Jill McGivering
Appearances
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Israeli airstrikes have hit several targets inside Yemen
In 2004, Manmohan Singh took office as Prime Minister. He was an unlikely choice.
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Israeli airstrikes have hit several targets inside Yemen
He was a small, mild-mannered man, seen as a political outsider, even described as too honest to be a good operator. From the start, he appealed for political unity and said tackling poverty was a top priority.
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Israeli airstrikes have hit several targets inside Yemen
He promised an ambitious programme of social reform, which aimed to help tens of millions of India's poor. In fact, many promises went unrealised, suffocated partly by coalition politics. He did succeed, though, in another controversial area, in forging a landmark deal on nuclear technology with the United States.
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Israeli airstrikes have hit several targets inside Yemen
That new strategic partnership with Washington saw India opening up civilian nuclear facilities to inspection in return for access to American technology. When then-President George W. Bush visited India in 2006, opposition to the deal was clear. The two leaders did reach agreement, though, the first step in a lengthy process. President Bush praised Mr Singh for his political courage.
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Israeli airstrikes have hit several targets inside Yemen
While Mr Singh was Prime Minister, India saw a string of major bomb attacks. One of the bloodiest came in November last year, the series of attacks on Mumbai. The government faced angry criticism from those who said it had failed to protect them. But Mr Singh was praised for a calm and decisive response.
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Israeli airstrikes have hit several targets inside Yemen
In a special televised address, he condemned the violence and promised he would take the strongest possible measures to make sure nothing similar happened again. His allegations that Pakistan's establishment was complicit in the violence, something Pakistan denies, added to rising tension between the two neighbours after several years of relative harmony.
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Israeli airstrikes have hit several targets inside Yemen
Perhaps his greatest achievement had come much earlier, when he served as finance minister in the early 1990s. Then he was the driving force behind India's programme of sweeping economic reform, which helped the country see years of high growth. In all, Mr Singh will be remembered by many as a man of integrity, who tried to tackle India's poverty and bureaucracy, but saw only limited success.