A. P. J. Abdul Kalam Biography 
A. P. J. Abdul Kalam was an aeronautical engineer who served as the President of India from 2002 to 2007. He was born on 15th October 1931 at Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu. His original name was Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam. He completed his diploma in Aeronautical Engineering at Madras Institute of Technology and graduated in physics from St. Joseph’s College, Tiruchirapalli.
He was widely known as the Missile Man of India for his work on development of ballistic missile and space rocket technologies. He initially worked at Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and then joined in Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). He worked as a project director at ISRO to design, develop and manage the India’s first indigenous Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV-II) which successfully launched the Rohini satellite.
He undertook the DRDO’s Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP). He played a major role in developing PRITHVI and AGNI missiles. With the collaboration of the Department of Atomic Energy he played a major role in India's Pokhran-II nuclear test in 1998. This made India a nuclear weapon state.
Dr. Abdul Kalam served as a Chief Scientific Advisor to the Prime Minister and the Secretary of Department of Defense Research & Development. He was the Chairman of Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC). He created Technology Vision 2020 documents. This gives a road map for transforming India from the present developing status to a developed nation.
He became the 11th president of India in 2002. He was the first scientist to head the world's largest democracy. His dream is to make India a developed nation by 2020. He received many prestigious awards like Padma Bhushan in 1981, Padma Vibhushan in 1990 and Bharat Ratna in 1997 by the Government of India.
Anna University, S. Gujarathi University and Nan yang Technological University of Singapore honoured him by the Doctorate awards. In 2009, ASME Foundation, USA awarded him Hoover Medal and International von Karman Wings Award was awarded by California Institute of Technology, U.S.A. He wrote many books such as “Wings of Fire”, “India 2020 - A Vision for the New Millennium”, “My Journey" and "Ignited Minds - Unleashing the power within India”.
Dr Abdul Kalam passed away at Bethany Hospital, Shillong, Meghalaya, due to heart failure after having collapsed during a lecture at Indian Institute of Management, Shillong.
Published: N/A
Updated: May 01, 2018
