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1.CRICKET
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3.INDIAN POLITICS
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6.SOCIAL DEBATES & ARTICLES

Manmohan Singh's letter on the day of trust vote...

"The Leader of Opposition, Shri L.K. Advani has chosen to use all manner of abusive objectives to describe my performance. He has described me as the weakest Prime Minister, a nikamma PM, and of having devalued the office of PM. To fulfill his ambitions, he has made at least three attempts to topple our government. But on each occasion his astrologers have misled him. This pattern, I am sure, will be repeated today. At his ripe old age, I do not expect Shri Advani to change his thinking. But for his sake and India’s sake, I urge him at least to change his astrologers so that he gets more accurate predictions of things to come.
As for Shri Advani’s various charges, I do not wish to waste the time of the House in rebutting them. All I can say is that before leveling charges of incompetence on others, Shri Advani should do some introspection. Can our nation forgive a Home Minister who slept when the terrorists were knocking at the doors of our Parliament? Can our nation forgive a person who single handedly provided the inspiration for the destruction of the Babri Masjid with all the terrible consequences that followed? To atone for his sins, he suddenly decided to visit Pakistan and there he discovered new virtues in Mr. Jinnah. Alas, his own party and his mentors in the RSS disowned him on this issue. Can our nation approve the conduct of a Home Minister who was sleeping while Gujarat was burning leading to the loss of thousands of innocent lives? Our friends in the Left Front should ponder over the company they are forced to keep because of miscalculations by their General Secretary.
As for my conduct, it is for this august House and the people of India to judge. All I can say is that in all these years that I have been in office, whether as Finance Minister or Prime Minister, I have felt it as a sacred obligation to use the levers of power as a societal trust to be used for transforming our economy and polity, so that we can get rid of poverty, ignorance and disease which still afflict millions of our people. This is a long and arduous journey. But every step taken in this direction can make a difference. And that is what we have sought to do in the last four years. How far we have succeeded is something I leave to the judgement of the people of India.
When I look at the composition of the opportunistic group opposed to us, it is clear to me that the clash today is between two alternative visions of India’s future. The one vision represented by the UPA and our allies seeks to project India as a self confident and united nation moving forward to gain its rightful place in the comity of nations, making full use of the opportunities offered by a globalised world, operating on the frontiers of modern science and technology and using modern science and technology as important instruments of national economic and social development. The opposite vision is of a motley crowd opposed to us who have come together to share the spoils of office to promote their sectional, sectarian and parochial interests. Our Left colleagues should tell us whether Shri L.K. Advani is acceptable to them as a Prime Ministerial candidate. Shri L.K. Advani should enlighten us if he will step aside as Prime Ministerial candidate of the opposition in favour of the choice of UNPA. They should take the country into confidence on this important issue.
I have already stated in my opening remarks that the House has been dragged into this debate unnecessarily. I wish our attention had not been diverted from some priority areas of national concern. These priorities are :
(i) Tackling the imported inflation caused by steep increase in oil prices. Our effort is to control inflation without hurting the rate of growth and employment.
(ii) To revitalize agriculture. We have decisively reversed the declining trend of investment and resource flow in agriculture. The Finance Minister has dealt with the measures we have taken in this regard. We have achieved a record foodgrain production of 231 million tones. But we need to redouble our efforts to improve agricultural productivity.
(iii) To improve the effectiveness of our flagship pro poor programmes such as National Rural Employment Programme, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, Nation-wide Mid day meal programme, Bharat Nirman to improve the quality of rural infrastructure of roads, electricity, safe drinking water, sanitation, irrigation, National Rural Health Mission and the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission. These programmes are yielding solid results. But a great deal more needs to be done to improve the quality of implementation.
(iv) We have initiated a major thrust in expanding higher education. The objective is to expand the gross enrolment ratio in higher education from 11.6 per cent to 15 per cent by the end of the 11th Plan and to 21per cent by the end of 12th Plan. To meet these goals, we have an ambitious programme which seeks to create 30 new universities, of which 14 will be world class, 8 new IITs, 7 new IIMs, 20 new IIITs, 5 new IISERs, 2 Schools of planning and Architecture, 10 NITs, 373 new degree colleges and 1000 new polytechnics. And these are not just plans. Three new IISERs are already operational and the remaining two will become operational from the 2008-09 academic session. Two SPAs will be starting this year. Six of the new IITs start their classes this year. The establishment of the new universities is at an advanced stage of planning.
(v) A nation wide Skill Development Programme and the enactment of the Right to Education Act, "

CONGRATULATIONS UPA..................

