Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Dr. Manmohan Singh - Biography



The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh meeting with the Chancellor of Germany, Mrs. Angela Merkel, at Heiligendamm, Germany on June 08, 2007.
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Picture source: http://pib.nic.in/photo/2007/Jun/l2007060813635.jpg


Manmohan Singh was born on Monday, September 26, 1932 at Gah in the Punjab before the partition of the subcontinent.  He lost his mother when he was very young, and he was raised by his paternal grandmother.  He was a hard working student who studied by candlelight, as his village did not have electricity. After the Partition of India, he migrated to Amritsar, India, where he studied at Hindu College. He attended Punjab University, Chandigarh studying Economics and attaining his bachelor's and master's degrees in 1952 and 1954 respectively, standing first throughout his academic career. He went on to read for the Economics Tripos at Cambridge as a member of St John's College.

He continued with his graduate studies at Oxford University and achieved a doctorate in economics in 1962. He returned to India, lecturing at Punjab University and at the Delhi School of Economics. In 1971 he joined the Indian civil service as an economic adviser in the commerce ministry. His talents were quickly rewarded, and he was appointed chief economic adviser in the ministry of finance in 1972.

An economist by profession, Singh was the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India from 1982 to 1985, the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission of India from 1985 to 1987

Singh made the transition from bureaucrat to politician in 1991 when he was appointed a member of India's upper house of parliament (the Rajya Sabha). While a member of the upper house between 1991 and 1996, he also became the finance minister in Prime Minister P. V. Narasimha Rao's government. With Rao's support, he initiated successful economic reforms aimed at slashing India's infamous red tape, enhancing productivity, and liberalizing the economy. His goals were to end protectionism and open the Indian economy to foreign investment so that India would evolve to a mixed economy saving it from the verge of bankruptcy. As a result the economy became reinvigorated, inflation was controlled, and Indian industry began to show signs of strength.

 the Finance Minister of India from 1991 to 1996. He is also a Rajya Sabha member from Assam, currently serving his fourth term. Dr. Manmohan Singh previously carried out economic reforms in India during his tenure as the Finance Minister from 1991 to 1996. These reforms resulted in the end of the Licence Raj system, helping to open the Indian economy to greater international trade and investment.

In 2004, he became PM of India.

He is the 14th and current  Prime Minister of the Republic of India.


2014 - Events in Life of Manmohan Singh


3 January 2014
Press Conference by Man Mohan Singh
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In 2014 Lok Sabha elections, BJP/NDA won the majority in the Lok Sabha. Dr. Manmohan Singh gracefully thanked all employees of the Prime Minsters Office and relinquished his post. It is written in papers that he is attending sessions of Rajya Sabha more frequently now.



101th Indian Science Congress -3rd February 2014


Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh  inaugurated 101th Indian Science Congress  in Jammu.

Seaking on the ocaasion he said India needs to leverage the ability of modern science to deliver value to society and our basic research must be directed to make new discoveries with innovative efforts to develop affordable solutions suited to Indian condition. He also emphasized that our science should be a driving force propelling India as a resurgent civilization which holds out both hope and opportunity for our young citizens.

Dr. Manmohan Singh said the 2013 Science, Technology and Innovation Policy reflects our ambitions and outlines our broad approach. He said we have strengthened the research and academic base of the country as a critical foundation to achieve these goals and have also taken a number of measures to make a career in science more attractive.

The Prime Minster said our ability to contribute to the world of science depends crucially on the quality and the strength of our educational system. Science education in our country requires much more attention. In the next few years, we will have the largest young population entering higher education. We must find, therefore, ways and means of encouraging them to take up the right path that will provide them not only productive employment but also excitement in their profession. He said We need to ensure that the best among our young people take up science as a career and to do this we must ensure that it is attractive enough for them to do so.

He said the five Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research we have created have added a new dimension to excellence in the cause of science education. We have also established eight new Indian Institutes of Technology and converted an existing institution into an IIT. Access to education in these high-calibre institutions has more than tripled in ten short years. This is a significant development.

Dr. Manmohan Singh said to do science, someone must pay for it. We must increase our annual expenditure on science and technology to at least 2% of our GDP. This has to come from both government and industry. In countries such as South Korea, where a high percentage of the GDP goes to science, the contribution of Korean industry is indeed very significant. He said our Department of Biotechnology has activated private public partnerships in R&D in biotechnology. He also appeal to the corporate sector to join hands with the government in realizing the goals that have been set for more our nation.

He referred to the announcement of a new scheme INSPIRE to attract talent into science studies and research made in the Vishakapattanam Science Congress and said this scheme has today emerged as one of our Government’s most highly acclaimed and recognized programmes. It has rewarded more than one million children and generated over 400 patent-grade innovations from our young Indians.

He said a major research funding organization, the National Science and Engineering Research Board, has just started functioning. This Board is managed by scientists and it has simplified funding procedures. We expect much more from it in supporting individual scientists as well as groups of scientists in creating small units devoted to crucial sectors at the very frontiers of science.

He also referred to the launch of India’s Geo-Stationary Launch Vehicle, powered by an indigenous cryogenic engine, soared majestically into space a month ago. He congratulated scientists in ISRO for having mastered the technology of liquid hydrogen rocket engines and said the launches of our Moon and Mars Missions are testimony to the giant strides we are now making in Space for which our Space Scientists deserve genuine credit.

