dr.A.P.J. Abdul Kalam’s death on 27^th July 2015. came as a shock to all of us. Within a few minutes we heard the news, we could see all social media such as Facebook and Whatsapp, flooding with condolences messages and memoirs of the great leader.

It is normal for such messages to be flowing when a great leader of this stature, passes away, but what impressed me most was that many of the sharings were of personal in nature.  Many had posted the photos they had taken with him; some had posted images of appreciation letters he has send to them and few had posted the autograph they had received from him. It was a true revelation to see that this 83-year-old man, has personally touched the lives of so many people in a positive way, right from young students to seasoned academicians.

Something notable about, Dr.Kalam is that he was a multifaceted person. He was a highly intelligent scientist, an honest president, a guest lecturer giving intellectual and inspiring talks to college students, a motivator to school students, a poet who penned a few masterpieces and a writer who has written a number of books and most importantly a dreamer who had a dream for India. Through all the above roles he played, he just seemed to have had a single-minded focus of making India, a superpower. All the efforts he has made, has been in this direction.

His book “Vision 2020”, is a road map for India. He has laid the manifesto for a future India.  This book can be looked up as a ready reckoner for the legislators, when making policy decisions and for the future citizens of this country to work on those lines to realise his dream of a strong India.

Through his many speeches to school children, he has sown the seeds of thoughts that has aspired then to become contributing citizen of a strong nation.

His contribution to the field of aeronautical science, space research, nuclear tests, has put India in the map of the world, as a strong country. This has really made other countries look up at India, as a fast emerging superpower.

Dr.Kalam’s life is spectacular. From being born in a poor family in a rural hamlet in the southern corner of India to reach the status of president, is not a normal fete. When we come to know of the different incidents that has happened in his life, through his interviews or reading his books, our respect and admiration for him grows, many fold It is a classic example of how hard work, determination and aspiration, can take someone to great heights in life.

Dr.Kalam was a man of values and principles. He is someone who has “walked his talk”.  He is a portrayal of simplicity, integrity and selfless service. He was a true visionary, who consciously stood clear out of all political parties and remained neutral throughout his entire career.

There are so many things we could learn from Dr.Kalam. The most significant of which, I think is his humility. In spite of all the greatness he has achieved, he was a very simple, down to earth person who connected so well with the common man, that he was always looked up as the “People’s President”

In one of his speeches to school students, he says that, though he has invented so many missiles, what he considers as his best invention, is the invention of the lightweight callipers, which he created using the composite material used in building missiles. By doing so he was able to reduce the weight of the callipers from 3 kgs to 300gms. This helped the disabled children, to walk with ease. This he says is what brought him the most joy in his life.

In addition to the many doctorates conferred upon him by many leading universities, he has won many of the prestigious Indian awards including the highest civilian award, “Bharath Ratna”. It sounded so apt when our honourable prime minister, Mr.Narendra Modi, tweeted that “Bharath has lost a Ratna”, on hearing the news of his demise. 

Dr.Kalam has written many quotes. The one that impressed me most was “Great dreams of great dreamers are always transcended”. I only pray and wish that, the great dream of making India a  superpower, by the great dreamer Dr.Kalam be transcended to the future generation. It is only by accepting responsibility to make his dream come true, can we pay a true tribute to this great leader.

D. Senthil Kannan,

Managing Trustee, PALMS, Tuticorin.

Author of "Transformational Thoughts" - A Journey of learning 

Email: senthilkannand@gmail.com