AMN /
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today inaugurated the memorial of former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam at Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu. The event coincides with the second death anniversary of Dr Kalam.
The memorial has been designed and established by the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) in an area of over 2 acres at Pei Karumbu near the pilgrimage centre where Dr Kalam was laid to rest two years ago.
The memorial has been built at a cost of Rs 20 crore. It contains the models of Agni-II missile, SLV rocket and other products in which the former President played a significant role. His personal belongings, the veena he used to play and several portraits are also displayed there.
The Prime Minister also unveiled a life-size bronze statue of Dr Kalam in the premises of the memorial. Mr Modi also interacted with the family members of Dr Kalam and flagged off the mobile science exhibition ‘Kalam Sandesh Vahini.’ The bus, housing science exhibits, will travel the whole nation and reach Rashtrapathi Bhavan in New Delhi on October 15th, marking the birth anniversary of Dr Kalam.
The Prime Minister hoisted the National Flag and inaugurated the memorial in the presence of Tamil Nadu Governor Vidyasagar Rao, Chief Minister EK Palaniswamy, Central and State Ministers and other dignitaries.
Later addressing a public rally at Mandapam near Ramanathapuram, Mr Modi said, Rameswaram is a sacred land that also gave Dr Kalam to the nation. He said the Central Government gives emphasis on completing mega works in record time, and the construction of Dr Kalam Memorial is an example.
The Prime Minister also flagged off a weekly express train connecting the two pilgrimage towns of Rameswaram and Ayodhya. He distributed sanction letters to fishermen for long liner trawlers and released the synopsis for the Green Rameswaram Project being initiated by many agencies with public and private funding. For the fisheries project, the Centre has granted 200 crore rupees to the state.
Mr Modi also dedicated to the nation a 9.5 km long stretch of National Highway linking the famous tourism spot Dhanushkodi by road that remained cut off from the mainland since the devastating cyclone 53 years ago.