Thousands came to say goodbye to former President, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, in his hometown of Rameswaram.
People braved the afternoon heat, and the queues were endless, snaking across a field in Tamil Nadu's Rameswaram. Thousands of people came to say goodbye to former President, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, a man from Rameswaram who won hearts across the country, as his body lay for public viewing.
Earlier in the day, Dr Kalam's body had been flown from Delhi to Madurai, and then brought to the town by a helicopter.
Many Union ministers and senior politicians from Tamil Nadu had come to pay their homage to the people's President. Others included former friends and colleagues like former Indian Space Research Organisation chief, Dr Madhavan Nair. He told NDTV, "Dr Kalam was the first Indian missile man after Tipu Sultan. He made sure we put an Indian flag on the Chandrayaan mission craft so that it went to the moon. He was my guru, my advisor. Who will guide me now?"
But the majority of people present were ordinary citizens, people whose hearts Dr Kalam had touched. He loved children, they loved him. NDTV met two young boys who came along with a model of a rocket, a young girl dressed up like the former President, complete with silver hair, who had come to pay their last respects.
The funeral of Dr Kalam will be held with full state honours in Rameswaram tomorrow. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be among those attending it.