Port Blair, July 28: The elected members and staff of South Andaman Zilla Parishad held a condolence meeting on Tuesday to mourn the sudden demise of the country’s 11th President, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. In her address, the Adhyaksha, Ms VK Mariyam Bibi recounted the rise of Dr Kalam from a member of a poor fisherman family to being the People’s President of India. As a child, Dr Kalam would wake up at 4 am to distribute newspapers to supplement to his family’s income and later become an Aeronautical Engineer due to sheer hard work. He pioneered India’s indigenous Missile programme and was awarded Padma Bhushan and Bharat Ratna, she said.
A magazine release function scheduled to be held today was also cancelled due to State Mourning and the magazine, containing useful information for rural population, was released without any formal function.
