NEW DELHI: Former Indian president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam passed away in Shillong on Monday following a massive heart attack, Press Trust of India said. He was 83.

Mr Kalam collapsed at about 6:52pm while he was delivering a lecture at a management institute. He was rushed to a nearby private hospital at Nongrim Hills where doctors pronounced him dead.

Reports said the government declared national mourning for seven days as a mark of respect for late former president.

Mr Kalam spent four decades as a scientist and science administrator at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

His role in development of ballistic missile and launch vehicle technology earned him the moniker ‘Missile Man’. He played a pivotal role in the nuclear tests that India conducted in 1998 in Rajasthan’s Pokharan site.

Published in Dawn, July 28th, 2015

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