Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul kalam or Abdul Kalam as he is well-known is the major force behind India’s missile power. He is the driving force behind missiles like Agni, Akash, Trishul, and Nag which made India a major missile power in the world.
Born in 1931, in Rameshwaram, Tamilnadu, Abdul Kalam had his initial education in Rameshwaram. Later he studied at Schwartz High School, in Ramanathapuram. Subsequently, he moved to st. Joseph’s college Tirchi. Though he was not a bright student in terms of the marks that he secured in exams, he developed an interest in physics. After completing the B.sc degree course from St.Joseph’s he joined the Madras Insitute of technology, the best institution for technical education in south India at that time. He specialized in Aeronautical Engineering after being trained at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Bangalore.
After his college education, Abdul kalam was keen on joining the Indian Air force were dashed when he just missed making it to the selected list of candidates. Though he was sad at being unable to join the Indian Air force, he went ahead and joined the directorate of technical development and production, DTD and P (Air), as a senior scientific assistant.
Abdul Kalam’s job at the DTD and P (Air) became the launching pad for his glorious career in the defense field. After working for some time at The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the USA, Abdul kalam returned to India and helped the country to develop awesome weaponry.
It will be no exaggeration to state that Abdul kalam is instrumental in firmly establishing India’s core competency in rocketry. His efforts, along with that of his dedicated team, took India into the select club of nations that call themselves superpowers.
For his distinguished contributions to the defense of the country, the government decorated him with the highest civilian award of India, the Bharat Ratna.
Abdul kalam leads a simple life working 18 hours a day. He is fond of music and spends his leisure hours practicing veena. He is also actively involved in developing inexpensive medical devices to bring advanced medical care within the reach of the poor Indians.
Track2Training 