A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam (Template:IPAc-en Template:Respell; 15 October 1931Template:Snd27 July 2015) was an Indian aerospace scientist and statesman who served as the president of India from 2002 to 2007.

Born and raised in a Muslim family in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu, Kalam studied physics and aerospace engineering. He spent the next four decades as a scientist and science administrator, mainly at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and was intimately involved in India's civilian space programme and military missile development efforts. He was known as the "Missile Man of India" for his work on the development of ballistic missile and launch vehicle technology. He also played a pivotal organisational, technical, and political role in Pokhran-II nuclear tests in 1998, India's second such test after the first test in 1974.

Kalam was elected as the president of India in 2002 with the support of both the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the then-opposition Indian National Congress. He was widely referred to as the "People's President". He engaged in teaching, writing and public service after his presidency. He was a recipient of several awards, including the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour.

While delivering a lecture at IIM Shillong, Kalam collapsed and died from an apparent cardiac arrest on 27 July 2015, aged 83. Thousands attended the funeral ceremony held in his hometown of Rameswaram, where he was buried with full state honours. A memorial was inaugurated near his home town in 2017.

Early life and education

Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam was born on 15 October 1931 to a Tamil Muslim family in the pilgrimage center of Rameswaram on Pamban Island, Madras Presidency (now in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu).<ref name="KalamTiwari1999">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="PIB01march12">Template:Cite web</ref> His father, Jainulabdeen Marakayar, was a boat owner and imam of a local mosque,<ref name="IT">Template:Cite magazine</ref> and his mother, Ashiamma, was a housewife.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Jai2003">Template:Cite book</ref> His father owned a boat that ferried Hindu pilgrims between Rameswaram and Dhanushkodi.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

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Kalam's birthplace in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu

Template:A. P. J. Abdul Kalam series Kalam was the youngest of four brothers and a sister in the family.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> His ancestors had been wealthy Marakayar traders and landowners, with numerous properties and large tracts of land. Marakayar are a Muslim ethnic group found in coastal Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka who claim descent from Arab traders and local women. The family business had involved trading goods and transporting passengers between the Indian mainland and the Pamban Island and to and from Sri Lanka. With the opening of the Pamban Bridge connecting Pamban Island to mainland India in 1914, the businesses failed. As a result, apart from the ancestral home, the other family fortune and properties were lost by the 1920s, and the family was poverty-stricken by the time Kalam was born. As a young boy, he delivered newspapers to support the family's meager income.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="SharmaDas2004">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="visit">Template:Cite book</ref>

In his school years, Kalam got average grades but was described by his teachers as a bright and hardworking student with a strong desire to learn. He spent hours learning Mathematics.<ref name="visit" /> He did his schooling at Schwartz Higher Secondary School in Ramanathapuram.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He then graduated in Physics from St. Joseph's College, Tiruchirappalli, in 1954.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Kalam moved to Madras in 1955 to study aerospace engineering at the Madras Institute of Technology.<ref name="PIB01march12" /> While he was working on a class project, the Dean of the institution was dissatisfied with his lack of progress and threatened to revoke his scholarship unless the project was finished within the next three days. Kalam met the deadline, impressing the Dean, who later said to him, "I was putting you under stress and asking you to meet a difficult deadline."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later, he narrowly missed out on his dream of becoming a fighter pilot, as he placed ninth in qualifiers, and only eight positions were available in the Indian Air Force.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Career as a scientist