Dr. Manmohan Singh said Indian nuclear scientists are attracting global interest in their effort to develop a Fast Breeder Reactor.He expected the prototype under construction in Kalpakkam to be completed this year. It will be a great day for Indian science and technology because we will be one of the few countries in the world with leadership in a completely new area of nuclear technology that can contribute non-polluting electrical power.

He also referred to the achievements of Ministry of Earth Sciences and said We now have the ability to issue alerts within 13 minutes of a tsunami-genic event. This has established India’s scientific leadership in the Indian Ocean region.

He desired to to see continuous improvement in our monsoon prediction capability through the recently launched Monsoon Mission so that we avert the kind of calamities that we saw in Uttarakhand last year.

Dr. Manmohan Singh said recognizing the role of scientific inputs for accessible and affordable healthcare programmes Government has established a new department for Health Education and Research and efforts to discover drugs for neglected diseases are beginning to bear fruit. A Rota Virus vaccine, a new drug for malaria and many other leads emanating from collaborative research are all reassuring developments.

He said in the last ten years, several national missions have been launched in the emerging priority areas of electronics, electric mobility and solar energy. The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research has leveraged Open Source Innovation for discovery of drugs and found a lead for TB. CSIR has also ventured into the new world of data-intensive discovery and large data systems.

Dr. Manmohan Singh further said we have also devised several ways of supporting young scientists as well as senior scientists in the last ten years. The J.C. Bose and Ramanujan Fellowships, and other similar initiatives, are intended to ensure that science is attractive as a profession, and capable individuals get adequate support for their research work.

The Prime Minster informed that a new initiative is the institution of 25 Jawaharlal Nehru Fellowships, under which eminent scientists anywhere abroad are invited to work in India for 12 months over a three year-period. The Government has already selected the first five Fellows. They are Prof. M. Vidyasagar, a distinguished computational biologist at the University of Texas, Prof Srinivas Kulkarni, a distinguished astronomer at Caltech, Prof. Trevor Charles Platt, a distinguished geo-scientist at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Canada, Prof. Srinivasa Varadhan, a distinguished mathematical scientist at New York University and Prof. Azim Surani, a distinguished life scientist at the University of Cambridge. All of them are Fellows of the Royal Society and one is an Abel medallist.

He said Government must also focus on creating new opportunities for our bright and socially conscious scientists. To ensure food security and to improve land and water productivity, we have to launch a national drive for an ever-green revolution. This will test the ingenuity of our agricultural scientists. Climate-resilient agriculture and modern bio-technological tools hold great promise. Use of bio-technology has great potential to improve yields. The Prime Minister added that while safety must be ensured, we should not succumb to unscientific prejudices against Bt. crops. He said our government remains committed to promoting the use of these new technologies for agricultural development. He urged scientific community to increase communication and engagement with society at large in explaining socially productive applications of technology alternatives and for improving the productivity of small and medium enterprises.

The Prime Minster said Government has invested in many areas to ensure that India remains at the cutting edge of science. He announced another National Mission on High Performance Computing with an outlay of Rs. 4500 crores. We are also considering establishment of a National Geographical Information System with an outlay of about Rs. 3000 crores. A National Mission on Teaching to enhance the esteem of our teachers is also being launched,he added.

He also announced that that India will partner the international scientific community in the establishment of some of the world’s major R&D projects. In the Gravitational Wave experiment, India intends to host the third detector. He said A Neutrino-based Observatory is proposed to be established in Tamil Nadu at a cost of about Rs 1450 crores. India is also joining the famous CERN institute as an associate member.

He said we must also seek global leadership in at least some research and development areas. Affordable innovations for human healthcare, sustainable agriculture, clean energy and total solutions for water-related challenges are some areas where Indian science can seek global leadership.

Dr. Manmohan Singh said science has not yet got its proper due in our value system. He expected science to be high in our value system so that our entire society provides both moral and material support for its development.

Referring to the selection of Professor CNR Rao for the highest civilian award of Bharat Ratna he said let be this only the first step in creating an environment that gives birth to many more Bharat Ratnas in the field of Indian science.

On this occasion Dr. Manmohan Singh also awarded some the scientists the ISCA Awards. Among them are: Dr. Rajender Lakshman Karandikar, Prof. S.M.Pal Khurana, Dr. G.Shrireesh Reddy, Prof. P.C.Trivedi and Prof. Abhijeet Bannerjee. He also awarded and felicitated Dr. Y.T.Lee, Nobel laureate, Prof. Yashpal, Prof. R.P.Bhamba, Prof. Krishan Pal, Prof. N.S.Dhalla, Prof. Avtaar Kishan,Dr. T.Ramasami, Prof. A.K.Sood, Prof. Avinash Chander, Prof. V.P.Kamboj. Prof. I.J.S.Bansal, Prof. Ashok Saksema,Prof. S.P.Singh and Prof. R.P.Bhamba. The Prime Mniste also released a book written by present ISC president Prof. R.C. Sobti and Dr. G.S Rautrla titled as” India’s Culture of Science- Glorious Past and Bright Future”.

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Biographies of Famous Indians

Updated 24 March 2015, 26 Sep 2014





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