PM Modi inaugurates Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Memorial in Rameswaram

The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, on 27 July 2017 inaugurated the Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam memorial at Pei Karumbu, Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu.

The PM unveiled the statue of Dr. Kalam, and offered floral tributes at Kalam Sthal.

In addition, the Prime Minister flagged off the Kalam Sandesh Vahini, an exhibition bus which shall travel across various States of the country and reach Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on 15 October 2017, which marks the birth anniversary of the former President.

About Dr APJ Abdul Kalam

• Born on 15 October 1931, Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam was the 11th President of India from 2002 to 2007.

• Born and raised in Rameswaram, Kalam studied physics and aerospace engineering.

• He spent the next four decades as a scientist and science administrator, mainly at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

• He was also intimately involved in India's civilian space programme and military missile development efforts. He thus came to be known as the Missile Man of India for his work on the development of ballistic missile and launch vehicle technology.

• He was elected as the 11th President of India in 2002 with the support of both the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the then-opposition Indian National Congress.

• Widely referred to as the "People's President," he returned to his civilian life of education, writing and public service after a single term.

• On 27 July 2015, while delivering a lecture at the Indian Institute of Management Shillong, he collapsed and died from an apparent cardiac arrest at the age of 83.