After graduating from the Madras Institute of Technology in 1960, Kalam became a member of the Defence Research & Development Service and joined the Aeronautical Development Establishment of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) as a scientist. During his early career, he was involved in the design of small hovercraft, and remained unconvinced by his choice of a job at DRDO.<ref name="Sumita Vaid Dixit">Template:Cite news</ref> Later, he joined the Indian National Committee for Space Research, working under renowned space scientist Vikram Sarabhai.<ref name="PIB01march12" /> He was interviewed and recruited into Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) by H. G. S. Murthy, the first director of the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 1969, Kalam transferred to ISRO where he became the project director of India's first satellite launch vehicle (SLV) which successfully deployed the Rohini satellite in near-earth orbit in July 1980. He had earlier started work on an expandable rocket project independently at DRDO in 1965.<ref name=Britannica>Template:Cite book</ref> In 1969, Kalam received the approval from the Government of India to expand the programme to include more engineers.<ref name="nic" /> In 1963–64, he visited NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, and Wallops Flight Facility.<ref name="KalamTiwari1999" /><ref name="Inc.1989">Template:Cite journal</ref> Since the late 1970s, Kalam was part of the effort to develop the SLV-3 and Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), both of which were successful.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In May 1974, Kalam was invited by Raja Ramanna to witness the country's first nuclear test Smiling Buddha as the representative of Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory, even though he was officially not part of the project.<ref name="Facts">Template:Cite web</ref> In the 1970s, Kalam directed two projects, Project Devil and Project Valiant, which sought to develop ballistic missiles using the technology from the successful SLV programme. Despite the disapproval of the union cabinet, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi allotted funds for these aerospace projects under Kalam's directorship through her discretionary powers. Kalam also played a major role in convincing the cabinet to conceal the true nature of these classified projects. His research and leadership brought him recognition in the 1980s, which prompted the government to initiate an advanced missile programme under his directorship.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Kalam worked with metallurgist V. S. R. Arunachalam, who was then scientific adviser to the Defence Minister, on the suggestion by the then Defence Minister R. Venkataraman on the simultaneous development of a quiver of missiles instead of taking planned missiles one after another.<ref name="RV">Template:Cite news</ref> Venkatraman was instrumental in getting the cabinet approval for allocating Template:INRconvert for the project titled Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP) and appointed Kalam as its chief executive.<ref name="RV" /> Kalam played a major role in the development of missiles including Agni, an intermediate range ballistic missile and Prithvi, the tactical surface-to-surface missile, despite inflated costs and time overruns.<ref name="RV" /><ref name="IGMDP Criticism">Template:Cite news</ref> He was known as the "Missile Man of India" for his work on the development of ballistic missile and launch vehicle technology.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Kalam served as the chief scientific adviser to the prime minister and secretary of the DRDO from July 1992 to December 1999. He played a key organisational, political and technical role in the Pokhran-II nuclear tests conducted in May 1998.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Along with Rajagopala Chidambaram, he served as the chief project coordinator for the tests.<ref name="KalamTiwari1999"/><ref name="Conley2001">Template:Cite book</ref> Media coverage of Kalam during this period made him the country's best known nuclear scientist.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> However, the director of the site test, K. Santhanam, said that the thermonuclear bomb had been a "fizzle" and criticised Kalam for issuing an incorrect report.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The claim was refuted and rejected by Kalam and Chidambaram.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 1998, Kalam worked with cardiologist Bhupathiraju Somaraju and developed a low cost coronary stent, named the "Kalam-Raju stent".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2012, the duo designed a tablet computer named the "Kalam-Raju tablet" for usage by healthcare workers in rural areas.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Presidency

File:The President Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam greeting the Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his 79th birthday in New Delhi on December 25, 2003.jpg

Kalam greeting then prime minister Vajpayee on 25 December 2003

On 10 June 2002, the National Democratic Alliance which was in power at the time, expressed its intention to nominate Kalam for the post of the President of India.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> His candidature was backed by the opposition parties including the Samajwadi Party and the Nationalist Congress Party.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After the support for Kalam, incumbent president K. R. Narayanan chose not to seek a re-election.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Kalam said of the announcement of his candidature:

On 18 June, Kalam filed his nomination papers in the Indian Parliament, accompanied by then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and senior cabinet members.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He faced off against Lakshmi Sahgal, and the polling for the presidential election was held on 15 July 2002, in the Indian parliament and the state assemblies, with the media predicting a win for Kalam.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The counting was held on 18 July, and Kalam won the elections after securing 922,884 electoral votes as against the 107,366 votes won by Sahgal.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was sworn in as the 11th president of India on 25 July 2002.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was the first scientist and the first bachelor to occupy the top chair at Rashtrapati Bhawan.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

File:The President Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam authorizing the Prime Minister designate Dr. Manmohan Singh to form the next Government in New Delhi on May 19, 2004.jpg

Kalam with prime minister designate Manmohan Singh in New Delhi on 19 May 2004

During his term as president, he was affectionately known as the "People's President".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He later stated that signing the Office of profit bill was the toughest decision he had taken during his tenure.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In September 2003, during an interactive session at PGIMR in Chandigarh, Kalam asserted the need of Uniform Civil Code in India, keeping in view the population of the country.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He also took a decision to impose President's rule in Bihar in 2005.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> However, during his tenure as president, he made no decision on 20 out of the 21 mercy petitions submitted to him to commute death penalties, including that of terrorist Afzal Guru, who was convicted of conspiracy in the December 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament and was sentenced to death by the Supreme Court of India in 2004.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He acted only on a single plea, rejecting that of Dhananjoy Chatterjee, who was later hanged.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Towards the end of his term, on 20 June 2007, Kalam expressed his willingness to consider a second term in office provided there was certainty about his victory in the upcoming presidential election.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His name was proposed by the United National Progressive Alliance, but he did receive the support of the ruling United Progressive Alliance.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> However, two days later, he decided not to contest the election again stating that he wanted to avoid involving the Rashtrapati Bhavan in the political processes.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

