Manohar Parrikar said everyone should draw inspiration from MP Anil Kumar's determination and adopt it.
New Delhi:
A book chronicling the life of fighter pilot MP Anil Kumar, who became an icon of armed forces through his prolific writings despite having been paralysed after an accident, was today released by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.
The minister said everyone should draw inspiration from Mr Kumar's determination and adopt it.
MP, as he was fondly called, was a MiG 21 fighter pilot. On June 28, 1988 he met with an accident which left him paralysed below the neck. He was confined to the paraplegic home in the Military Hospital at Kirkee in Pune.
MP taught himself to write with a pen clenched between his teeth. His articles on military history and current affairs began to get published and he became a regular columnist with the Indian Express, news portal rediff.com Indian Defence Review (IDR) and the Purple Beret to name a few.
His article was included in the defence section of the popular book 'India Empowered' along with luminaries like APJ Abdul Kalam and Manmohan Singh.
His autobiographical article 'Airborne to Chairborne' was included in English text books in Maharashtra and Kerala. With the earnings from his works, he sponsored two underprivileged girls through school.
Early in 2014, he was diagnosed with cancer and succumbed to the disease on May 20, 2014.
The biography has been penned by Air commodore Nitin Sathe.