New Delhi, February 6
President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam suffered a minor fracture in his right shoulder after he slipped while taking a walk in the Herbal Garden of Rashtrapati Bhavan here this afternoon.
The 73-year-old Kalam is being admitted to the Research and Referral Hospital, where he will undergo a minor surgery tomorrow as his shoulder requires a surgical correction, Rashtrapati Bhavan spokesperson S.M. Khan told The Tribune.
The incident occurred between 12.30 p.m. and 1.00 p.m., when the President after the inauguration of the renovated Golf Course in the Rashtrapati Bhavan was taking a walk in the Herbal Garden, which is scheduled to be thrown open for the public on February 11, Mr Khan said.
“Today there was an overcast weather and the pathway in the garden was a bit slippery...,” he said, adding immediately after he fell down, the
in-house doctors gave him first-aid and when the X-ray showed minor fracture on his shoulders they referred him to Research and Referral Hospital.
Meanwhile, in view of the fact that Dr Kalam would need a few days rest before he is able to attend to his day-to-day official activities, Rashtrapati Bhavan has cancelled all appointments in the next few days and also postponed indefinitely the two-day Governors’ Conference scheduled to be held on February 8 and 9.
“The Governors’ Conference has been postponed indefinitely and fresh dates will be announced later,” Mr Khan said.
The much-talked about conference was to be chaired by the President and attended by Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Union Ministers of Defence, Human Resource Development, External Affairs and Deputy Chairman Planning Commission, 28 Governors of States and three Lt-Governors of Union Territories.
The conference was to discuss the road map of perspective development planning under Tenth Five Year Plan, effective and gainful utilisation of Governors as Chancellors in the governance of the universities and elevating the minds of the youth.