File:The President, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam addressing the nation on the eve of 58th Republic Day, in New Delhi on January 25, 2007.jpg

Kalam addressing the nation on the eve of the 58th Republic day in 2007

In April 2012, towards the expiry of the term of the 12th president Pratibha Patil, media reports claimed that Kalam was likely to be nominated for his second term.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> After the reports, social networking sites witnessed a surge in posts supporting his candidature.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> While the ruling Indian National Congress opposed the nomination of Kalam,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> other parties such as the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Trinamool Congress were reported by the media to be keen on his candidature.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 18 June 2012, Kalam declined to contest stating that:

Post-presidency

File:Dr A P J Abdul Kalam addresses the 14th Convocation ceremony at the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati.jpg

Kalam addressing students at IIT Guwahati in 2012

After leaving office, Kalam returned to teaching, and became a visiting professor at various institutions. He became a visiting professor at IIM Shillong,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> an honorary professor at his alma mater Anna University in Chennai,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and an honorary fellow of the Indian Institute of Science at Bengaluru.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In September 2007, he became the first chancellor of the newly established Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology at Thiruvananthapuram.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He also conducted lectures for management students in India,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and visited China twice at the invitation of the Chinese government to conduct sessions at the Peking University.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In 2011, Kalam voiced his support towards the establishment of the nuclear power plant at Koodankulam in Tamil Nadu, giving assurances for the safety of the facility.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> However, some of the locals were unconvinced by his statements on the safety of the plant, and were hostile to his visit.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In May 2012, Kalam launched a programme called What Can I Give Movement aimed at the youth of India with a central theme of defeating corruption.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Death

On 27 July 2015, Kalam travelled to Shillong to deliver a lecture on "Creating a Livable Planet Earth" at IIM Shillong. While climbing a flight of stairs, he experienced some discomfort, but was able to enter the auditorium after a brief rest.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> At around 6:35 p.m. IST, after five minutes into his lecture, he collapsed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was rushed to the nearby Bethany Hospital in a critical condition, and upon arrival, he lacked a pulse or any other signs of life. Despite being placed in the intensive care unit, he was confirmed dead of a sudden cardiac arrest at 7:45Template:Nbspp.m.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His purported last words to his aide Srijan Pal Singh were: "Funny guy! Are you doing well?"<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Aftermath

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Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam Memorial at Rameswaram

Following his death, the people of India paid tributes on social media.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Government of India declared a seven-day state mourning period as a mark of respect.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Various leaders from India and abroad condoled the death of Kalam.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Kalam's body was flown to New Delhi on the morning of 28 July, where dignitaries including then president, vice president, and prime minister paid their last respects.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His body was placed in his Delhi residence for public viewing.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 29 July, his body was flown to the town of Mandapam via Madurai, and was carried towards his home town of Rameswaram by road. His body was displayed in an open area to allow the public to pay their final respects until 8Template:Nbspp.m. that evening.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 30 July 2015, the former president was laid to rest at Rameswaram's Pei Karumbu ground with full state honours with over 350,000 people in attendance.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam Memorial was built in memory of Kalam by the DRDO in Pei Karumbu in Rameswaram.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> It was inaugurated by then prime minister Narendra Modi in July 2017.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The memorial displays replicas of rockets and missiles which Kalam had worked with, and various acrylic paintings about his life. There is a large statue of Kalam in the entrance showing him playing the veena, and two other smaller statues in sitting and standing posture respectively.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Personal life and interests

Musical instrument veena enclosed in a glass casing

Kalam's veena on display at the Rashtrapati Bhavan museum in Delhi

Kalam was the youngest of five siblings, the eldest of whom was a sister, Asim Zohra (Template:Died-in), followed by three elder brothers: Mohammed Lebbai (5 November 1916–7 March 2021),<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Mustafa Kalam (Template:Died-in) and Kasim Mohammed (Template:Died-in).<ref name="Mid">Template:Cite news</ref> He was close to his elder siblings and their extended families throughout his life, and would regularly send small sums of money to his older siblings, though he himself remaining a lifelong bachelor.<ref name="Mid"/><ref name="integrity">Template:Cite news</ref>

