Advani, who was deputy prime minister when Kalam became president, said he вЂњserved Mother India literally until the last breathвЂќ. Vice President Hamid Ansari termed Kalam a вЂњtrue son of IndiaвЂќ and Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan saluted him as a вЂњtrue patriot, world-renowned scientist and original thinkerвЂќ.ДЇormer prime minister Manmohan Singh recalled he had worked very closely with Kalam and вЂњgreatly benefited from his adviceвЂќ.Д¬ongress president Sonia Gandhi called Kalam вЂњa scholar-statesman and one of the greatest scientific mindsвЂќ. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, terming himself greatly upset, said вЂњin this great shocking situation, I have no words to sayвЂќ. The date, time and venue of the state funeral will be intimated later, the union home ministry said. The government has announced a seven day state mourning, till August 2, during which the national flag will flay at half-mast and there will be no official entertainment. Kalam will be long remembered for his passion for science and innovationвЂ¦.вЂќ Saying he will вЂњcherishвЂќ their long association, Mukherjee said: вЂњDr. President Pranab Mukherjee, who is in Karnataka, led the nation in mourning Kalam. Meghalaya Deputy Chief Minister Roytre Christopher Laloo, who was at the hospital with his colleagues, said KalamвЂ™s body will flown to New Delhi via Guwahati in an air force helicopter on Tuesday morning. But he could not be saved.ДЄs the news spread in the Meghalaya capital, thousands of tear-eyed people gathered at the Bethany hospital, shouting вЂњKalam Amar RaheвЂќ and followed the army ambulance that took his body to the Military hospital where it will ke kept overnight. Hospital director John Sailo Ryntathiang said they did their best to revive him. Warjri broke the news to IANS: вЂњKalam is no more.вЂќДoctors at the hospital said Kalam was brought вЂњalmost deadвЂќ after suffering a cardiac arrest. Shanmuganathan said the doctors вЂњmade enormous efforts to save him but we lost a great leaderвЂќ.

вЂњKalam must have barely spoken for five minutes when he suddenly collapsed,вЂќ De said, recalling the tragedy. According to its director Amitabha De, he was taken to the guest house where he rested for a while and came to the lecture hall at 6.40 p.m. The 83-year-old Kalam, who had been lecturing at the IIM-Shillong since last year, reached the institute at 5.40 p.m. at the Bethany Hospital where he was rushed to from the IIM where he was delivering a lecture on вЂњliveable planetвЂќ, officials at the premier institute told IANS.

Kalam, who occupied Rashtrapati Bhavan in 2002-07 as IndiaвЂ™s 11 president, breathed his last at 7.45 p.m. Abdul Kalam, who rose from humble beginnings to become one of IndiaвЂ™s leading scientists and later a hugely popular president, died in Shillong on Monday evening after collapsing during a lecture at the IIM-Shillong, plunging the entire country in mourning.

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