"India Inc on Tuesday hailed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's victory in the confidence vote saying the government should go all out on the economic reform and take the Indo-US nuclear deal to its logical end. The apex industry chambers associations said the victory proved that a majority of people's representative were in support of nuclear civil agreement for meeting India's energy needs. Meanwhile, Dalal Street also welcomed government's win in floor test."

Thank god...............................left is out..........................BJP has a setback....though mayawati did not loose much but still UPA won, India won, Industry won..................i wish this would have happened earlier...................govt without left is the rightmost option with the govt.....................

SOME FACTS ABOUT INFLATION................

There is a lot of uproar in India following the inflation hitting double-digit mark after a long time and at the junction when new indian generation has seen it for the first time........Still the figure hovers around 12%................Do you know what is the highest inflation today?.............Or where has been the highest inflation recorded ever...................well figures are beyond ones imagination and has happened not much back but its a story of the this century.................lets check out some

• By late 1923, the Weimar Republic of Germany was issuing fifty-million Mark banknotes and postage stamps with a face value of fifty billion Mark. The highest value banknote issued by the Weimar government's Reichsbank had a face value of 100 trillion Mark (100,000,000,000,000). One of the firms printing these notes submitted an invoice for the work to the Reichsbank for 32,776,899,763,734,490,417.05 (3.28×1019, or 33 quintillion) Marks.

1923 Weimar Republic inflation: A German woman feeding a stove with Papiermarks, which burned longer than the amount of firewood people could buy with them

• The largest denomination banknote ever officially issued for circulation was in 1946 by the Hungarian National Bank forthe amount of 100 quintillion pengő (100,000,000,000,000,000,000, or 1020). image (There was even a banknote worth 10 times more, i.e. 1021 pengő, printed, but not issued image.) The banknotes however didn't depict the number, making the 500,000,000,000 Yugoslav dinar banknote the world's leader when it comes to depicted zeros on banknotes. The Post-WWII hyperinflation of Hungary holds the record for the most extreme monthly inflation rate ever — 41,900,000,000,000,000% (4.19 × 1016%) for July, 1946, amounting to prices doubling every fifteen hours.


• One way to avoid the use of large numbers is by declaring a new unit of currency (an example being, instead of 10,000,000,000 Dollars, a bank might set 1 new dollar = 1,000,000,000 old dollars, so the new note would read "10 new dollars".) An example of this would be Turkey's revaluation of the Lira on January 1, 2005, when the old Turkish Lira (TRL) was converted to the new Turkish Lira (YTL) at a rate of 1,000,000 old to 1 new Turkish Lira. While this does not lessen actual value of a currency, it is called redenomination or revaluation and also happens over time in countries with standard inflation levels. During hyperinflation, currency inflation happens so quickly that bills reach large numbers before revaluation.
  
  Some banknotes were stamped to indicate changes of denomination. This is because it would take too
  

Country wise:-
Angola
Angola went through its worst inflation from 1991 to 1995. In early 1991, the highest denomination was 50,000 kwanzas. By 1994, it was 500,000 kwanzas. In the 1995 currency reform, 1 kwanza reajustado was exchanged for 1,000 kwanzas. The highest denomination in 1995 was 5,000,000 kwanzas reajustados. In the 1999 currency reform, 1 new kwanza was exchanged for 1,000,000 kwanzas reajustados. The overall impact of hyperinflation: 1 new kwanza = 1,000,000,000 pre 1991 kwanzas.

Argentina
Argentina went through steady inflation from 1975 to 1991. At the beginning of 1975, the highest denomination was 1,000 pesos. In late 1976, the highest denomination was 5,000 pesos. In early 1979, the highest denomination was 10,000 pesos. By the end of 1981, the highest denomination was 1,000,000 pesos. In the 1983 currency reform, 1 Peso Argentino was exchanged for 10,000 pesos. In the 1985 currency reform, 1 austral was exchanged for 1,000 pesos argentino. In the 1992 currency reform, 1 new peso was exchanged for 10,000 australes. The overall impact of hyperinflation: 1 (1992) peso = 100,000,000,000 pre-1983 pesos.

