Tamil Nadu - Ramanathapuram   

Kalam house: designed to inspire

Vivid presentation:Former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, and A. Sivathanu Pillai (right), Chief Controller, Defence Research and Development Organisation, at the gallery in Rameswaram on Monday.

RAMANATHAPURAM: Former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam declared open a gallery at his birthplace in Rameswaram on Monday.

The house of Kalam in Mosque Street, where he was born and brought up and spent his early days, was slightly modified from its original shape during his tenure. Now, it has been converted into an attractive and modern gallery by a team of computer and graphic designers from New Delhi. A. Sivadhanu Pillai, Chief Controller, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), who is also Mr. Kalam's long time friend, played an anchor role in transforming the house.

Many rare photographs of his life from Rameswaram to Rashtrapati Bhavan and childhood to present age have found their place in the gallery.

The designers of gallery did not fail to portray his contribution to the development of defence research and developments, love for his mother and motherland, native place, nature, culture and religious harmony, his achievements, awards, national and international recognitions, his association with national leaders and many more.

Along with Collector V. Arun Roy and District Judge V. Balasundarakumar, Mr. Kalam went around the gallery, which was illuminated with LED lights so as to reduce power consumption.

He spent more than an hour and was much excited after seeing rare collection of photographs.

“Rameswaram is my native place and naturally you want to be present (the gallery) here,” was his reply when he was asked why the gallery was established in Rameswaram.

He adds that hundreds of people undertake pilgrimage here daily.

The gallery would inspire them on how he was inspired for a mission. The presentation shows how the Indian team achieved on various fronts of the country's development.

It is not a single man's (his) achievement and but an achievement of a group of people. “I was born here and they (visitors) must see something on how I was inspired.”

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