Advantage India: From Challenge To Opportunity by A P J Abdul Kalam, Srijan Pal Singh [Paperback]

Whenever the former President of India Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam used his pen, it impacted the nation greatly. ‘Advantage India: From challenges to opportunities’ took time to come out, but it was worth the wait. This edition by Harper Collins is the second edition of this book. It is co-authored by Dr A P J Abdul Kalam and Srijan Pal Singh, a social entrepreneur. The book talks in length about India of present and the challenges it has to face in order to achieve the dream of economic strength and the opportunities it has in store to be the knowledge hub again. This is not a political account, it is a scientific one. While reading the book, one can realise that extensive amount of research has been done in building the context. Kalam and Singh talk about the various programs that were in pipeline or were executed with a grand vision like Make in India, Swachch Bharat Abhiyan, Digital India and others. It has been stated that these are highly ambitious ideas and while they look great on paper, executing them is tough. However, they also praise several projects taken over the past few years. They use examples of remote villages and how they are connected with the swiftly growing economy of the metro cities. They see a ray of hope. They believe that with the ideas of youth, wisdom of the elders and the powers of democracy – we can be a self-sufficient nation in the future. The book dives into the issue of political leadership as well. It expresses a serious concern that similar sets of leaders being elected every time is just a way of fooling the people. The corruption among such leaders is at peak and that is what’s harming the nation. Having said that, optimism is the general tone of the book. It is a must read for those who believe in the idea of a better India. Transforming contemporary societies is the path that this book suggests. It ends with Dr. Kalam’s final speech at IIM-Shillong where he breathed his last.

Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam was the former president of India. The missile- man as he was fondly called, he was a scientist and a social activist. He advocated the value of education among all. Recipient of Bharat Ratna, he was the People’s President. He has also authored other best-selling books like India 2020. His co-author Srijan Pal Singh is a social entrepreneur, author and public speaker.