APJ Abdul Kalam death anniversary: Amit Shah, others pay tribute to 'missileman of India'

July 27 marks APJ Abdul Kalam’s death anniversary. On the occasion, India remembered its former president who excelled in various fields and served the nation as the ‘people’s president’. Celebrating the anniversary, various leaders and ministers including Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu paid tribute to the ‘Missile man of India’. Abdul Kalam passed away on this day in 2015 at the age of 83.

Ministers and leaders pay tribute to APJ Abdul Kalam

Along with the public, various ministers and political leaders remembered APJ Abdul Kalam on his death anniversary. Paying tributes to Kalam, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu hailed the former president’s contribution to the country’s defence & space capabilities. Taking to his Twitter handle, Naidu wrote, "My humble tributes to former President, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam on his Punya Tithi today. He was a distinguished scientist, a visionary statesman & above all a great human being. His stellar contribution strengthened our defence & space capabilities."

Union Home Minister Amit Shah also paid tribute to Kalam on his death anniversary. Shah, while remembering the former president, said Kalam was the 'epitome of wisdom and hard work who spent every moment of his life in empowering India.'

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president JP Nadda also took to his Twitter to honour the memory of the former president. Paying tribute to the great scientist, Nadda said, "Humble tribute on the death anniversary of Bharat Ratna Dr APJ Abdul Kalam ji, the former President of the country, known as 'Missileman', a great scientist, a source of inspiration for youth, who played an important role in making India nuclear power."

Minister for Railways, Communications, Electronics & Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw and Minister For Culture, Tourism And Development Of North Eastern Region G Kishan Reddy also paid their tributes to the former president. While Vaishnaw called him an ‘incredible teacher’, G Kishan Reddy said that the ‘missile man of India continues to inspire the future of our country’.

APJ Abdul Kalam

Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam was an Indian aerospace scientist turned politician who served as the 11th President of India from 2002 to 2007. Born and raised in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu, Kalam was a scholar in physics and aerospace engineering. Having worked four decades as a scientist and science administrator, mainly at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Kalam was intimately involved in India's civilian space programme and military missile development efforts. Often referred to as the ‘People’s president’, Kalam passed away on July 27, 2015, while delivering a lecture in Shillong.

IMAGE: PTI