Austria
Between 1921 and 1922, inflation in Austria reached 134%.

Belarus
Belarus went through steady inflation from 1994 to 2002. In 1993, the highest denomination was 5,000 rublei. By 1999, it was 5,000,000 rublei. In the 2000 currency reform, the ruble was replaced by the new ruble at an exchange rate of 1 new ruble = 1,000 old rublei. The highest denomination in 2002 was 50,000 rublei, equal to 50,000,000 pre-2000 rublei.

Bolivia
Bolivia went through its worst inflation between 1984 and 1986. Before 1984, the highest denomination was 1,000 pesos bolivianos. By 1985, the highest denomination was 10 Million pesos bolivianos. In 1985, a Bolivian note for 1 million pesos was worth 55 cents in US dollars, one-thousandth of its exchange value of $5,000 less than three years previously.[5] In the 1987 currency reform, the Peso Boliviano was replaced by the Boliviano at a rate of 1,000,000 : 1.

Bosnia-Herzegovina
Bosnia-Hezegovina went through its worst inflation in 1993. In 1992, the highest denomination was 1,000 dinara. By 1993, the highest denomination was 100,000,000 dinara. In the Republika Srpska, the highest denomination was 10,000 dinara in 1992 and 10,000,000,000 dinara in 1993. 50,000,000,000 dinara notes were also printed in 1993 but never issued.

Brazil
From 1986 to 1994, the base currency unit was shifted three times to adjust for inflation in the final years of the Brazilian military dictatorship era. A 1960s cruzeiro was, in 1994, worth less than one trillionth of a US cent, after adjusting for multiple devaluations and note changes. A new currency called real was adopted in 1994, and hyperinflation was eventually brought under control. The real was also the currency in use until 1942; 1 (current) real is the equivalent of 2,750,000,000,000,000,000 of those old reals (called réis in Portuguese)

Chile
Beginning in 1971, during the presidency of Salvador Allende, Chilean inflation began to rise and reached peaks of 1,200% in 1973. As a result of the hyperinflation, food became scarce and overpriced. A 1973 coup d'état deposed the democratically elected Allende and installed a military government led by Augusto Pinochet. Pinochet's free-market economic policy ended the inflation and except for an economic depression in 1981 the economy has recovered.

China
As the first user of fiat currency, China has had an early history of troubles caused by hyperinflation. The Yuan Dynasty printed huge amounts of fiat paper money to fund their wars, and the resulting hyperinflation, coupled with other factors, led to its demise at the hands of a revolution. The Republic of China went through the worst inflation 1948-49. In 1947, the highest denomination was 50,000 yuan. By mid-1948, the highest denomination was 180,000,000 yuan. The 1948 currency reform replaced the yuan by the gold yuan at an exchange rate of 1 gold yuan = 3,000,000 yuan. In less than 1 year, the highest denomination was 10,000,000 gold yuan. The highest denomination by a regional bank was 6,000,000,000 yuan issued by XinJiang Provincial Bank in 1949. After the renminbi was instituted by the new communist government, hyperinflation ceased with a revaluation of 1:10,000 in 1955.
Free City of Danzig
Danzig went through its worst inflation in 1923. In 1922, the highest denomination was 1,000 Mark. By 1923, the highest denomination was 10,000,000,000 Mark.

Georgia
Georgia went through its worst inflation in 1994. In 1993, the highest denomination was 100,000 coupons [kuponi]. By 1994, the highest denomination was 1,000,000 coupons. In the 1995 currency reform, a new currency lari was introduced with 1 lari exchanged for 1,000,000 coupons.

Germany
Germany went through its worst inflation in 1923. In 1922, the highest denomination was 50,000 Mark. By 1923, the highest denomination was 100,000,000,000,000 Mark. In December of 1923 the exchange rate from marks to US dollars was 4 trillion to 1. During the worst times, one U.S. dollar was equal to 80 billion Mark. In 1923, the rate of inflation hit 3.25 × 106 percent per month (prices double every two days). The overall impact of hyperinflation: In November 1923, 1,000,000,000,000 old Mark were exchanged for 1 Rentenmark.

