Even years after vacating the highest office in the country, the former President of India Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam is still a rock star for the youth.
On a visit to the city on Friday, Dr. Kalam inspired the gatherings at Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI) and NMKRV College for Women with his motivating speeches. Every exhortation of his was greeted with lusty cheers.
At the conclusion of the fourth decennial celebrations of NMKRV College for Women, while he accepted the citation given by the college for his contribution as a scientist, teacher and a statesman, he declined to sit on a special chair placed by the organisers to felicitate him.
In his address at NMKRV, he stressed on the importance to make students employable. Recalling pioneers such as Thomas Alva Edison, the Wright brothers, Alexander Graham Bell, Marie Curie, C.V. Raman and Srinivasa Ramanujan, he urged students to persevere to become unique in whatever they do.
He also emphasised on the role of women and girls in eliminating corruption and advised the youth to start home libraries and engage the whole family with books rather than television.
Taking questions, Dr. Kalam said more fundamental research in the basic sciences was crucial to India’s economic prosperity.
Earlier addressing the new MBBS graduates at BMCRI, which was punctuated by thunderous applause from the audience every few minutes, he encouraged students to put in a rural stint and identify one health issue they feel passionately about, be it tuberculosis, malaria, HIV, or maternal or infant mortality rate.
