PCE ASSIGNMENT 3

VAISHNAVI GURAV D415

Good afternoon to one and all present here, I Vaishnavi Gurav, roll no. 415 would like to talk about a
humble, polite, intelligent and one of the greatest men in our country. Many people also know him by names
like ‘People’s President’ and ‘Missile Man’. Yes, I am here to talk about Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. Born on 15
October 1931 in Dhanushkodi a village in Rameshwar district in Tamil Nadu. His full name is Dr. Avul Pakir
Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam. His father Jainulabdeen Marakayar was a boat owner and imam of a local
mosque and his mother Ashiamma was a housewife. He was the youngest among the four brothers and a
sister. His family was poor and sometimes couldn’t afford to buy meal 2 times a day. He was fond of reading
since childhood and was very intelligent. He used to sell newspapers to collect money for school fees. “He
completed his education at Schwartz Higher Secondary School.” Later he went to Saint Joseph's College,
Tiruchirappalli. He wanted to be a pilot so he appeared for the pilot’s recruitment exam but even after passing
the exam he could not be selected as only eight pilots were to be selected and he ranked ninth in the list. This
incident was disappointing for Dr. Kalam but he did not give up. Then he affiliated with the University of
Madras and graduated in physics in 1954. To study aerospace engineering, he moved to Madras in 1955 and
continued his education in Madras Institute of Technology. There was a good demand for scientists outside
India during that period but his love for our nation was immense and so he decided he would stay and serve
our country.

After completing his education Dr. Kalam joined the Aeronautical Development Establishment of the
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). In the beginning of his career, he started of by
designing small hovercraft. He also was a part of INCOSPAR committee and was working under Vikram
Sarabhai. Dr. Kalam was transferred to Indian Space research Organisation in 1969, where he was the
project director for India’s first Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV-III) which deployed Rohini satellite successfully
in 1980. He visited NASA’s Langley Research Centre in Hampton, Virginia; Goddard Space Flight
Centre in Greenbelt, Maryland; and Wallops Flight Facility during 1963 to 1964. He also made an effort to
develop PSLV. Due to his remarkable contribution in the field of research and development, he became the
Chief Scientific Adviser To the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. He also received the title of Missile
Man for his contribution in development of launch vehicles and ballistic missile technology. He played a major
role in the Pokhran II nuclear test. “He was honoured by the Government of India with Padma Bhushan in
1981, Padma Vibhushan in 1990 for his work with ISRO and DRDO and his role as a” scientific advisor to the
Government and the highest civilian award Bharat Ratna in 1997 for modernizing India’s defence technology.

In 2002, Dr. Abdul Kalam, won the elections and became the 11th President of India. He always
maintained healthy relations with the common people and never boasted about his rank and fame, because of
this he was also known as ‘People’s President’ or ‘President of the People’. After serving for one term, Dr.
Abdul Kalam left his presidency. Later he became the chancellor of the Indian Institute of Space Science and
Technology Thiruvananthapuram; professor of Aerospace Engineering at Anna University and was a visiting
professor in various IIMs and IITs. He always inspired and was loved by young students. He listened to
classical music and studied Bhagavad Gita in his spare time. He wrote several books including his
autobiography ‘Wings of Fire’ in 1999, which is an inspiration to everyone especially the youth of India. He
received numerous other honours and awards during the period 1981-2014. On 26 July 2015, while
addressing the students of IIM Shillong he passed away due to cardiac arrest. The entire nation mourned for
this irreparable loss. The United Nations decided to make his birthday as ‘Student’s Day’ for his immense love
and affection for his students.

Late Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam used to say “You have to dream before your dreams can come true”.
He was the humblest person of that statue and was always a great source of learning. He taught us great
virtues and always emphasized of hard work and efforts. He always said ‘The best way to succeed is to take
success and failure in the same stride. India has become a nuclear and powerful nation today and it could not
have been possible if it was not Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. Thankyou.