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One Hundred Tamils
of the 20th Century
Abdul Kalam
[see also Abdul
Kalam.Com ; A P J Abdul Kalam;
Indians of 20th Century - A.P.J.
Abdul Kalam
and *Wings of Fire: An Autobiography
of A.P. J Abdul Kalam with Arun
Tiwari]
Dr Avil Pakir Jalaluddin Abdul Kalam,
pioneer of India's missile programme, was awarded the
country's highest civilian award, Bharat Ratna, in
1997, for his immense and valuable contribution to the
scientific research and modernisation of defence
technology. Kalam was born on October 15, 1931 in the
temple town of Rameswaram in Tamil
Nadu. Kalam went to the Schwartz High School,
Ramanathapuram. A graduate of St. Joseph College, Tiruchi,
Kalam specialised in aero engineering at the Madras
Institute of Technology, his only stint abroad was a
four-month visit to NASA in the United States. A.P.J.
Abdul Kalam, was born on October 15, 1931.Kalam was
awarded the Padma Vibhushan in 1990.
Excerpts from *Wings of Fire: An Autobiography of
A.P. J Abdul Kalam with Arun Tiwari:
(*denotes link to Amazon.com bookshop)
"I will not be presumptuous enough
to say that my life can be a role model for anybody;
but some poor child living in an obscure place, in an
underprivileged social setting may find a little solace
in the way my destiny has been shaped. It could perhaps
help such children liberate themselves from the bondage
of their illusory backwardness and
hopelessness?.."
 "On Republic Day 1990,
the nation celebrated the success of its missile
programme. I was conferred the Padma Vibhushan along with
Dr Arunachalam. Two of my other colleagues, J.C.
Bhattacharya and R.N. Agarwal, were also decorated with
the Padma Shree awards. It was the first time in the
history of free India that so many scientists affiliated
to the same organisation found their names in the awards
list. Memories of the Padma Bhushan award given a decade
ago came alive.
I still lived more or less as I had lived then , in a
room ten feet wide and twelve feet long, furnished mainly
with books, papers and a few pieces of hired furniture.
At that time, my room was in Trivandrum and now it was in
Hyderabad. The mess bearer brought my breakfast of idlis
and buttermilk and smiled in silent congratulations for
the award.
I was touched by the recognition bestowed on me by my
countrymen. A large number of scientists and engineers
leave this country at their first opportunity to earn
money abroad. It is true that they definitely get greater
monetary benefits, but could anything compensate for this
love and respect from your own countrymen?
I sat alone for quite some time in silent contemplation.
The sand and shells of Rameswaram; the care of Iyadurai
Solomon in Ramanathapuram; the guidance of Rev. Father
Sequeira in Trichi and Prof. Pandalai in Madras, the
encouragement of Dr Mediratta in Bangalore; the
hovercraft ride with Prof. Menon, the pre-dawn visit to
the Tilpat Range with Prof. Sarabhai; the healing touch
of Dr Brahm Prakash on the day of the SLV-3 failure; the
national jubilation on the SLV-3 launch; Madam Gandhi's
appreciative smile, the post-SLV-3 simmering at VSSC, Dr
Ramanna's faith in inviting me to DRDO; the IGMDP, the
creation of RCI, Prithvi, Agni... a gust of memories
swept over me. Where were all these men now? My father,
Prof. Sarabhai, Dr Brahm Prakash? Could I meet them and
share my joy with them?
In a state of trance, I acquired my double status, as a
child of heaven and of earth. The paternal forces of
heaven and the maternal and cosmic forces of nature
embraced me as parents hug their long-lost child. I
scribbled in my diary:
Away! fond thoughts, and vex my soul no
more!
Work claimed my wakeful nights, my busy days
Albeit brought memories of Rameswaram shore
Yet haunt my dreaming gaze!
I went to Madurai Kamaraj University the same month to
deliver their convocation address. When I reached
Madurai, I enquired about my high school teacher Iyadurai
Solomon, by now a Reverend and 80 years old. I was told
that he lived in a suburb of Madurai. I took a taxi and
searched for his house. Rev. Solomon knew that I was
going to give the convocation address that day. He,
however, had no way of getting there. There was an
emotional reunion between teacher and pupil. Dr. PC
Alexander, the Governor of Tamil Nadu, who was presiding
over the function, was deeply moved on seeing the elderly
teacher who had not forgotten his pupil of long ago, and
requested him to share the dais.
"Every convocation day of every University is like
opening the floodgates of energy which, once harnessed
by institutions, organisations and industry, aids in
nation-building," I told the young graduates. Somehow I
felt I was echoing Rev. Solomon's words, spoken about
half a century ago. After my lecture, I bowed down
before my teacher. "Great dreams of great dreamers are
always transcended," I told Rev. Solomon. "You have not
only reached my goals, Kalam! You have eclipsed them",
he told me in a voice choking with emotion......
