First chapter of Kalam saheb’s last book conceptualised at tea stall: Srijan
Much to the surprise of his team members, former President of India late APJ Abdul Kalam suddenly stopped his vehicle on a highway near Moradabad to have tea with them while travelling in Uttar Pradesh in 2012.
At the tea shop, he took out pen and paper to calculate the profits and losses the ‘chaiwala’ (tea-seller) incurred and talked about the strategies that could maximise his profits. This is how the first chapter of his last book ‘Advantage India’ was conceptualised.
Srijan Pal Singh, an IIMAhmedabad graduate who worked with Kalam on the book, shared this story at the Lucknow Literature Carnival on Sunday.
“When we conceptualised the book, Kalam saheb said that we would work on something unique. He said he wouldn’t depend on his research team and indulge in research on his own.”
The next trip was made to Badshahpur near Jaunpur and that’s where the sub-title of the book- ‘from opportunities to challenges’ was decided, he said.
Singh shared how Kalam talked about state sponsorship of elections to promote youths to come forward and be a part of politics.
The book talks about how various sectors can be improved. “The average tenure of a district collector in India is 11 months. So, by the time a collector starts working, he is transferred. In the book, we have talked about fixed tenure of officers for better administration,” said Singh. If there could be Indian administrative Services, Indian Engineering Services and Indian Police Services, why can’t there be Indian Teaching Services? The question has been raised by Kalam in his latest book.
In the book, Kalam also shared some of his personal experiences. “In May 1989, when Agni missile was to be released, Kalam saheb got a call from cabinet secretary telling him that there was a lot of pressure from foreign countries for not releasing the missile and asked Kalam if it could be delayed. The fearless Kalam immediately took the risk and said it couldn’t be stopped.” Singh said.