IAS officer shares how A P J Abdul Kalam paid for a grinder gifted to him

The company that gifted their product to the former President framed a photocopy of a cheque given to them by A P J Abdul Kalam.

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Former President A P J Abdul Kalam is one of the most admired personalities in India. A few days ago, on July 27, 2023, the country remembered the aerospace scientist and educator on his 8th death anniversary.

Earlier this week, IAS officer M V Rao shared an incident that showed how Kalam lived by ethics in his day-to-day life. In a long post on X, formerly Twitter, Rao wrote, “In 2014, a company called ‘Saubhagya Wet Grinder’ was a sponsor in some event where Dr A P J Abdul Kalam was the chief guest.”

The company presented Dr Kalam with a grinder as a gift that he “respectfully declined to accept”. However, after the sponsor insisted, he accepted the gift. But the next day he sent a cheque to the company that amounted to the market price of the grinder. The company declined to deposit the cheque.

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When Kalam noted that no money was deducted from his account, he “informed company to deposit the cheque or else he would be constrained to send grinder back”. The company then deposited the cheque but they also made a photocopy of the same and framed it for display.

What a Great Person 🙏💐
Ethics in public life!!

In 2014, a company called
'Saubhagya Wet Grinder' was a sponsor in some event where
Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam was the chief guest.

The sponsor presented a gift to him which he respectfully declined to accept. The sponsor… pic.twitter.com/qyqVa5dmfs

— M V Rao @ Public Service (@mvraoforindia) August 12, 2023