A MUST-READ Unbelievable information.
D. D. Podhigai telecast an interview with Mr. P. M. Nair, (retired IAS officer, who was the Secretary to Dr. Abdul Kalam when he was the President.)
Mr. Nair authored a book titled 'Kalam Effect.
Summary of the points he spoke in a voice choked with emotion:
1. Dr. Kalam used to receive costly gifts whenever he went abroad - as it is customary for many nations to give gifts to the visiting Heads of State.
Refusing the gift would become an insult to the nation and an embarrassment for India. So, he received them, and on his return, Dr. Kalam asked the gifts to be photographed and then cataloged and handed over to the archives.
Afterward, he never even looked at them.
He did not take even a single pencil from the gifts received when he left Rashtrapathi Bhavan.
2. In 2002, the year Dr. Kalam took over, the Ramadan month came in July-August. It was a regular practice for the President to host an iftar party.
Dr. Kalam asked Mr. Nair, why he should host a party to people who are already well-fed, and asked him to find out how much would be the cost.
Mr. Nair told it would cost around Rs. 22 lakhs.
Dr. Kalam asked him to donate that amount to a few selected orphanages in the form of food, dresses, and blankets.
The selection of orphanages was left to a team in Rashtrapathi Bhavan, and Dr. Kalam had no role in it.
After the selection was made, Dr. Kalam asked Mr. Nair to come inside his room and gave him a cheque for Rs 1 lakh. He said that he was giving some amount from his personal savings for the party, and this should not be informed to anyone.
3. Dr. Kalam did not like the 'Yes Sir" type of people.
Once, when the Chief Justice of India had come and on some point, Dr. Kalam expressed his views and asked Mr. Nair: 'Do you agree?
Mr. Nair said, 'No Sir - I do not agree with you.
The Chief Justice was shocked - he could not believe his ears.
A civil servant couldn't disagree with the President and that too so openly.
Mr. Nair told him that the President would question him afterward why he disagreed, and if the reason was logical, then he would surely change his mind.
4. Once Dr. Kalam invited fifty of his relatives to come to Delhi, and they all stayed in Rashtrapathi Bhavan.
He organized a bus for them to go around the city, which was paid for by him. No official car was used. Their stay and food were all calculated as per the instructions of Dr. Kalam. The bill came to Rs 2 lakhs, which he paid from his pocket.
In the history of this country, no one has ever done it.
Now, wait for the climax, Dr. Kalam's elder brother stayed with him in his room for the entire one week as Dr. Kalam wanted his brother to stay with him. When he left, Dr. Kalam wanted to pay rent for that room also.
Imagine the President of a country paying rent for the room in which he is staying.
Anyway, this was not agreed to by the staff, who thought the honesty was getting too much to handle!!!.
5. When Kalam Sir was to leave Rashtrapathi Bhavan at the end of his tenure, every staff member went and met him and paid their respects. Mr. Nair went to him alone, as his wife had fractured her leg and was confined to bed. Dr. Kalam asked him why his wife did not come. He replied that she was in bed due to an accident.
The next day, Mr.Nair saw a lot of policemen around his house and asked what had happened.
They said that the President of India was coming to visit him at his house. He came and met his wife and chatted for some time.
Mr. Nair says that no president of any country would visit a civil servant's house and that too on such a simple pretext.
The younger brother of APJ Abdul Kalam runs an umbrella repairing shop.
When Mr. Nair met him during Kalam’s funeral, he touched his feet, in token of respect for both Mr. Nair and Brother.
I (the author of this article) thought I should give these details, as many of you may not have seen the telecast.
Such information should be widely shared on social media.
The property left behind by Dr.A.P.J.Abdul Kalam was estimated as follows:
6 pants (2 DRDO uniforms)
4 shirts (2 DRDO uniforms)
3 suits (1 western, 2 Indian)
2500 books
1 flat (which he has donated)
1 Padmashri Award
1 Padmabhushan Award
1 Bharat Ratna Award
16 doctorates
1 website
1 twitter account
1 email id
He didn't have any TV, AC, car, jewelry, shares, land, or bank balance.
He was a real patriot and true Indian.
India will forever be grateful to you, sir.
(From the Web)
There are so many exceptionally great and incredible people in every part of the world -
But most of us hardly know about them.
D. D. Podhigai telecast an interview with Mr. P. M. Nair, (retired IAS officer, who was the Secretary to Dr. Abdul Kalam when he was the President.)
