ABDUL KALAM

                                           A.P.J ABDUL KALAM 

Early life and career:

            Kalam was born in a town in Tamil Nadu state to a fishing boat owner from a once wealthy family. The youngest of five siblings, Kalam persevered with his education despite his impoverished circumstances. He earned a degree in aeronautical engineering from the Madras Institute of Technology and in 1958 joined the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). In 1969 he moved to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), where he was project director of the SLV-III, the first satellite launch vehicle that was both designed and produced in India. In 1980 SLV-III successfully released a satellite called Rohini into near-Earth orbit, taking India’s space program to the international stage. Kalam oversaw further development of launch vehicle technologies at ISRO, including the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle.

Nuclear tests:

       From 1992 to 1999 Kalam was scientific adviser to India’s defense minister, and he later served as principal scientific adviser (1999–2001) to the government, with the rank of cabinet minister. During this period he played a key role in the government’s weaponization of missile systems, giving India nuclear capabilities. In 1998 he was one of the chief coordinators of the Pokhran-II series of nuclear tests, in which five bombs were detonated at a test range in the town of Pokhran, Rajasthan state. His prominent role in the country’s nuclear weapons tests solidified India as a nuclear power and established Kalam as a national hero, although the tests caused great concern in the international community. In 1998 Kalam put forward a countrywide plan called Technology Vision 2020, which he described as a road map for transforming India from a less-developed society to a developed one in 20 years. Among other measures, the plan called for increasing agricultural productivity, emphasizing technology as a vehicle for economic growth, and for widening access to health care and education.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)

              Indian space agency, founded in 1969 to develop an independent Indian space program. Its headquarters are in Bengaluru (formerly Bangalore), Karnataka. ISRO’s chief executive is also chair of the Indian government’s Space Commission and the secretary of the Department of Space.