Dr. Kalam - a symbol of hard work, honesty, and passion

Former president of India Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam died on July 27th. India lost a great visionary, a very dedicated scientist, and a great teacher. He died while doing what he loved most while sharing his ideas to inspire students. He always believed that students hold the key to the future of any country and it is very necessary to keep an open dialogue with them. He always tried to engage with students all over India, his lectures and seminars were mostly directed toward students and the young generation who were looking for some advice and a little bit of motivation. I personally heard some of his lectures during some conferences, and I found his enthusiasm very infectious, this man loved to talk about science, and he loved to project a very optimistic picture of our future. I even read his autobiography "Wings of Fire", this all happened when I was passing through a really tough phase of my PhD studies, his words and book were some of the things that inspired and encouraged me to continue my struggle. His honesty, simplicity, and enthusiasm always inspired me, and millions of others.

When he became president of India, it was the first time there was a person who didn't belong to any particular political party. Traditionally, the president has a very nominal role to play in the Indian democratic system, the post is more of a ceremonial, but even there also he made his presence felt and performed his duties to the best of his capabilities. Teaching was his first love, he loved to teach, and give seminars and lectures. There are many of his speeches available on the internet where he talks about his vision of India and his optimism about future generations achieving the impossible. But it is ironic that even though there are many inspirational speeches delivered by him, there is not a single speech matching those other speeches delivered by him in the Indian parliament. This shows how a president is made just a mouthpiece of the ruling government, they are supposed to read the speech provided to them by the current government in parliament. I have not seen any president including Dr. Kalam delivering their own speech with their own thoughts in parliament, this is why I really feel sad that our political class failed to take full advantage of the presence of such an inspirational personality in Rashtrapati Bhawan. Whereas the whole nation drew a lot of inspiration from Dr. Kalam and revered his work, dedication, and honesty, our politicians didn't even bother to learn anything from him. His simplicity, honesty towards his job, and dedication to solving the problems of his country are something that they could learn from him.

There is no doubt that Dr. Kalam will be missed in India, that too in an era where religious fanaticism is growing and people are more interested in playing the blame game than solving the problems. I wish people, especially politicians in India, would listen to his speeches or read his books and learn some lessons. I wish tribute to him doesn't only come from words but also from actions. I personally felt really bad when he didn't get a second term as president, that was a terrible move by the UPA government. But that is history now, Dr. Kalam is no more but his legacy should live. For me, he is a symbol of honesty, hard work, and never-ending passion for his country and its people. He loved what he did and that's the one lesson I learned from him. I hope he inspires many people to work hard in whatever field they choose and deliver their best. Not everyone gets to work in a field that we want, many times that is not in our hands, but we all can work hard in whatever field we get the opportunity, this is in our hand. Goodbye, Kalam sir, thank you for all your hard work and inspiration, you will be remembered as a great teacher. 

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[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]