Who was A.P.J. Abdul Kalam?

Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, better known as A.P.J. Abdul Kalam (15th October 1931 to 27th July 2015), was the 11th President of India, from 2002 to 2007.

A career scientist turned statesman, Kalam, was born and raised in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu, and studied physics and aerospace engineering. He spent the next 4 decades as a scientist and a science administrator, mainly at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO); and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

He was intimately involved in India's space programme and missile development efforts. He thus came to be known as "missile man", for his work on the development of the ballistic missile and its launch vehicle. He also played a pivotal, organisational, technical and political role in India's Pokhran-II nuclear tests in 1998.

He was elected the 11th President of India in 2002, with the support of both the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the Indian National Congress, and was widely referred to as the 'People's President.' He returned to a civilian life of education, writing and public service after a single term.

He was the recipient of many prestigious awards including the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award. He died - while giving a lecture at the Indian Institute of Management Shillong - of a massive heart attack on the 27th July 2015, aged 83.

Thousands attended his funeral in Rameswaram, where he was buried with full military honours.