The entire country mourns the departure of former President APJ Abdul Kalam as he met his end in a hospital at the age of 84. Kalam was at the Indian Institute of Management in Shillong to deliver a lecture, when he collapsed suddenly and had to be rushed to the medical facility.
“The former president was brought almost dead to our hospital. He is in a critical condition. We are trying to revive the patient,” John Sailo Ryntathiang, director of Bethany Hospital, told the media. Meghalaya Governor V Shanmughanathan and Chief Secretary PBO Warjri had visited Bethany hospital where Kalam was admitted.
Popularly known as the missile man of India, he had played a pivotal role in India's Pokhran-II nuclear test in 1998, the first since the test by India in 1974. He was also the recipient of many awards, including the Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan and the country’s highest civilian honour, Bharat Ratna.
Government leaders took to social media, paying respect in their own words. Union Minister Rajnath Singh said, “Deeply saddened at the sudden demise of the former president of India Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam. He was an inspiration to an entire generation.”
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said, “V sad to hear that Dr APJ Abdul Kalam is no more. Nation has lost a real bharat ratna.”
BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said, “He was a man who was always surrounded by knowledge. He never had an iota of politics around him.”
Union Home Secretary LC Goyal has made necessary arrangements for his body to be carried from Guwahati to Delhi. The government will declare national mourning for seven days.
