Today, 26 September, is the birth anniversary of Dr Manmohan Singh. Beyond his immense contribution to India, his remarkable qualifications, and the important positions he held in public life, he will be remembered for the quiet dignity with which he carried himself. In a world where political authority is frequently expressed through spectacle, Dr Manmohan Singh’s quiet presence was marked by humility, restraint and courtesy.

Newsweek, in 2010, described him as “the leader other leaders love”, noting the respect he commanded among world leaders for his modesty, humility and integrity. The magazine quoted Mohamed ElBaradei, former Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, who called the soft-spoken Singh “the model of what a political leader should be.”
That same year, Forbes described him as “universally praised as India’s best prime minister since Nehru.” Australian journalist Greg Sheridan called him “one of the greatest statesmen in Asian history.” These words reflected the international respect he had earned.
Perhaps the most remarkable part of Dr Singh’s story lies not in these accolades, but in where his journey began.
He was born in Gah, in undivided Punjab, and grew up amid the upheaval of Partition. At about fifteen, he lost his grandfather, who had raised him, in the communal violence that engulfed his village. He carried the memory of that violence for the rest of his life. Yet, remarkably, he did not let that terrible experience turn into hatred.
He chose the path of education. From Punjab, his academic brilliance took him to Cambridge, where he earned a First Class Honours degree in Economics in 1957. From there began his remarkable journey: from economist and civil servant to Finance Minister, who helped steer India through the economic crisis of 1991, and eventually to Prime Minister.
As Finance Minister in 1991, he introduced a series of economic reforms at a moment when India faced a severe balance-of-payments crisis and had foreign exchange reserves sufficient for only a few weeks of essential imports. And as Prime Minister, he led the government through the global financial crisis of 2008.

He was criticised, sometimes harshly. His quietness was mistaken for weakness; his restraint was sometimes read as an absence of authority. In an age increasingly attracted to spectacle, we forgot the value of a leader who did not need to raise his voice to make his presence felt.
He was a scholar who entered public life, an economist who became a statesman, and a man who had seen the worst of communal hatred without allowing it to define him. His greatest legacy was not only the reforms he helped bring about or the crises he helped navigate. It was a public life lived with dignity, restraint and decency.
Hazaaron jawaabon se achchhi thi woh khamoshi…
His silence said enough.

These are his qualifications, work experience and some positions held by him–

1962 D. Phil., Nuffield College, University of Oxford.
Topic: India’s Export Trends and Prospects for Self-Sustained Growth. [Published by Clarendon Press,
Oxford, 1964]
1957 Economic Tripos [First Class honours], University of
Cambridge
1954 M.A. Economics, Panjab University – First Class with
first position in the University
1952 B.A. Economics(Hons.), Panjab University – Second
Class with first position in the University
1950 Intermediate, Panjab University – First Class with first
position in the University
1948 Matriculation, Panjab University – First Class
PRIZES AND AWARDS
2000 Conferred Annasaheb Chirmule Award by the W.LG.
alias Annasaheb Chirmule Trust set up by United
Western Bank Limited, Satara, Maharashtra
1999 Received H.H. Kanchi Sri Paramacharya Award for
Excellence from Shri R. Venkataraman, former
President of India and Patron, The Centenarian Trust
1999 Fellow of the National Academy of Agricultural
Sciences, New Delhi.
1997 Conferred Lokmanya Tilak Award by the Tilak Smarak
Trust, Pune

1997 Received Justice K.S. Hegde Foundation Award for
the year 1996
1997 Awarded Nikkei Asia prize for Regional Growth by the
Nihon Keizai Shimbun Inc. (NIKKEI), publisher of
Japan’s leading business daily
1996 Honorary Professor, Delhi School of
Economics, University of Delhi, Delhi
1995 Jawaharlal Nehru Birth Centenary Award of the Indian
Science Congress Association for 1994-95
1994 Asia Money Award, Finance Minister of the Year
1994 Elected Distinguished Fellow, London School of
Economics, Centre for Asia Economy, Politics and
Society
1994 Elected Honorary Fellow, Nuffield College, University of
Oxford, Oxford, U.K.
1994 Honorary Fellow, All India Management Association
1993 Euromoney Award, Finance Minister of the year
1993 Asia Money Award, Finance Minister of the Year
1987 Padma Vibhushan Award by the President of India
1986 National Fellow, National Institute of Education,
N.C.E.R.T.
1985 Elected President, Indian Economic Association
1982 Elected Honorary Fellow, St. John’s College, Cambridge,
1982 Elected Honorary Fellow, Indian Institute of Bankers
1976 Honorary Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University,
New Delhi
1957 Elected Wrenbury Scholar, University of Cambridge,
U.K.
1955 Awarded Wright’s Prize for distinguished
performance, & St. John’s College, Cambridge, U.K.
1956 Awarded Adam Smith Prize, University of Cambridge,
U.K.
1954 Uttar Chand Kapur Medal, Panjab University, for
standing first in M.A.(Economics), panjab University,
Chandigarh
1952 University Medal for standing first in B.A.
Hon.(Economics), Panjab University, Chandigarh
Recipient of Honorary Degrees of D.Litt. from :
– Panjab University, Chandigarh
– Guru Nanak University, Amritsar
– Delhi University, Delhi
– Sri Venkateshwara University, Tirupati
– University of Bologna, Italy
– University of Mysore, Mysore
– Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar
(D.Sc.)
– Kurukshetra University
– Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology, Patiala (D.Sc.)
– Nagarjuna University, Nagarjuna Nagar
– Osmania University, Hyderabad
– University of Roorkee, Roorkee (Doctor of Social Sciences)
– Doctor of Laws by the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
– Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar University (formerly Agra University) –
Doctor of Letters degree
– Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad (Deemed University) D.Sc.
(Honoris Causa)
– Pt. Ravishankar Shukla University, Raipur
WORK EXPERIENCE AND POSITIONS HELD
May 22, 2004 – Prime Minister of India
March 21, 1998 – May 22, 2004: Leader of Opposition, Rajya
Sabha (Council of States)
August 1, 1996 – Dec 4, 1997: Chairman, Parliamentary Standing
Committee on Commerce, Rajya Sabha
June 21, 1991- May 15, 1996: Finance Minister of India
March 1991-June 1991: Chairman, University Grants
Commission
Dec 1990 – March 1991: Advisor to Prime Minister of India
on Economic Affairs
August 1987 – Nov 1990: Secretary General and
Commissioner, South Commission
Jan 1985- July 1987: Dy. Chairman, Planning
Commission of India
Sept 1982 – Jan 1985: Governor, Reserve Bank of India
April 1980 – Sept 1982: Member-Secretary, Planning
Commission, India

1957 – 1965: Panjab University, Chandigarh
1963- 65: Professor of Economics
1959-63: Reader in Economics
1957-59:Senior Lecturer in economics