Kalam’s Billion Beats e-paper re-launched
This unique digital initiative of Dr Kalam was given a fresh impetus today by his family members
By : s.p. loganathan
Update: 2015-11-15 07:11 GMT
Rameshwaram: Coinciding with India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s 126th birth anniversary celebrated throughout the country as ‘Children’s Day’, a digital initiative called ‘Billion Beats e-paper’ started some years ago by the late President Dr A P J Abdul Kalam, was re-launched at the latter’s home here on Saturday.
Dr Kalam had launched this initiative “to inspire the youth towards realizing the Developed India- Vision 2020”. A Facebook page had also been opened when he was alive to “share his interactions with unique people, achievers and success stories of Indians across the world”, particularly with a view to inspire India’s youth stride great heights in various fields to help collectively develop a strong nation by 2020.
This unique digital initiative of Dr Kalam, which saw a lull in-between, was given a fresh impetus today by his family members with the re-launch of the ‘Billion Beats e-paper’ at the ancestral house of the former President in this pilgrim town in South Tamil Nadu.
At a simple function organised by the ‘Dr A P J Abdul Kalam International Foundation’, 11-year-old Anushya, a class VI student of St Joseph higher secondary school and daughter of a fishermen from Verkottu, released the new-look ‘Billion Beats e-paper’. The first copy of the revived digital paper was received by the late President’s elder brother, A P J Muthumeeran Labbai Maricar in the presence of Dr Naseema, a niece of Dr Kalam and founder-chairperson of the Dr Kalam Foundation.
Select students from five schools in the district including the primary school in which Dr Kalam had studied were invited to participate in this re-launch function. It was a happy, cheerful and thrilling moment for all the students as Anushya presented the first copy to the late President’s elder brother. Some of the books of Dr Kalam were given as Children’s Day gift to the young boys and girls who had come for the occasion.
Expressing profound satisfaction at the re-launch of the ‘Billion Beats e-paper’, Dr Naseema said, the foundation started in memory of Dr Kalam would implement several welfare schemes in future that will enable and guide the youth’s development in various spheres in line with the values and vision articulated by the late President, who was a great lover of children himself. “We have re-launched this initiative, Billion Beats e-paper, on Children’s Day so that it may inspire, guide and be useful for the youth and future generations to come and the e-paper will come out every month,” said Dr Naseema.
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