A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam (1931-2015) was President of India and one of India's most distinguished scientists. He was responsible for the development of India's first satellite launch vehicle, the SLV-3, development and operationalization of strategic missiles and their weaponization, and for building indigenous capability in critical technologies. As chairman of the Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC), he guided a number of technology projects and missions to take India into the twenty-first century. The document on Technology Vision 2020 is a blueprint to make India a developed country. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam held various positions in ISRO and DRDO and became principal scientific adviser to the Government of India holding the rank of a cabinet minister. He has the unique honour of receiving honorary doctorates from thirty universities and the country's three highest civilian honours: Padma Bhushan (1981), Padma Vibhushan (1990) and Bharat Ratna (1997). He had a short stint as professor of technology and societal transformation at Anna University, Chennai, and met over 100,000 high school students throughout the country.