Meanwhile, the Union Cabinet also condoled Singh’s passing and hailed him as an eminent statesman and a distinguished leader who left an imprint on national life.During a meeting chaired by Modi, the Cabinet observed a two-minute silence in honour of the departed soul and adopted a Condolence Resolution in the memory of Singh.”Dr Manmohan Singh has left his imprint on our national life. In his passing away, the Nation has lost an eminent statesman, renowned economist and a distinguished leader,” the resolution read.The government has announced a seven-day State mourning as a mark of respect to the former prime minister.Singh, who steered the country for 10 years from 2004-2014 and helped set up the country’s economic framework as finance minister before that, was a renowned name in the global financial and economic sectors. Apart from being an economist, Singh served as Reserve Bank of India governor from 1982-1985. He was the 13th Prime Minister of India and was then the longest-serving PM after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi.Serving as the finance minister of India in PV Narasimha Rao’s government, Singh has been given credit for economic liberalisation in the country in 1991. The reforms made the Indian economy more accessible to foreign investors, which increased FDI and reduced government control. It greatly contributed to the country’s economic growth.Singh’s UPA government introduced pathbreaking initiatives such as the Right to Information Act, Right to Education Act and the MNREGA. He retired from the Rajya Sabha earlier this year after serving for 33 years.Born to Gurmukh Singh and Amrit Kaur on September 26, 1932, in Gah village of the Punjab province of undivided India (now Pakistan), Singh passed his matriculation examination in 1948. After migrating to India, the Singh family settled in a small rented house in Amritsar till he graduated.Singh’s academic career took him from Punjab to the University of Cambridge, UK, where he earned a First Class Honours degree in Economics. He followed this with a DPhil in economics from Nuffield College of Oxford University.Singh’s half-brother Surjit Singh Kohli said the former prime minister had deep affection for his grandmother, who raised him following his mother’s death when he was very young.His passing also witnessed people from various fields sharing their anecdotes about him.Actor and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) alumna Swara Bhaskar recalled how the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) intervened to prevent the administration from acting against students who had displayed black flags at him during a campus event.Uttar Pradesh minister Asim Arun, who served as Singh’s close protection officer for nearly three years during his tenure as a Special Protection Group (SPG) officer, shared his experiences and insights into Singh’s personality, emphasising his simple lifestyle and connection with the common man.One anecdote Arun shared reflected Singh’s simplicity — his attachment to his personal car, a modest Maruti Suzuki 800. Despite having a fleet of high-security vehicles, including a luxurious BMW for official travel, Singh would often express his preference for the modest car.
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