Hyderabad had special place in scientist’s heart

Suresh Dharur

Tribune News Service

Hyderabad, July 28

Hyderabad always had a special place in the heart of “People’s President” APJ Abdul Kalam. A city he always wanted to return to as often as he could after demitting office in 2007.

It was in Hyderabad that the “Missile Man” spent most of his eventful professional life, spearheading the country’s Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP) as Director of the Defence Research and Development Laboratories (DRDL). It was in this city that he unveiled a vision for transferring the spin-off benefits of defence research to the civilian sector, particularly in the area of public health.

Kalam was leader of the team that launched India’s first major space mission, the Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV-3), on July 18, 1980, from Sriharikota. The success of this mission catapulted Kalam into national limelight and he was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1981. At this stage, he came up with proposals to utilise the SLV launch capability to develop missiles.