OBITUARY
Engr. Abul Kalam, Fellow, Institution of Mechanical Engineers
and Chair, Pakistan Group
It is with deep sorrow that we inform you of the passing away of Engr. Abdul Kalam, Fellow, Institution of Mechanical Engineers and current Chair, Pakistan Group. He breathed his last on 9 May, 2013 at the age of 89 at the South City Hospital, Karachi after a brief bout of pneumonia following a hip surgery.
Born 25 November, 1923, Engr. Abul Kalam started his career with the (British)Indian Railways and later following an illustrious career in railways became the Chairman, Pakistan Railways. He was elected to the Institution of Mechanical Engineers on 1 January, 1959. He had recently stepped down as the Vice Chancellor of the prestigious Nadirshaw Eduljee Dinshaw (NED) University of Engineering and Technology, Karachi.
He was universally respected for his acumen, professionalism and high ethical standards. He was seen as a transformational leader. His crowning achievement was the transformation of the NED University and its dramatic growth since his assumption of the position of Vice Chancellor in 1996. At the time there were only 4 undergraduate programs with 380 engineers graduating each year. By 2012, this increased to which increased to 23 with 1800 engineers graduating each year, including 230 post graduates.
His loss is deeply felt by all who worked with him, and whom he touched in his lifetime.
The Institution is represented here by our
Country Representatives, who are the first point of contact for Institution members and prospective members in Pakistan and can help you with raising the profile of engineering in your area, membership queries and developing links with industry, universities and engineering institutions.