THE DEBT WE OWE DR MANMOHAN SINGH

Are we an unlucky generation of Indians that we had someone like him, by accident as someone said, and we failed to listen?

Saying goodbye is sometimes very difficult and sad; even if you know all along that it is inevitable.

Words failed me when I heard of Dr Manmohan Singh's passing away: one can with effort describe the deep loss of someone who means a lot to you, but how does one grieve over the loss of a moral compass and a torchlight that helped you break the darkness? Dr Manmohan Singh had not been very active in public life as his age advanced, but every moment spent with him in private remained a treat to be cherished. People who knew him over many decades and had worked with him during his remarkably illustrious career, speak untiringly of his brilliance as an economist and profound foresight of a policymaker and statesmanship. Interestingly, the amazing structural reform he brought about as Finance Minister under Prime Minister Narasimha public sector economy. Yet the opening up was carefully calibrated to secure the strategic sector, permitting many traditionally protected industries to face the market, but at the same time the common citizen was protected by a social safety net that developed during his prime ministership into a social welfare economy.