Gayoom: Abdul Kalam

Former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom has said that the passing of India’s former president Dr APJ Abdul Kalam is a great loss to India and to all humankind.

Gayoom said this in his message in the Condolence Book for Abdul Kalam, opened by the Indian High Commission in the Maldives.

“…I benefitted greatly from his wisdom and deep knowledge. His passing is a great loss to India and to all humankind. I convey my sincere condolences to his family, the government and people of India,” Gayoom wrote.

Abdul Kalam, aged 84, collapsed while delivering a lecture at the Indian Institute of Management Shillong on 27 July 2015, and was confirmed dead at the hospital. He was laid to rest at Rameswaram's Pei Karumbu Ground with full state honours on 30 July 2015.

He was born in Rameswaram in the State of Tamil Nadu. He studied aerospace engineering in Madras Institute of Technology and went on to work as a scientist and science administrator, mainly at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

The former president came to be known as the “Missile Man of India” for his work on the development of ballistic missile and launch vehicle technology. He also played a pivotal role in India's Pokhran-II nuclear tests in 1998.

He was elected President of India in 2002 with the support of both the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the opposition Indian National Congress. After serving a term of five years, he returned to his civilian life of education, writing and public service.