Book Review: The Kalam Effect – my years with the President

When it is Abdul Kalam, I just can’t keep the book down. The missile man has great influence on me and I truly admire him from the core of my heart. It takes a lot to rise from ground zero and become the president of the largest democracy in the world. It takes still more to keep the values, principles and fire in oneself alive after achieving so much in life. Kalam is a person with difference for whom his country means more than anything else in this world, who has a vision and dream for his country and who believes that his countrymen has all the will to achieve that vision. It happens once in 50 years that a person of such stature who has produced missiles for the country becomes the first citizen of country. I may fall sort of words if I go on describing the missile man but here is a review of a book just released on Mr. President by his private secretary, P M Nair which is a must read to know Dr Kalam from very close.

Well!! When you a pick up a book on a person who is your idol, it does not take too long to read it and same thing happened when I picked the book which is an account of how things move in Raisina Hills, how critical is the position of President and over an above all this, the book also speaks on emotional and personal front about Mr. Kalam which undoubtedly is the most interesting part of the book.

Dr A P J Abdul Kalam is a very simple, dedicated, modest and sincere personality with influencing vision and mission. As Nair says in his book, when he went to address the European Parliament for the first time, also being the first so by an Indian President, he was allocated 25 minutes and he concluded only after 45 minutes, receiving an overwhelming response from the audience along with a standing ovation. Better known as People’s President, and a great admirer of youths and children, he believes that the power of our nation lies in the youths and through his interaction with ~ 1 lakh children spread across different states and region, he arrived at the conclusion that all of them want to see a developed India which is free of poverty. When asked by someone about his source of inspiration and motivation, Mr President replied - “Dream, dream, dream .Think, think, think. And then put that thought into action, action, action.” Through his writings and address to the nation during his Presidential tenure, he always carried a mission of building a self reliant and developed India by 2020. He reposed enough faith in the youths of the country and showed us the path to achieve the mission and I personally believe that he is very true that our potential lies in the invaluable human resource of our country. A billion plus nation can do anything if they have a clear vision which is put into action because ‘impossible is nothing’.

Nair also says that Dr Kalam made it a habit to answer all the queries which was put to him through his website and so attached he is to the children that when a little girl wrote to him that a see – saw in her nearby park is not working due to which she could not play, Mr. President got it repaired and replied back to the child. This is just one of the instances which show that Dr Kalam was truly a People’s President in all essence. He is the only President of India to have travelled all the states (only to the exception of Lakshadweep due to security reasons which still remains his regret till date) during his tenure and he took the trip to North – East region more than once which is generally neglected by political leaders due to security reasons. Mr President broke all protocols when it came to meeting children and talking to the youths. On the eve of New Year, he met ~ 6000 citizens who were waiting outside Rashtrapati Bhawan to greet the President. The author writes in his book that Dr Kalam, asked him many a times to distribute food and clothes to poor people from his personal fund and not to make his contribution public which shows that he was least interested in fame and publicity unlike other political figures. He also landed in many controversies many a times during his office and Indian media was not kind enough to spare even this selfless man. By returning the office of profit bill to the parliament for reconsideration, he made it clear that he is aware of his constitutional rights and is not a rubber stamp. Kalam is a secular person and paid visit to Gujarat during riots which surprised the nation as President is always supposed to keep himself aloof from controversies and politics. A pure vegetarian, who reads Koran and Bhagwad Gita everyday, a scholar of Thirukkural which is quoted in most of his speeches and a great admirer of Classical music and art are some of his personal traits. He has made valuable contribution to our motherland by playing the role of father to the long list of missiles and above all by giving a vision and mission of developed India by 2020.

Mr. President carries a long list of award with himself, to name a few, Bharat Ratna which is the highest civilian award for his contribution to DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation) and also Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan. I really feel privileged to be a part of nation whose first citizen was a visionary and scholar like His Highness, Dr A P J Abdul Kalam.