....The year 1991 started on a very ominous note. On
the night of 15 January 1991, the Gulf War broke out
between Iraq and the Allied Forces led by the USA. In one
stroke, thanks to satellite television invading Indian
skies by that time, rockets and missiles captured the
imagination of the entire nation. People started
discussing Scuds and Patriots in coffee houses and tea
shops. Children began flying paper kites shaped like
missiles, and playing war games on the lines of what they
heard on American television networks.
The successful test firing of Prithvi and Trishul during
the course of the Gulf War was sufficient to make an
anxious nation relax. The newspaper reports of the
programmable trajectory capability of the Prithvi and
Trishul guidance system, using microwave frequencies in
virtually unjammable bands, created widespread awareness.
The nation was quick to draw parallels between the
missiles operational in the Gulf War and our own warhead
carriers. A common query I encountered was whether
Prithvi was superior to a Scud, whether Akash could
perform like a Patriot, and so on. Hearing a "Yes" or a
"Why not?" from me, people's faces would light up with
pride and satisfaction.
The Allied Forces had a marked technological edge, as
they were fielding systems built using the technologies
of the eighties and nineties. Iraq was fighting with the
by-and-large vintage weapon systems of the sixties and
seventies.
Now, this is where the key to the modern world order
lies, superiority through technology. Deprive the
opponent, known and potential, of the latest technology
and then dictate your terms in an unequal
contest.....
After the Gulf War concluded with the victory of the
technologically superior Allied Forces, over 500
scientists of DRDL and RCI gathered to discuss issues
that had emerged. I posed a question before the assembly:
was technology or weapon symmetry with other nations
feasible, and if yes, should it be attempted? The
discussion led to many more serious questions, such as,
how to establish effective electronic warfare support?
How to make missile development proceed apace with the
development of equally necessary systems like the LCA;
and what were the key areas where a push would bring
progress?
At the end of a lively discussion spread over three
hours, the consensus emerged that there was no way to
redress asymmetry in military capability except to have
the same capability in specific areas as your potential
opponent. The scientists vowed to achieve a reduced CEP
in the accuracy of Prithvi's delivery, perfecting the Ka
band guidance system for Trishul and realising all
carbon-carbon re-entry control surfaces for Agni by the
end of the year. The vow was later fulfilled. The year
also saw tube-launched Nag flights, and the manoeuvre of
Trishul at seven metres above sea level at speeds which
exceeded three times the speed of sound. The latter was a
breakthrough in the development of an indigenous
ship-launched anti-sea-skimmer missile.
The same year, I received an honorary degree of Doctor of
Science from the IIT, Bombay. In the citation read by
Prof. B. Nag on the occasion, I was described as "an
inspiration behind the creation of a solid technological
base from which India's future aerospace programmes can
be launched to meet the challenges of the twenty-first
century". Well, perhaps Prof. Nag was only being polite,
but I do believe that India will enter the next century
with its own satellite in geo-stationary orbit 36,000 km
away in space, positioned by its own launch vehicle.
India will also become a missile power...Even though the
world may not be seeing its full potential or feeling its
full power, no one dare ignore it any more.....
....On 15 October, I turned sixty. I looked forward to
superannuating and planned to open a school for less
privileged, but talented children. My friend, Prof. P.
Rama Rao, who was heading the Department of Science and
Technology in the Government of India, even struck a
partnership with me to establish what he called a
Rao-Kalam school. We were unanimous in our opinion that
carrying out certain missions and reaching certain
milestones, however important they may be or however
impressive they might appear to be, cannot be the final
sum of human life. But we had to postpone our plan as
neither of us was relieved by the Government of India. It
was during this period that I decided to put down my
memories and express my observations and opinions on
certain issues.
The biggest problem Indian youth faced, I felt, was a
lack of clarity of vision, a lack of direction. It was
then that I decided to write about the circumstances and
people who made me what I am today; the idea was not
merely to pay tribute to some individuals or highlight
certain aspects of my life. What I wanted to say was that
no one, however poor, underprivileged or small, need feel
disheartened about life. Problems are a part of life.
Suffering is the essence of success. As someone said
:
God has not promised
Skies always blue,
Flower-strewn pathways
All our life through;
God has not promised
Sun without rain,
Joy without sorrow,
Peace without pain.
I will not be presumptuous enough to say that my life can
be a role model for anybody; but some poor child living
in an obscure place, in an underprivileged social setting
may find a little solace in the way my destiny has been
shaped. It could perhaps help such children liberate
themselves from the bondage of their illusory
backwardness and hopelessness?..."
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