Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, widely regarded as the architect of India's economic reform program and landmark nuclear deal by the United States, deceased. He was 92.
Singh was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi late on Thursday after his health deteriorated due to “sudden loss of consciousness at home,” the hospital said in a statement.
“Resuscitation measures were immediately initiated at home. He was taken to the Medical Emergency” at 8:06 p.m., the hospital said, but “despite all efforts, he could not be revived and was pronounced dead at 9:51 p.m.”
Singh was being treated for an “age-related medical condition,” the statement said.
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A mild-mannered technocrat, Singh became one of Oldest Prime Ministers of India for 10 years and leader of the Congress Party in the Upper House of Parliament, earning a reputation as a man of great personal integrity. He was chosen to fill the post in 2004 with Sonia Gandhi, the widow of the assassinated Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
But his brilliant image was tarnished by allegations of corruption against his ministers.
Singh was re-elected in 2009, but his second term as prime minister was marred by financial scandals and corruption charges surrounding the organization of the 2010 Commonwealth Games. As a result the Congress Party lost heavily in the 2014 national election with Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party under the leadership of Narendra Modi.
Singh adopted a low profile after relinquishing the post of prime minister.
Prime Minister Modiwho succeeded Singh in 2014, calling him one of “India's most distinguished leaders” who rose from humble origins and left “a strong imprint on our economic policy over the years”.
“As our Prime Minister, he made great efforts to improve people's lives,” Modi said in a post on the social platform X. He called Singh's interventions in Parliament a “visionary” lawmaker and said ” his wisdom and humility were always evident. “
Rahul Gandhi, from the same party as Singh and the leader of the opposition in the lower house of the Indian Parliament, said that Singh's “deep understanding of economics had inspired the country” and that he was “leading India with wisdom and exceptional integrity.”
“I have lost a mentor and a guide. Millions of us who loved him will remember him with great pride,” Gandhi wrote on X.
The United States offered its condolences, with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken calling Singh “one of the greatest champions of the US-India strategic partnership.”
“We mourn Dr. Singh's passing and will always remember his commitment to bringing the United States and India closer together,” said Blinken.
Born on September 26, 1932, in a small town in the undivided Punjab province of India, Singh's brilliant career took him to Cambridge University in Britain, where he earned a degree in economics. in 1957. He then received a doctorate in economics from Nuffield College at Oxford University in 1962.
Singh taught at Panjab University and the prestigious Delhi School of Economics before joining the Indian government in 1971 as an economic adviser in the Ministry of Commerce. In 1982, he became the chief economic adviser to the Ministry of Finance. He was also the deputy chairman of the Planning Commission and a governor of the Reserve Bank of India.
As finance minister, Singh in 1991 instituted reforms he opened up the economy and moved India away from a socialist-patterned economy and towards a capitalist model in the face of a large balance-of-payments deficit, overshadowing a potential economic crisis.
His awards include the 1987 Padma Vibhushan Award, India's second highest civilian honor; Jawaharlal Nehru Birth Centenary Award of the Indian Science Congress in 1995; and the Asia Currency Award for Finance Minister of the Year in 1993 and 1994.
Singh was a member of the Upper House of the Indian Parliament and was the leader of the opposition from 1998 to 2004 before being appointed prime minister. He was the first Sikh to hold the country's top office and publicly apologized in Parliament for the 1984 Sikh Massacre in which around 3,000 Sikhs were killed after Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated by Sikh bodyguards .
Under Singh, India passed the Right to Information Act in 2005 to promote accountability and transparency from government officials and bureaucrats. He was also instrumental in implementing a welfare scheme that guaranteed at least 100 days of paid work for rural Indian citizens.
The coalition government that he led for ten years brought together politicians and parties with different ideologies that were rivals in the different states of the country.
In a move hailed as one of his greatest achievements apart from economic reforms, Singh ended India's nuclear isolation by signing an agreement with the United States that allowed the India on India. American nuclear technology.
But the deal backfired on his government, with Communist allies withdrawing support and criticism of the deal growing in India in 2008 when it was completed.
Singh adopted a pragmatic approach to foreign policy, pursuing a peace process with a nuclear rival and neighbor Pakistan. But his efforts suffered a major setback after Pakistani militants carried out a massive gun and bomb attack in Mumbai in November 2008.
He also tried to end the border dispute with China, brokering an agreement to reopen the Nathu La pass to Tibet, which had been closed for more than 40 years.
His 1965 book, “India's Export Trends and Prospects for Self-Stained Growth”, dealt with India's internal trade policy.
Singh is survived by his wife Gursharan Kaur and three daughters.
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Associate news writer Sheikh Saaliq in New Delhi contributed to this report.
