Chandigarh, Dec 27 (IANS) “A Press Club must have an agenda, a larger professional purpose,” were the remarks of Dr. Manmohan Singh at his first and last visit to the Press Club in Chandigarh, the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana, on September 24, 2005, as the Prime Minister.
Sharing a note in his address on the occasion of the Chandigarh Press Club’s silver jubilee, the economist-turned-politician had said he was happy to learn that the club had organised the Panj Darya Media Conference in January, bringing together media personalities from Chandigarh and Lahore in Pakistan.
“The media can play a positive role in promoting better understanding between nations, between communities, between social groups,” the first Sikh to hold the nation’s highest office had noted.
Dr. Singh passed away on December 26 at the age of 92. Born on September 26, 1932, in Gah in Punjab, now in Pakistan, he was a distinguished economist and politician who served as Prime Minister from 2004 to 2014.
Wishing well the Chandigarh Press Club for its programmes, he had noted, “I am sure that you will succeed in bringing about a significant change in the way the media is perceived in your city. This will inspire your colleagues in other cities to also follow suit.”
Sharing a bond with one of the greatest champions of US-India strategic partnership, local Member of Parliament Manish Tewari noted, “Former PM Manmohan Singh and we were neighbours at Panjab University (in Chandigarh). He knew me from the day I opened my eyes in this world. I had the privilege of serving as Union minister in his government.”
As per university officials, Dr. Singh, often hailed as the architect of modern India’s economic reforms, did Bachelor’s degree in Economics in 1952 and Master’s degree in economics in 1954, standing first in his class.
Born into a humble and simple family in Punjab, he became a professor at the age of 32 years. His faculty contributions include a senior faculty lecturer from 1957 to 1959, Reader in economics from 1959 to 1963, and Professor of economics from 1963 to 1965.
He later studied at the University of Cambridge and University of Oxford, before moving to international assignments.
He was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Literature (D.Litt.) on March 12, 1983, and Honorary Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) on March 11, 2009.
Dr. Singh did his schooling and graduation in economics from Hindu College, both from Punjab’s Amritsar. His wife Gursharan Kaur also belongs to the holy city.
He had delivered the inaugural Professor. S.B. Rangnekar Memorial Oration in 2018 and donated 3,500 books from his personal library to his alma mater in that year.
Originally established in Lahore (now in Pakistan’s Punjab) in 1882, Panjab University was re-located to its present sprawling campus in Chandigarh’s Sector 14 and 25 in 1956 after the country’s Partition in 1947. It’s one of India’s oldest universities.
The ‘Dr. Manmohan Singh Chair’ in Panjab University’s Department of Economics was instituted in 2009 by Panjab University authorities when Dr. Singh was the Prime Minister from 2004 to 2014.
One of his students, Professor P.S. Rangi, 79, believes Dr. Singh was much more than an economics teacher at Panjab University.
“For us he was a mentor who left a lasting impact, shaping the lives of his students with wisdom, humility, and dedication.”
He recalled Dr. Singh’s generosity by inviting students to his residence on the Panjab University campus every Friday to casually clear their doubts over a cup of tea and snacks prepared by his wife.
The Panjab University’s noted alumni include late former President Shankar Dayal Sharma and late former Prime Minister I.K. Gujral, Jammu and Kashmir Governor N.N. Vohra, Nobel laureate Har Gobind Khorana, Jnanpith award winner and Sanskrit scholar Satya Vrat Shastri, astronaut Kalpana Chawla, the country’s first woman IPS officer Kiran Bedi and scores of others.
Dr. Singh had been to Chandigarh, where he owns a house in upscale Sector 11 several times. For years, he was a member of the governing body of the Centre for Research in Rural and Industrial Development (CRRID) here and was close to its executive vice-chairman, the late Dr Rashpal Malhotra.
Sharing grief, MP Tewari, wrote on X, “My association with late Dr Manmohan Singh goes back to the time when my parents and Dr Manmohan Singh were neighbours in Panjab University… How strange are the ways of God! I was supposed to call on him tomorrow (Saturday) in the morning. Soft spoken, erudite, intelligent but firm he was an inspiration for millions of young people for whom he opened up the doors of opportunity with the economic liberalisation in 1991.
“All through the years I shared a very warm personal relationship with him, including serving as Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting in his government.”
“I recall anchoring his mega press conference on January 3, 2014 where he gave an exhaustive overview of his 10 years as Prime Minister. Adieu Sir… Another world awaits,” he added.
(Vishal Gulati can be contacted at vishal.g@ians.in)
–IANS
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