Former president and the great Indian scientist Abdul Kalam doesn’t need any
introduction. India felt proud to elect him as the president. He is the inspiration and role
model of Indians, mostly children. As a scientist and as a leader, his work is innovative.
Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, usually referred to as APJ Abdul Kalam was born
on 15th October, 1931 in Rameswaram, Madras Presidency, British India. After graduating
in Physics from St. Joseph's College in Tiruchirapalli, Abdul Kalam graduated with a
diploma in the mid-1950s from Madras Institute of Technology specializing in Aeronautical
Engineering . As the Project Director, he was deeply involved in the development of India's
first indigenous Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV-III). As Chief Executive of Integrated Guided
Missile Development Programme (IGMDP), he also played a major role in developing
many Indian missiles including Agni and Prithvi. He was the chief scientific adviser to
Prime Minister and secretary of Department of Defense Research & Development from
July 1992 to December 1999. Pokhran-II nuclear tests were conducted during this period,
and were associated with Kalam although he was not directly involved with the nuclear
programme at that time.
Kalam continues to take an active interest in development in the fields of science and
technology. He proposed a research programme for developing bio-implants. He is a
supporter of open source software over proprietary solutions and believes that the use of
open source software on a large scale will bring the benefits of information technology to more people.
Ever since Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam became the President of India (July 25, 2002), he spearheaded a socio-economic
movement of igniting the young minds with positive thoughts and of propagating the "Developed India by 2020" vision
with constructive mission modes. PURA (Providing Urban Amenities in Rural Areas) is the major component of
President's Dream for a developed India. It differs from the conventional ideas of economic development of rural
areas in many ways, such as visions for: a comprehensive and composite rural development, government investment
at urban levels in rural programmes, reverse rural-urban migration, the prerequisite quality infrastructure, supportive
modern industry, investment in social and commercial service, and private enterprise initiative. PURA habitat design
depends upon the infrastructural ring road linking a
loop of villages and the interfacing of four interconnected aspects: physical, electronic, knowledge, and economic—to
enhance rural prosperity. The model should enable proper selection of village clusters and deployment of the youth in
different areas of rural development to make this programme a reality.
Under PURA, President Kalam envisages self-sustaining rural clusters which are well-connected by roads and
fibreoptic cables for high-bandwidth telecommunication. PURA aims to provide ―knowledge connectivity‖ through
education, vocational, and entrepreneurial training for farmers, craftsmen, etc. It also aims to improve healthcare and
sanitation facilities in these village clusters. The project aims at creating economic opportunities outside the cities by
providing urban infrastructure and services in rural hubs, such as electricity to each household, roads, potable
drinking water, telecom services, proper healthcare, and education. Abdul Kalam felt the scheme can also address
the problem of rural poverty.
According to Kalam's plan, the PURA communities must run as economically viable businesses financed and
managed by entrepreneurs, local people, and small-scale industrialists. This is because they involve education,
healthcare, power- generation, transport and management. Dr. Kalam spoke of 4 types of PURAs – Plain terrain
PURA, Coastal PURA, Hill PURA, and Desert PURA. He emphasized on the fact that energy was what drove the
rural economy and hence it was important to explore energy options such as solar, wind, bio-fuel, bio-gas, energy
from municipal waste, etc.
Kalam has written several inspirational books, most notably his autobiography Wings of Fire, aimed to motivate the
Indian youth. Another one of his books, Guiding Souls: Dialogues on the Purpose of Life reveals his spiritual side. He
wrote several poems in Tamil as well. It has been reported that there is considerable demand in South Korea for
translated versions of books written by him.
The Government of India has honoured him with the nation's highest civilian honours: the Padma Bhushan in 1981;
Padma Vibhushan in 1990; and the Bharat Ratna in 1997 for his work with ISRO and DRDO and his role as a
scientific advisor to the Indian government. On April 29, 2009, he became the first Asian to be bestowed the Hoover
Medal, America's top engineering prize, for his outstanding contribution to public service. The citation said that he is
being recognized for making state-of-the-art healthcare available to the common man at affordable prices, bringing
quality medical care to rural areas by establishing a link between doctors and technocrats, using spin-offs of defense
technology to create state-of-the-art medical equipment and launching tele-medicine projects connecting remote
rural-based hospitals to the superspecialty hospitals. It added that he was a pre-eminent scientist, a gifted engineer,
and a true visionary, who is also a humble humanitarian in every sense of the word.