Mr. Nair authored a book titled 'Kalam Effect.
Summary of the points he spoke in a voice choked with emotion:
1. Dr. Kalam used to receive costly gifts whenever he went abroad - as it is customary for many nations to give gifts to the visiting Heads of State.
Refusing the gift would become an insult to the nation and an embarrassment for India. So, he received them, and on his return, Dr. Kalam asked the gifts to be photographed and then cataloged and handed over to the archives.
Afterward, he never even looked at them.
He did not take even a single pencil from the gifts received when he left Rashtrapathi Bhavan.
2. In 2002, the year Dr. Kalam took over, the Ramadan month came in July-August. It was a regular practice for the President to host an iftar party.
Dr. Kalam asked Mr. Nair, why he should host a party to people who are already well-fed, and asked him to find out how much would be the cost.
Mr. Nair told it would cost around Rs. 22 lakhs.
Dr. Kalam asked him to donate that amount to a few selected orphanages in the form of food, dresses, and blankets.
The selection of orphanages was left to a team in Rashtrapathi Bhavan, and Dr. Kalam had no role in it.
After the selection was made, Dr. Kalam asked Mr. Nair to come inside his room and gave him a cheque for Rs 1 lakh. He said that he was giving some amount from his personal savings for the party, and this should not be informed to anyone.
Mr. Nair was so shocked - he said: "Sir, I will go outside and tell everyone. People should know that there is a man who not only donated what he should have spent, but he is giving his own money also".
Dr. Kalam, though he was a devout Muslim, did not have Iftar parties in the years in which he was the President. Once, when the Chief Justice of India had come and on some point, Dr. Kalam expressed his views and asked Mr. Nair: 'Do you agree?
Mr. Nair said, 'No Sir - I do not agree with you.
The Chief Justice was shocked - he could not believe his ears.
A civil servant couldn't disagree with the President and that too so openly.
Mr. Nair told him that the President would question him afterward why he disagreed, and if the reason was logical, then he would surely change his mind.
4. Once Dr. Kalam invited fifty of his relatives to come to Delhi, and they all stayed in Rashtrapathi Bhavan.
He organized a bus for them to go around the city, which was paid for by him. No official car was used. Their stay and food were all calculated as per the instructions of Dr. Kalam. The bill came to Rs 2 lakhs, which he paid from his pocket.
In the history of this country, no one has ever done it.
Now, wait for the climax, Dr. Kalam's elder brother stayed with him in his room for the entire one week as Dr. Kalam wanted his brother to stay with him. When he left, Dr. Kalam wanted to pay rent for that room also.
Imagine the President of a country paying rent for the room in which he is staying.
Anyway, this was not agreed to by the staff, who thought the honesty was getting too much to handle!!!.
5. When Kalam Sir was to leave Rashtrapathi Bhavan at the end of his tenure, every staff member went and met him and paid their respects. Mr. Nair went to him alone, as his wife had fractured her leg and was confined to bed. Dr. Kalam asked him why his wife did not come. He replied that she was in bed due to an accident.
The next day, Mr.Nair saw a lot of policemen around his house and asked what had happened.
They said that the President of India was coming to visit him at his house. He came and met his wife and chatted for some time.
Mr. Nair says that no president of any country would visit a civil servant's house and that too on such a simple pretext.
The younger brother of APJ Abdul Kalam runs an umbrella repairing shop.
When Mr. Nair met him during Kalam’s funeral, he touched his feet, in token of respect for both Mr. Nair and Brother.
I (the author of this article) thought I should give these details, as many of you may not have seen the telecast.
Such information should be widely shared on social media.
The property left behind by Dr.A.P.J.Abdul Kalam was estimated as follows:
6 pants (2 DRDO uniforms)
4 shirts (2 DRDO uniforms)
3 suits (1 western, 2 Indian)
2500 books
1 flat (which he has donated)
1 Padmashri Award
1 Padmabhushan Award
1 Bharat Ratna Award
16 doctorates
1 website
1 twitter account
1 email id
He didn't have any TV, AC, car, jewelry, shares, land, or bank balance.
He had even donated his last 8 years' pension towards the development of his village.
He was a real patriot and true Indian.
India will forever be grateful to you, sir.
(From the Web)
There are so many exceptionally great and incredible people in every part of the world -
But most of us hardly know about them.
Very Inspiring๐
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