Here are some of the interesting facts about Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam's life:
1. Born on 15 October, 1931, in a Tamil Muslim family to a boat owner, Jainulabudeen, and Ashiamma, a housewife, in Ramanathapuram district of Tamil Nadu, Kalam's childhood was not easy and privileged.
2. In order to support his poor family, young Kalam used to distribute newspapers after his school hours to add to his father's income.
3. For his work on the development of ballistic missile and launch vehicle technology, Dr. Kalam came to be known as Missile Man of India.
4. He was also a recipient of honorary doctorates from 40 universities.
5. Dr. Kalam’s visit to Switzerland is commemorated as Science Day in the country. This declaration in his honor was made by the Swiss government after the sad demise of this great personality.
6. Sworn in on 25 July, 2002, Dr. Kalam became 11th President of India, succeeding KR Narayanan. For his simple and humble attitude, he was affectionately known as the 'People's President.'
7. India owes its development as a nuclear nation to Dr. Kalam's organizational and technical support for Pokhran-II nuclear tests in 1998, the first such tests after a gap of 24 years.
8. Dr. Kalam was recipient of Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan and Bharat Ratna.
9. His autobiography Wings of Fire: An Autobiography , first published in English, has been translated into 13 languages including French and Chinese.
10. Also, there are six additional biographies on his life and works.
11. At ISRO, He was one of the pioneers of India's first space launch-vehicle program.
12. Inspired by his life, a Bollywood movie was also produced with the title, I Am Kalam.
13. On his last day, he was delivering a lecture at IIM, Shillong. He was standing at the podium delivering his speech to hundreds of students when he suffered a cardiac arrest that made him fall to the floor. He always had a passion for teaching and working hard. And at the time when death captured him, he was doing what he loved.
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