NewDelhi: The remarkable politician who served as the Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh, is no longer with us, as he left this world at 92. On Thursday evening, he took his last breath at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi, where he was brought after he experienced a severe breathing issue. The doctors proclaimed him dead minutes after his entry at the hospital.
For Singh, health issues were nothing new; in fact, he had a history of health problems, like when he had to go through a second bypass surgery in 2006, which no doubt had a significant effect on his health. Additionally, he had suffered from COVID-19 during the pandemic, which was a cause of permanent problems with his lungs. The things took a turn for the worse when he felt he was in an even worse condition on Thursday and thus was sent to the emergency ward at about 8 PM, but regardless of the efforts done, he could not be saved.
He was born on the 26th of September, 1932, in Gah village, which is now part of Pakistan. An eminent economist, Manmohan Singh was also a distinguished politician. He steered the Indian government from 2004 to 2014 and is well remembered for his legacy to change the economic situation in the country. Singh’s education was obtained from Punjab University in Chandigarh; later he was given the opportunity to further his studies at the famous Cambridge and Oxford universities, where he obtained a doctorate in economics.
His political journey began at a respectable age when he was appointed as finance minister under the government of Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao in 1991, in a situation when the economy was in deep trouble. Singh’s reforms that he promoted resulted in the opening up of the Indian economy and subsequently, a rise in foreign direct investments. He is generally associated with India manoeuvring through the global fiscal crisis of 2008 with reasonable intelligence.
During his two terms in office as Prime Minister, Singh introduced and implemented numerous important policies that resulted in a considerable change in the economy of the country and that of the middle class. Such an agreement was the civil nuclear deal with the USA, which was also signed by Singh’s government.
Integrity and serenity are the features that characterise Singh’s legacy, and as a consequence, they won him the admiration and respect of all parties. His demise has brought an avalanche of tributes from politicians and citizens alike, reflecting on his work for the nation.
While the Indian people are grieving for one of their oldest respected leaders, social media remains full of tributes, with many pointing out the great service he has provided to the nation and the huge impact on the economy he has done.