Greece
Greece went through its worst inflation in 1944. In 1943, the highest denomination was 25,000 drachmai. By 1944, the highest denomination was 100,000,000,000,000 drachmai. In the 1944 currency reform, 1 new drachma was exchanged for 50,000,000,000 drachmai. Another currency reform in 1953 replaced the drachma at an exchange rate of 1 new drachma = 1,000 old drachma. The overall impact of hyperinflation: 1 (1953) drachma = 50,000,000,000,000 pre 1944 drachmai. The Greek inflation rate reached 8.5 billion percent per month (prices double every 28 hours).

Hungary
Hungary went through its worst inflation in modern history in 1945-46. Before 1945, the highest denomination was 1,000 pengő. By the end of 1945, it was 10,000,000 pengő. The highest denomination in mid-1946 was 100,000,000,000,000,000,000 pengő. The rate of inflation was 4.19 quintillion (4.19 x 1018) percent. A special currency the adópengő - or tax pengő - was created for tax and postal payments [1]. The value of the adópengő was adjusted each day, by radio announcement. On January 1, 1946 one adópengő equaled one pengő. By late July, one adópengő equaled 2,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 or 2×1021pengő. When the pengo was replaced in August 1946 by the forint, the total value of all Hungarian banknotes in circulation amounted to one-thousandth of one US cent. [7] It is the most severe known incident of inflation recorded, peaking at 4.19 × 1016 percent per month (prices double every 15 hours). The overall impact of hyperinflation: On the 1st of August, 1946 400,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 or 4×1029 (four hundred octillion [ short scale ] ) pengő became 1 forint.
One source [2] states that this hyperinflation was purposely started by trained Russian Marxists in order to destroy the Hungarian middle and upper classes. The 1946 currency reform changed the currency to forint. Previously, between 1922 and 1924 inflation in Hungary reached 98%.
Israel
Inflation accelerated in the 1970s, rising steadily from 13% in 1971 to 111% in 1979. From 133% in 1980, it leaped to 191% in 1983 and then to 445% in 1984, threatening to become a four-digit figure within a year or two. In 1985 Israel froze all prices by law. That same year, inflation more than halved, to 185%. Within a few months, the authorities began to lift the price freeze on some items; in other cases it took almost a year. By 1986, inflation was down to 19%.

Japan
After WW II, Japan went through the highest denomination at that time, which was more than 70,000,000,000 Yen. The Japan wholesale price index (relative to 1 as the average of 1934 to 1936) shot up to 16.3 in 1946, 127.9 in 1948 and 342.5 in 1951. In the early 1950s, after achieving independence from USA, Japan controlled its own money. Through its rapidly growing export trade, Japan stablized the Yen quickly.
Krajina
Krajina went through the worst inflation in 1993. In 1992, the highest denomination was 50,000 dinara. By 1993, the highest denomination was 50,000,000,000 dinara. Note that this unrecognized country was reincorporated into Croatia in 1998.

Madagascar
The Malagasy franc had a turbulent time in 2004, losing nearly half its value and sparking rampant inflation. On 1 January 2005 the Malagasy ariary replaced the previous currency at a rate of one ariary for five Malagsy francs. In May 2005 there were riots over rising inflation, although falling prices have since calmed the situation.

Mexico
The Mexican peso had a turbulent time in late 1980s and early 1990s, culminating in the 1994 economic crisis in Mexico.

Nicaragua
Nicaragua went through the worst inflation from 1987 to 1990. In 1986, the highest denomination was 10,000 córdobas. By 1987, it was 1,000,000 córdobas. In the 1988 currency reform, 1 new córdoba was exchanged for 10,000 old córdobas. The highest denomination in 1990 was 100,000,000 new córdobas. In the 1991 currency reform, 1 new córdoba was exchanged for 5,000,000 old córdobas. The overall impact of hyperinflation: 1 (1991) córdoba = 50,000,000,000 pre-1988 córdobas.

