According to a report in NDTV, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on July 27,2017 inaugurated the memorial on Dr. Kalam’s second death anniversary in his hometown Rameswaram.
The Prime Minister is expected to meet the family, including his elder brother. “It’s a happy moment for us. Although there was delay in starting the project, DRDO completed this in record nine months. Soon, there would be even a planetarium for kids,” said Sheikh Salim, Dr. Kalam’s grand-nephew.
The memorial, build at a cost of INR 20 crores, blends Mughal and Indian architecture. Its main entrance resembles Delhi’s India gate. The dome reflects the Rashtrapati Bhavan. The main door is a replica of the entrance of the Brihadiswara Temple in Tanjavur.
The interiors of the memorial reflect the various facets of Dr. Kalam’s life, including the Pokhran nuclear test. There’s even a missile model celebrating his contribution to space science.
PK Gupta, director of the construction firm that built the memorial said, “This is so special for us. The yellow stones have come from closer to Pakistan . Sand, water and other materials have come from all over India. It’s a symbol of national integration.”
Dr. Kalam, popularly known as the “Missile Man”, was the 11th President of India between 2002 and 2007. He died of a cardiac arrest on July 27, 2015 in Shillong where he had gone to deliver a lecture.
(Source: ndtv.com)
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