AGARTALA, July 28 (TIWN/IANS): Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar on Tuesday condoled the death of former president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, saying he had "intimately" connected himself with the country's development and welfare.

"Kalam intimately connected himself with the development and welfare of the country and its citizens," Sarkar said in a statement.

"Children and youth had a special place for Kalam," Sarkar added.

The Tripura cabinet, at a pre-scheduled meeting, also mourned Kalam's death in Shillong on Monday.

Leaders of various political parties in Tripura, including opposition Congress leader Sudip Roy Barman and Bharatiya Janata Party state president Sudhindra Dasgupta, also expressed their deep shock over Kalam's death.

Kalam, after becoming president on July 25, 2002, visited Tripura on October 4, 2002 on the first leg of his visit to northeast India.