Peru
Peru went through its worst inflation from 1984 to 1990. The highest denomination in 1984 was 100,000 soles de oro. In the 1985 currency reform, 1 inti was exchanged for 1,000 soles de oro. In 1986, the highest denomination was 1,000 intis. It was 20,000,000 intis by 1991. In the 1991 currency reform, 1 nuevo sol was exchanged for 1,000,000 intis. The overall impact of hyperinflation: 1 nuevo sol = 1,000,000,000 pre 1985 soles de oro.

Poland
Poland went through its worst inflation between 1990 and 1993. The highest denomination in 1989 was 200,000 zlotych. It was 1,000,000 zlotych in 1991 and 2,000,000 zlotych in 1992. In the 1994 currency reform, 1 new zloty was exchanged for 10,000 old zlotych. Previously, between 1922 and 1924, Polish inflation reached 275%.

Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska was the breakaway region of Bosnia. As with Krajina, it pegged its currency to that of Yugoslavia. Their bills were almost the same as Krajina's, but they issued fewer and didn't issue currency after 1993.

Romania
Romania is still working through steady inflation. The highest denomination in 1998 was 100,000 lei. By 2000 it was 500,000 lei. In early 2005 it was 1,000,000 lei. In July 2005 the leu was replaced by the new leu at 10,000 old lei = 1 new leu. Inflation in 2005 was 9%. In 2006 the highest denomination is 500 lei (= 5,000,000 old lei).

Russia
Between 1921 and 1922 inflation in Soviet Russia reached 213%.
In 1992, the first year of post-Soviet economic reform, inflation was 2,520%, the major cause being the decontrol of most prices in January. In 1993 the annual rate was 840%, and in 1994, 224%. The ruble devalued from about 40 r/$ in 1991 to about 30,000 r/$ in 1999.

Taiwan
Severe inflation existed in the late 1940s due to factors such as corruption and Chinese Civil War. Increasingly higher denominations were issued on the island, up to one million yuan. Inflation was eventually controlled after the new Taiwan dollar was issued in 1949 at a ratio of 40,000-to-1 against the old Taiwan yuan.

Turkey
Throughout the 1990s Turkey dealt with severe inflation rates that finally crippled the economy into a recession in 2001. The highest denomination in 1995 was 1,000,000 lira. By 2005 it was 50,000,000 lira. Recently Turkey has achieved single digit inflation for the first time in decades, and in the 2005 currency reform, introduced the New Turkish Lira; 1 was exchanged for 1,000,000 old lira.

Ukraine
Ukraine went through its worst inflation between 1993 and 1995. In 1992, the Ukrainian karbovanets was introduced, which was exchanged with the defunct Soviet ruble at a rate of 1 UAK = 1 SUR. Before 1993, the highest denomination was 1,000 karbovantsiv. By 1995, it was 1,000,000 karbovantsiv. In 1996, during the transition to the Hryvnya and the subsequent phase out of the karbovanets, the exchange rate was 100,000 UAK = 1 UAH. This translates to a hyperinflation rate of approximately 1,400% per month. And to this day Ukraine holds the world record for most inflation in one calendar year, which was set in 1993.

United States
During the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress authorized the printing of paper currency called continental currency. The easily counterfeited notes depreciated rapidly, giving rise to the expression "not worth a continental."
Between January 1861 and April 1865, the Lerner Commodity Price Index of leading cities in the eastern Confederacy states increased from 100 to over 9000. As the U.S. Civil War dragged on the Confederate States of America dollar had less and less value, until it was almost worthless by the last few months of the war.

Yugoslavia 50 billion Dinar bank noteYugoslavia

Yugoslavia went through a period of hyperinflation and subsequent currency reforms from 1989 to 1994. The highest denomination in 1988 was 50,000 dinars. By 1989 it was 2,000,000 dinars. In the 1990 currency reform, 1 new dinar was exchanged for 10,000 old dinars. In the 1992 currency reform, 1 new dinar was exchanged for 10 old dinars. The highest denomination in 1992 was 50,000 dinars. By 1993, it was 10,000,000,000 dinars. In the 1993 currency reform, 1 new dinar was exchanged for 1,000,000 old dinars. But before the year was over, the highest denomination was 500,000,000,000 dinars. In the 1994 currency reform, 1 new dinar was exchanged for 1,000,000,000 old dinars. In another currency reform a month later, 1 novi dinar was exchanged for 11.5 million dinars (1 novi dinar = 1 German mark at the time of exchange). The overall impact of hyperinflation: 1 novi dinar = 1 × 1027~1.3 × 1027 pre 1990 dinars. Yugoslavia's rate of inflation hit 5 × 1015 percent inflation between 1 October 1993 and 24 January 1994 (prices double every 16 hours).

Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo)
Zaire went through a period of inflation between 1989 and 1996. In 1988, the highest denomination was 5,000 zaires. By 1992, it was 5,000,000 zaires. In the 1993 currency reform, 1 nouveau zaire was exchanged for 3,000,000 old zaires. The highest denomination in 1996 was 1,000,000 nouveaux zaires. In 1997, Zaire was renamed the Congo Democratic Republic and changed its currency to francs. 1 franc was exchanged for 100,000 nouveaux zaires. The overall impact of hyperinflation: 1 franc = 3 × 1011 pre 1989 zaires.

Zimbabwe
At Independence in 1980, the Zimbabwe dollar was worth about USD 1.25. Since then, rampant inflation and the collapse of the economy have severely devalued the currency, causing many organisations to favour using the US dollar or South African rand instead. Inflation was stable until Robert Mugabe began a program of land reforms that primarily focused on taking land from white farmers and redistributing those properties and assets to black farmers; this in turn sent food production and revenues from export of food plummeting.
Early in the 21st century Zimbabwe started to experience hyperinflation. Inflation reached 624% in early 2004, then fell back to low triple digits before surging to a new high of 1,730% in March 2007. During that time, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe revalued their currency on August 1, 2006 at a rate of 1,000 old Zimbabwean dollars to 1 revalued Zimbabwean dollar. In June 2007, inflation in Zimbabwe had risen to 11,000% from an earlier estimate of 9,000%. On May 5th, 2008 the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe issued bank notes or "bearer cheques" for the value of ZWD 100 million and ZWD 250 million.[13]. Ten days later on May 15th, new bearer cheques with a value of ZWD 500 million (then equivalent to about USD 2.5) were issued . Five days later on May 20th, a new series of notes in the form of "agro cheques" were issued in denominations of ZWD 5 billion, ZWD 25 billion and ZWD 50 billion. An addition agro cheque was issued for ZWD 100 billion on July 21st

Look at the wise man...............

You dont have to speak much to prove yourself........

Manmohan Singhji seems to be in such a mood...........death silence from the king and queen of congress is really inquisitive.........all other political parties and 'netas' are busy in speaking about their status with loads of positives about their respective bonds....but all weather introvert Mznmohan Singh is quite even if its his favorite topic 'NUKE DEAL'.

This is one proof of his greatness.....he may not be as smart as Vajpayee sahab at words, or dominant like Indiraji but this economist from a military origin race is a silent general......some in India may remember him as a weak and dumb PM but they dont read the depth of silence which has strength of oceans........I wish congress had a majority govt rather than dependant on left for the 61 seats, we would have seen the real power of this man. With his economic sense and innocence we have a gift of god, still not be a vocalist.......

Manmohan Singh

Early life

He was born on 26 September 1932, in Gah, Punjab (now in Chakwal District, Pakistan). He has an Undergraduate (1952) and a Master's degree (1954) from Panjab University, Chandigarh; an Undergraduate degree (1957) from Cambridge University (St. John's College) and a D.Phil (1962) from Oxford University (Nuffield College). In 1997, the University of Alberta presented him with an Honorary Doctor of Laws. The University of Oxford awarded him an honorary Doctor of Civil Law degree in June 2005, and in October 2006, the University of Cambridge followed with the same honour. St John's College and the University of Cambridge further honoured him by naming a PhD Scholarship after him, the Dr Manmohan Singh Scholarship.

Singh married Gursharan Kaur in 1958, and they have three daughters.

