'I have no regrets leaving Rashtrapati Bhavan'

New Delhi, July 25: Dr APJ Abdul Kalam is confident that the new President, Mrs Pratibha Patil, will maintain Rashtrapati Bhavan as a peoples' bhavan.

''My aim was to make Rashtrapati Bhavan a peoples' bhavan... that is what the presidency represents. The people of the country must believe that the President is one of them, and the Rashtrapati Bhavan belongs to them,'' Dr Kalam told CNN-IBN shortly before demitting office.

Asked if he was confident that the new president would keep the people character of the presidency alive, Dr Kalam said, ''I am sure there will be continuity, this office is greater than all individuals. There are glorious traditions that I am sure will be maintained.'' Responding to a question on how he had changed the presidency, Dr Kalam said, "I have only done my duty to the constitution and the people of the country. I have not tried to deliberately change anything. I am only happy that my India 20:20 vision is now part of our culture." Dr Kalam said that he has no regrets in his five years as president. "I have enjoyed every moment of it, it was a great honour and the love of the people was mattered most to me." On what was his happiest moment as president, Dr Kalam said, "I was truly inspired when I met the tribals in Nagaland. They taught me so many things about what it is to be truly empowered. The presidency gave me a chance to see each and every state of the country, to me that was the greatest thing." Dr Kalam also called on the media to engage in nation building.

"The media must debate its role in our society. The media needs to realise its potential and focus on developmental issues." The former President said that he felt that the biggest need for the country was to inculcate a scientific temper. "We need to use science and technology to realise the 20: 20 vision." Asked what he would do now, the outgoing president said, "I will spend 20 days teaching in five universities and ten days in Delhi," adding, "No one ever retires, we just have to do our duty to the nation." Dr Kalam's message to Indians in the 60th year of independence: "We must work together to build a self-confident nation.

Self-confidence is necessary for us to become a truly developed nation."

UNI