Remembering Kalam - A leader, the Nation loved

Courtesy- www.pardaphash.com 

Gordon B. Hinckley once said, “Being humble means recognizing that we are not on earth to see how important we can become, but to see how much difference we can make in the lives of others.” We lost one such humble soul, when we lost Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam. His profile on Wikipedia  reads he was a career scientist turned reluctant politician. However, this reluctant politician is one of the most well respected and loved politician of this Indian generation. Above all, he was a great teacher. His life is a lesson for all. He taught us to dream, to work, to persevere, to succeed, and to excel.

A man of action, a man of distinction and a man with a vision, he dreamt  of a nation of prosperity and integrity. In his book, ‘India 2020’, he shared his vision of developing India into a "knowledge superpower". Dr. Kalam once said, “In India we only read about death, sickness, terrorism, crime.” He dreamt  of changing this situation and building an India free of these evils.

Courtesy- http://i.dailymail.co.uk/

The Missile Man, as he was fondly called, was a visionary who felt strongly for the youth of the nation and considered them as the building blocks of a future which was brighter than our present. He said, “Let us sacrifice our today so that our children can have a better tomorrow.” He was a man who envisioned a corruption free Indian society and his ‘What Can I Give Movement’ for the youth of India was aimed at defeating  this  social evil. He believed “If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are three key societal members who can make a difference. They are the father, the mother and the teacher.” Sadly, his this particular dream couldn’t be realized.

Losing him is too great a loss. However, rather than crying over the loss, we should all just take a moment to remember and recall all his contributions and learn from his spectacular life. Even though, he is no longer amongst us, his words will forever guide us, “Man needs his difficulties because they are necessary to enjoy success.”

- Sumit Chakravarty 

  Faculty, INLEAD