Missile Man

Known as the “Missile Man of India” and “Peoples President”; A. P. J. Abdul Kalam served as an aeronautical scientist at the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) for nearly forty years before becoming the eleventh President of India.

Abdul Kalam was born in 1931 to Ashiamma, a housewife, and Jainulabdeen, a boat owner and Imam (worship leader) of the local mosque. His family was not financially affluent, and he had to sell newspapers during his early years. His day started at 4 am and finished at 11 pm. Values of determination, hard work and patience, taught by his father, were the foundation of his life and led him to attain the success that he is now known for.

He dreamt of being a fighter pilot but could not be one because Indian Air Force had 8 seats for pilots and he secured 9^th rank. As a compromise, he went on studying physics and aerospace engineering and designing the missiles for the fighter planes. His first job at the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) was to build a prototype of an hovercraft, which was beyond his teams' collective abilities. They tried and failed several times, and three days before the deadline to complete the project, his supervisor gave him a warning to complete the work or else there would be no funding. He knew that he would lose his job, well aware of the fact that the task he had been assigned was near to impossible. Upon receiving the notice, Kalam burnt the midnight oil and came up with the prototype, which was a surprise for him and his supervisor. The vehicle was then developed and the defence minister flew in it with Kalam as a pilot. This challenge was not the only obstacle he faced, yet he was patient and determined to achieve what he wanted and worked hard for it.

Kalam then joined ISRO, where he was head of the development of India's first rocket to launch a satellite, the SLV-III project and then went on joining DRDO. At DRDO he was associated with military missile development with his work on launch vehicle technology and development of ballistic missiles, leading to his being presented with the Bharat Ratan, India’s highest civilian award in 1997 — he was also given a nickname of 'the Missile Man.' He also played a crucial role in India’s Nuclear tests in 1998 and became the President of India in 2002. His term ended in 2007 but he continued to serve the nation as a visiting professor at the Indian Institute of Management in Shillong, Ahmedabad and Indore; as chancellor of the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology in Thiruvananthapuram; professor of Aerospace Engineering at Anna University; and as an adjunct at many other academic and research institutes. He loved his work and never stopped working until he collapsed on 27^th July, 2015 due to cardiac arrest while he was delivering a lecture at IIM Shillong.