Political career

Singh, an economist by profession, worked for the International Monetary Fund in his younger days.^[2] Dr. Singh is known to be an unassuming politician, enjoying a formidable, highly respected and admired image.^[3] Due to his work at the UN, International Monetary Fund and other international bodies, he is highly respected around the world. He was awarded the Outstanding Parliamentarian Award in 2002. Before becoming Prime Minister, he served as the Finance Minister under Narasimha Rao. He is credited with transforming the economy in the early 1990s during the financial crisis. He served as Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha (upper house) from March 1998 to May 2004, when the Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition government was in office.

His economic policies - which included getting rid of several socialist policies, especially the License Raj - were popular. He enjoys strong support among the middle classes of India due to his education. Singh lost the election in the Lok Sabha from South Delhi constituency in the 1999 general elections. He is thus the only Indian Prime Minister never to have been an elected member of the Lower House of Parliament. In fact he has not won a direct election. He has been a member of the Rajya Sabha from Assam since 1995. He was re-elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2001 and 2007.

Economic reforms and ascent to power

See Also: Economic Reforms under Rao

Singh served as Governor of the Reserve Bank of India from 1982 to 1985, and was hand picked as finance minister in cabinet of then Prime Minister Narasimha Rao in 1991.

Singh is widely regarded as the architect of India's original economic reform programme, which was enacted in 1991 under Rao's administration. The economic liberalization package pushed by Singh and Rao opened the nation to foreign direct investment. The liberalization was prompted by an acute balance-of-payments crisis whereby the Indian government, left without sufficient reserves to meet its obligations, had begun preparations to mortgage its gold reserves to the Bank of England in order to obtain the cash reserves needed to run the country.

Many see the 1991 liberalization as the first of a series of economic restructuring efforts throughout the 1990s and 2000s that have raised India's growth rates to amongst highest in world. Despite its liberal economic policies, Rao's government was voted out in the next general election in 1996.

Opposition and 2004 election

Singh became leader of opposition in upper house of Indian Parliament, and stayed with the Congress Party during a major split in 1999, when three senior Congress leaders objected to Sonia Gandhi's rise as Congress President. Being touted as the Congress choice for the PM's job, Gandhi had become a target of nationalists who objected to her Italian birth.

An alliance led by the Congress Party won a surprisingly high number of seats in the Parliamentary elections of 2004. The Left Front decided to support a coalition government led by the Congress Party from the outside. Sonia Gandhi was elected leader of the Congress Parliamentary Party and was expected to become the Prime Minister. In a surprise move, she declined to accept the post and instead nominated Dr. Singh. He secured the nomination for prime minister on 19 May 2004 when the then President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam officially asked him to form a government. Although most expected him to head the Finance Ministry himself, he entrusted the job to P. Chidambaram.

His appointment is notable as it comes 20 years after India witnessed significant tensions between the Indian central government and the Punjabi Sikh community. After Congress Party Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, the mother-in-law of Sonia Gandhi, ordered central government troops to storm the Golden Temple (the holiest site of Sikhism) in Amritsar, Punjab to quell a separatist movement, she was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards. The result was a genocidal campaign against Sikhs and many innocent Sikhs lost their lives during riots promoted by the Congress Party^{[citation needed]} immediately after the assassination.

Tenure as Prime Minister

Manmohan Singh with US President George W. Bush at the Oval Office.

Singh's image is generally regarded as intellectual, honest but cautious, attentive to working class people (on whose votes he was elected), and technocratic. Although legislative achievements have been few and the Congress-led alliance is routinely hampered by conflicts, Singh's administration has focused on reducing the fiscal deficit, providing debt-relief to poor farmers, extending social programs and advancing the pro-industry economic and tax policies that have launched the country on a major economic expansion course since 2002. Singh has been the image of the Congress campaign to defuse religious tensions and conflicts and bolster political support from minorities like Muslims, Christians and Sikhs.

The Prime Minister's foreign policy has been to continue the new peace process with Pakistan initiated by his predecessor, Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Exchange visits by top leaders from both countries have highlighted this year, as has reduced terrorism and increased prosperity in the state of Kashmir.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh shakes hands with U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney after delivering a speech to the Joint session of the United States Congress as Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert looks on.

