Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Passes Away: End of an Era

He was the 13th Prime Minister of India and a leading economist who died on December 26, 2024. At 92 years of age, he died, and the world was witnessing the end of an era characterized by economic reforms and a commitment to inclusive growth.

Early Life and Education

Manmohan Singh was born on September 26, 1932, in Gah, Punjab, now in Pakistan. His childhood life was dominated by the partition of India in 1947, which took his family to Amritsar. Academic brilliance had been his virtue; he graduated with both a bachelor's and a master's degree in Economics from Panjab University. Further studies were made at St John's College, Cambridge. In 1957, Singh passed out in a First Class Honours degree in Economics. He also got a DPhil from Nuffield College, Oxford in 1962 in the thesis on 'India's Export Competitiveness.' Academic and Bureaucratic Career

He started his career with a lecturer post in Panjab University, which later upgraded him for joining Delhi School of Economics.

He joined the bureaucracy at a very high level. Such positions included that of the Economic Advisor in the Ministry of Foreign Trade, Chief Economic Advisor in the Ministry of Finance, and Governor of the Reserve Bank of India from 1982 to 1985. He used the RBI Governor tenure for reforms in modernizing India's banking sector as well as stabilizing its economy. Architect of Economic Reforms At the peak of an economic crisis in 1991, then-Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao appointed Dr. Singh as Finance Minister for India. He led a sequence of economic reforms that liberalized the Indian economy by abolishing the License Raj and opening the country to international markets. These measures transformed the Indian economic scenario and created a platform for long-term growth and foreign investment.

Tenure as Prime Minister (2004-2014)

He became the first Sikh and the non-Hindu Prime Minister of India in 2004. His tenor comprised numerous great successes, such as:

Economic Growth: During this period, he turned India into one of the world's fastest-growing economies with a very high growth rate.

Social Programs: MGNREGA and Right to Information Act was initiated for the people's benefit and to introduce transparency.

Civil Nuclear Agreement: The Indo-US Civil Nuclear Agreement finally broke India's nuclear isolation in 2008 and opened doors to accessing nuclear technology and fuel for civilian use.

Still, all these could not make his regime smooth sailing; there was corruption in most areas of governance, and policy paralysis in his second term.

Personal Life 

He has been married to Gursharan Kaur since 1958, and the couple has three daughters. Dr. Singh was known for integrity, humility, and a scholar's demeanour. He was one respected figure across the political spectra. His contribution in economic transformation of India and to modern India as an entire entity is highly valued.

Final Years and Death

He was hospitalized for health complications in his later years. His health deteriorated on December 26, 2024, and he was rushed to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi. He died in the evening from the attacks of medical professionals.

Nation in Mourning

All political leaders, economists, and citizens came to pay their tributes over the death of Dr. Singh all over the country. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi quoted, "India has lost a visionary leader whose contributions to the nation will be remembered for generations."