Manmohan Singh
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| Name | Manmohan Singh |
|---|---|
| Born on | 09/26/32 |
| Tenure as FM | 1991-1996, 2008-2009 |
| Current Status | Member of the Rajya Sabha |
Manmohan Singh was the 13th Prime Minister of India. He was the second Prime Minister after Jawaharlal Nehru to have been elected successively to the post. He was also the first ever non-Hindu PM of India. Besides, he was also the 7th Prime Minister from the Indian National Congress.
Manmohan Singh – Political Career
The political career of Manmohan Singh started in 1991, when he was selected as the Finance Minister by the then Prime Minister, P. V. Narasimha Rao. India had a fiscal deficit of almost 8.5% at that time, and the deficit in its balance of payments was a substantial one. Its current account deficit was almost 3.5%. At that time India's foreign reserves were lesser than 1 billion US dollars, which was insufficient to purchase imports for even a week.
India sought assistance from the IMF, which suggested several measures for improving its economic situation. The License Raj was done away with and India relinquished public control over economy. Singh, who was one of the chief creators of India's socialist economy, gradually made the market available for foreign investors and private organisations.
Together Singh and Rao implemented policies that transformed India's economic policies to a capitalistic one. They removed the License Raj and made FDI easier in India. The process of privatising public sector companies started in India at this time but the Rao government failed to win the 1996 elections due to the lack of performance in other areas.
Singh offered to resign from his post as Finance Minister in 1993 after his ministry was criticised in a parliamentary investigation report for failing to stop a securities scandal of 1.8 billion US dollars. His resignation was rejected by the Prime Minister, who instead wanted to directly apprehend the ones responsible for the crime.
Manmohan Singh was originally elected to the Rajya Sabha in 1991 by the state legislature of Assam, and was elected again in 1995, 2001 and 2007. When the BJP was at the center from 1998 to 2004, he was the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha.
During 1999 he contested the elections for the Lok Sabha seat from South Delhi, but was not successful in winning it. He was selected, quite surprisingly, as the Prime Minister of India in 2004 by Congress chairperson Sonia Gandhi for his clean image and immense popularity.
Manmohan Singh – Major Steps as Prime Minister
- His policies have helped India become the economic heavyweight it is today. His decisions, in combination with the ones followed by P. Chidambaram, have ensured India stayed on a positive path of growth with an average economic growth rate of 7 to 8 percent per year.
- Has been an ardent advocate of globalisation and has helped India utilise its abundant labour resources to become one of the biggest global service providers.
- Has kept up the highway modernisation and Golden Quadrilateral programs started by the Vajpayee administration.
- Initiated the Value Added Tax in 2005 to replace the Sales Tax.
- In 2005 the Manmohan Singh government and the health ministry initiated the National Rural Health Mission.
- Continued the work on the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan program to counter illiteracy.
- Amended the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act incorporating majority of the provisions of POTA.
- Created the National Investigation Agency after the Mumbai terror attacks of 26-28 November 2011.
- Set up the Unique Identification Authority of India during February 2009. This agency has come up with the Multipurpose National Identity Card.
- Undertaken large scale reconstruction efforts in Kashmir.
- Passed the Right to Information Act and the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act.
- Has maintained the peace process with Pakistan.
- Started efforts to end border-related issues with the People's Republic of China.
- Improved relations with Afghanistan, Japan and the US. The ties with European nations such as UK, Germany and France have become better too.
- Maintained ties with Iran and bettered relations with South Africa and Brazil along with Russia and Israel.
Manmohan Singh – Major Awards and Recognition
The following table lists the accolades received by the former Indian Prime Minister throughout his career :
| Organization | Award or Honor Name | Year of Receipt |
|---|---|---|
| Panjab University, | University Medal for achieving first position in BA (Economics) | 1952 |
| Panjab University, | University Medal for achieving first position in MA (Economics) | 1954 |
| St. John’s College, Cambridge UK | Wright Prize for Distinguished Performance | 1955 |
| University of Cambridge UK | Adam Smith Prize | 1956 |
| University of Cambridge UK | Elected Wrenbury Scholar | 1957 |
| Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi | Honorary Professorship | 1976 |
| Indian Institute of Bankers | Elected Honorary Fellow, Indian Institute of Bankers | 1982 |
| St. John’s College, Cambridge UK | Elected Honorary Fellow, St. John’s College | 1982 |
| Indian Economic Association | Elected President of the Indian Economic Association | 1985 |
| National Institute of Education | Elected National Fellow, National Institute of Education | 1986 |
| President of India | Padma Vibhushan | 1987 |
| Asiamoney | Finance Minister of the Year | 1993 |
| Euromoney | Finance Minister of the Year | 1993 |
| All India Management Association | Elected Honorary Fellow of the All India Management Association | 1994 |
| London School of Economics, Centre for Asia Economy, Politics and Society | Elected Distinguished Fellow of the London School of Economics | 1994 |
| Nuffield College, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK | Elected Honorary Fellow, Nuffield College | 1994 |
| Indian Science Congress Association | Jawaharlal Nehru Birth Centenary Award (1994-95) | 1995 |
| Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi, Delhi | Honorary Professorship | 1996 |
| Nihon Keizai Shimbun Inc. | Nikkei Asia Prize for Regional Growth | 1997 |
| Justice KS Hegde Foundation | Justice KS Hegde Foundation Award | 1997 |
| Tilak Smarak Trust, Pune | Lokmanya Tilak Award | 1997 |
| National Academy of Agricultural Sciences | Fellow of the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences, New Delhi | 1999 |
| Shri R Venkataraman, The Centenarian Trust | HH Kanchi Sri Paramacharya Award for Excellence | 1999 |
| Annasaheb Chirmule Trust | Annasaheb Chirmule Award | 2000 |
| Indian Parliamentary Group | Outstanding Parliamentarian Award | 2002 |
| Time | Top 100 Influential People in the World | 2005 |
| Appeal of Conscience Foundation | World Statesman Award | 2010 |
Last Updated on : July 17, 2014