His government has endeavored to build stronger relations with the United States, the People's Republic of China and European nations. The Government suffered a setback when it lost the support of a key ally, several African Union members, for its bid for a permanent membership to the U.N. Security Council with veto privileges^{[citation needed]}. One of the biggest achievements^{[citation needed]} of Manmohan Singh's Government has been a nuclear deal between India and the U.S.A. Under Dr. Singh, an economist and Finance minister P. Chidambaram, India's economic growth has continued, with the GDP growing at a very fast rate of 9%. This has resulted in India becoming a trillion dollar economy.

Legislation

The important NREGA act and the RTI act were passed by the Parliament in 2005 during his tenure. While the effectiveness of the NREGA has been debated, the RTI act has proved crucial in India's fight against corruption.

Criticism

Manmohan Singh on his visit to Arunachal Pradesh

• Manmohan Singh is often criticized by opposition parties (mainly BJP) by portraying him as the "weakest Prime Minister until now". The comment was made by Lal Krishna Advani after Manmohan Singh made a statement in which he implied that the "nuclear deal is not a big issue". ^{[4] [5]}


• Communist Parties (notably Somnath Chatterjee) have been criticising him since he got elected as Rajya Sabha member in 1991 from Assam. Their main argument was he is not eligible of becoming a Member of Parliament from a state where he does not reside.


• His statement about losing sleep on Hanif's arrest in Australia was also criticised a lot.^[6]. Opposition asked whether he lost sleep when hundreds of people got killed in Hyderabad, Varanasi and Ajmer blasts.


• He is also the target of opposition due to the "Muslim appeasement" which the government is doing according to other political parties.^[7]

His statements like "Minorities, particularly the Muslims, have first right over the national resources" have also invited a lot of discussion in Indian print media ^{[8] [9]}

Quotations

• "We will have to devise innovative plans to ensure that minorities, particularly the Muslim minority, are empowered to share equitably in the fruits of development. They must have the first claim on resources"


• "I could not sleep thinking about Hanif"


• "Rahul Gandhi is the future of you people" (While addressing a rally in Uttar Pradesh assembly elections).


• "India happens to be a rich country inhabited by very poor people."


• "Life is never free of contradictions"


• "Together with international unity and resolve we can meet the challenge of this global scourge and work to bring about an international law of zero tolerance for terrorism."


• "We are a coalition government, and that limits our options in some ways. Privatization happens to be one such area."


• "We need bipolar democracy like United States. Multiparty system has its own disadvantages."


• "In this increasingly interdependent world in which we live in we have an obligation to explore areas of convergence."


• "By appointing me as Prime Minister of India, Soniyaji (Sonia Gandhi) has proved her sacrifice. I will continue to work on her footsteps."


• "Jawaharlal Nehru wanted India to develop close ties with Japan and learn from its experience."^[10]


• "As the largest and most developed democracies of Asia (India and Japan), we have a mutual stake in each other’s progress and prosperity." ^[10]

Dr. Manmohan Singh's career

• First Class Honours degree in Economics, University of Cambridge, St John's College, Cambridge (1957)


• Panjab University, Chandigarh, India
  
  
  
  • Senior Lecturer, Economics (1957-1959)
  
  
  • Professor of International Trade (1969-1971)
  
  
  • Reader (1959-1963)
  
  
  • Professor (1963-1965)
  
  
  
  


• D. Phil in Economics, Nuffield College at University of Oxford, (1962)


• Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi
  
  
  
  • Honorary Professor (1996)
  
  
  
  


• Chief, Financing for Trade Section, UNCTAD, United Nations Secretariat, New York
  
  
  
  • 1966 : Economic Affairs Officer 1966
  
  
  
  


• Economic Advisor, Ministry of Foreign Trade, India (1971-1972)


• Chief Economic Advisor, Ministry of Finance, India, (1972-1976)


• Honorary Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi (1976)


• Director, Reserve Bank of India (1976-1980)


• Director, Industrial Development Bank of India (1976-1980)


• Secretary, Ministry of Finance (Department of Economic Affairs), Government of India, (1977-1980)


• Governor, Reserve Bank of India (1982-1985)


• Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission of India, (1985-1987)


• Advisor to Prime Minister of India on Economic Affairs (1990-1991)


• Finance Minister of India, (21 June 1991 - 15 May 1996)


• Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha (1998-2004)


• Prime Minister of India (22 May 2004 - Present)