Kalam was noted for his integrity and his simple lifestyle.<ref name="integrity"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was a teetotaler,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and a vegetarian.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Kalam enjoyed writing Tamil poetry, playing the veena (an Indian string instrument),<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> and listening to Carnatic devotional music every day.<ref name="BBC">Template:Cite web</ref> He never owned a television, and was in the habit of rising at 6:30 or 7Template:Nbspa.m. and sleeping by 2Template:Nbspa.m.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> His personal possessions included a few books, a veena, clothing, a compact disc player and a laptop. He left no will, and his possessions went to his eldest brother after his death.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Kalam set a target of interacting with 100,000 students during the two years after his resignation from the post of scientific adviser in 1999. He explained, "I feel comfortable in the company of young people, particularly high school students. Henceforth, I intend to share with them experiences, helping them to ignite their imagination and preparing them to work for a developed India for which the road map is already available." His dream is to let every student to light up the sky with victory using their latent fire in the heart.<ref name="visit"/> He had an active interest in other developments in the field of science and technology such as developing biomedical implants. He also supported open source technology over proprietary software, predicting that the use of free software on a large scale would bring the benefits of information technology to more people.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Religious and spiritual views

Religion and spirituality were very important to Kalam throughout his life.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He was a practising Sunni Muslim, and daily namaz and fasting during Ramadan were integral to his life.<ref name="BBC"/><ref name="NDTV">Template:Cite web</ref> His father was an imam of a mosque, and had strictly instilled these Islamic customs in his children.<ref name="IT" /> His father had also impressed upon the young Kalam the value of interfaith respect and dialogue. As Kalam recalled: "Every evening, my father A. P. Jainulabdeen, an imam, Pakshi Lakshmana Sastry, the head priest of the Ramanathaswamy Hindu temple, and a church priest used to sit with hot tea and discuss the issues concerning the island."<ref name="Pramukh">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Such early exposure convinced Kalam that the answers to India's multitudinous issues lay in "dialogue and cooperation" among the country's religious, social, and political leaders.<ref name="NDTV"/> Moreover, since Kalam believed that "respect for other faiths" was one of the key cornerstones of Islam, and he remarked: "For great men, religion is a way of making friends; small people make religion a fighting tool."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

One component of Kalam's widespread popularity among diverse groups in India, and an enduring aspect of his legacy, is the syncretism he embodied in appreciating various elements of the many spiritual and cultural traditions of India.<ref name="BBC"/><ref name="NDTV"/><ref name="FP">Template:Cite web</ref> In addition to his faith in the Quran and Islamic practice, Kalam was well-versed in Hindu traditions, learnt Sanskrit.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and read the Bhagavad Gita.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2002, in one of his early speeches to Parliament after becoming the president, he reiterated his desire for a more united India, stating that "During the last one year I met a number of spiritual leaders of all religions ... and I would like to endeavour to work for bringing about unity of minds among the divergent traditions of our country".<ref name="FP"/> Describing Kalam as a unifier of diverse traditions, Shashi Tharoor remarked, "Kalam was a complete Indian, an embodiment of the eclecticism of India's heritage of diversity".<ref name="BBC"/> Former deputy prime minister L. K. Advani concurred that Kalam was "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.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Kalam's desire to meet spiritual leaders led him to meet Pramukh Swami Maharaj, the Hindu guru of the Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), who Kalam would come to consider his ultimate spiritual teacher and guru.<ref name="NDTV"/> Kalam and Pramukh Swami met eight times over a fourteen-year period and on his first meeting on 30 June 2001, Kalam described being immediately drawn to Pramukh Swami's simplicity and spiritual purity.<ref name="Pramukh"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Kalam stated that he was inspired by Pramukh Swami throughout their numerous interactions, and recalled being moved by Swami's equanimity and compassion, citing this incident as one of his motivations for writing his experiences as a book later.<ref name="Pramukh"/> Summarising the effect that Pramukh Swami had on him, Kalam stated that "[Pramukh Swami] has indeed transformed me. He is the ultimate stage of the spiritual ascent in my life ... Pramukh Swamiji has put me in a God-synchronous orbit. No manoeuvres are required any more, as I am placed in my final position in eternity."<ref name="NDTV"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Writings

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Kalam delivering a speech in 2010

Kalam has authored various books during his career, and his books have garnered interest in various countries.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In his book India 2020, he strongly advocated an action plan to develop India into a "knowledge superpower" and a developed nation by 2020. He regarded his work on India's nuclear weapons programme as a way to assert India's place as a future superpower.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Kalam described a "transformative moment" in his life in his book Transcendence: My Spiritual Experiences with Pramukh Swamiji. When he asked Pramukh Swami on how India might realise his vision of development, Swami answered to add a sixth area of developing faith in God and spirituality to overcome the current climate of crime and corruption.<ref name="Pramukh"/>

