Kerala assembly pays rich tributes to Abdul Kalam

Thiruvananthapuram, July 28: Kerala Assembly today paid rich tributes to former President A P J Abdul Kalam, who passed away at Shillong, and noted that a simple lifestyle and humility were the hallmarks of his personality.

Reading out an obituary reference, Speaker N Sakthan said Kalam was a "different" President the country had seen. He had a special place for Kerala, as he had spent more than two decades in the state capital while working as a scientist at ISRO, he said.

Kalam's life was an inspiration for youths and students in the country. "As a scientist, he earned the respect and recognition of all," he said.

Chief Minister Oommen Chandy recalled the 10-point agenda put forward by Kalam during his address to state Assembly when he was the President and said production of Neera, a sap extracted from coconut trees, one of the major programmes proposed by Kalam has been successfully implemented by the government.

"Kalam is a President Kerala can never forget", Chandy said." CPI-M veteran and opposition leader V S Achuthanandan described Kalam as "people's president" and said breaking protocol rules, Kalam mingled with common man.

Other party leaders from ruling UDF and opposition LDF also paid tributes and later, the House was adjourned for the day.

PTI