Bibliography

The following are the books authored by Kalam:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

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Awards and honours

Kalam received honorary doctorates from various universities.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 1981 and the Padma Vibhushan in 1990.<ref name="Facts"/> In 1997, he was awarded India's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, for his contribution to the scientific research and modernisation of defence technology in India.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He received the Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration in 1997, Savarkar Award in 1998, and Ramanujan Award in 2000.<ref name="Facts"/> In 2008, he was the recipient of Hoover Medal.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2013, he was awarded the Von Braun Award by the National Space Society "to recognize excellence in the management and leadership of a space-related project".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Legacy

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A 2015 India Post stamp of Kalam

Kalam's birthday is celebrated as World Students' Day in India.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2012, Kalam was ranked second in the Greatest Indian poll conducted by Outlook.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In September 2014, India and the United States launched the Fulbright-Kalam climate fellowship which enabled six Indian doctoral students and researchers to work with institutions in the US for a period of 6–12 months.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2015, the Government of Tamil Nadu announced that Kalam's birthday, 15 October, would be observed as "Youth Renaissance Day". It also instituted the "Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam Award" constituting a gold medal, a certificate and Template:INRconvert, to be awarded annually on the Indian Independence Day, to residents of the state with achievements in promoting scientific growth, the humanities or the welfare of students.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On the anniversary of Kalam's birth in 2015, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) released topics on his name as a part of the CBSE expression series.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On the same day, India Post released postage stamps commemorating the 84th anniversary of Kalam's birth.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref>

In 2017, researchers at the NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory discovered a new bacterium on the filters of the International Space Station and named it Solibacillus kalamii to honour Kalam.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In February 2018, scientists from the Botanical Survey of India named a newly found plant species as Drypetes kalamii, in his honour.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2022, a newly discovered species of footballfish was named as Himantolophus kalami in Kalam's honour.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2023, a newly discovered tardigrade was named Batillipes kalami after him.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Several places and locations have been named after Kalam. In August 2015, Aurangzeb Road in New Delhi was named after Kalam as Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Road.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In September 2015, the national missile test site in Odisha in Wheeler Island was renamed as Abdul Kalam Island.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In October 2015, a Template:Cvt peak near the Bara Shigri Glacier in the Himalayas was named as Mount Kalam.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Missile Complex, a missile research facility in Hyderabad is named after him.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam Science City in Patna, and Dr. Abdul Kalam Science Centre and Planetarium in Puducherry are named in honour of Kalam.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Several universities,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and other educational institutions and other locations were renamed or named in honour of Kalam.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In popular culture

Biographies

• Eternal Quest: Life and Times of Dr Kalam by S Chandra; Pentagon Publishers, 2002.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
• President A P J Abdul Kalam by R K Pruthi; Anmol Publications, 2002.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
• A P J Abdul Kalam: The Visionary of India by K Bhushan, G Katyal; A P H Pub Corp, 2002.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
• The Kalam Effect: My Years with the President by P M Nair; HarperCollins, 2008.<ref name="Nair2008">Template:Cite book</ref>
• My Days With Mahatma Abdul Kalam by Fr A K George; Novel Corporation, 2009.<ref name="George2009">Template:Cite book</ref>
• A.P.J. Abdul Kalam: A Life by Arun Tiwari; Harper Collins, 2015.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
• The People's President: Dr A P J Abdul Kalam by S M Khan; Bloomsbury Publishing, 2016.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Film and media

In 2008, a documentary film A Little Dream directed by P. Dhanapal was released in India.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In the 2011 Hindi film I Am Kalam, Kalam is portrayed as a positive influence on a poor but bright Rajasthani boy named Chhotu, who renames himself Kalam in honour of his idol.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> People's President is a 2016 Indian documentary feature film directed by Pankaj Vyas and produced by the Government of India's Films Division.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> My Hero Kalam is a 2018 Kannada biographical film by Shivu Hiremath which portrays Kalam's life from childhood to the Pokhran tests.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The third episode of Mega Icons (2018–2020), a documentary television series about prominent personalities of India aired on National Geographic was based on Kalam's life.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the 2020 Tamil film Soorarai Pottru, Sheik Maideen portrayed Kalam.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In Rocket Boys, a Hindi biographical streaming television series on SonyLIV, the character of Kalam was played by Arjun Radhakrishnan.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the 2022 Tamil film Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, Kalam is portrayed by Amaan.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

See also

• Presidency of A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
• List of presidents of India

External links

• Official website Template:Webarchive
• Website of Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam during his tenureship as the President of India, hosted by the National Informatics Centre
• Template:IMDb name