Manmohan Singh’s ‘best moment’ and ‘biggest regret’ as prime minister

New Delhi:

The conclusion of a civil nuclear deal with the United States and the fact that more could not be done in the area of ​​health were the “best moment” and the “biggest regret” of his term in office, said Manmohan Singh, who died on Thursday 92 years old, his last press conference as Prime Minister died in 2014.

Dr. Singh served from 2004 to 2014 and was considered one of the architects of the 1991 economic reforms that saved India from bankruptcy.

In his last press conference as Prime Minister on January 3, 2014, Dr. Singh was asked about his “best moment” and his “biggest regret” as prime minister.

“I’ll need time to think about it. But the best moment for me was certainly when we were able to conclude a nuclear agreement with the United States to end nuclear apartheid, which had tried to stifle the processes of social, economic change and technical progress of our country in many ways “, he answered the first question.

Under the leadership of Dr. Singh and then US President George W. Bush, India and the US announced in 2005 that they would cooperate on civil nuclear energy.

After a series of negotiations, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), a United Nations agency that promotes the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and technology, approved the safeguards agreement with India in August 2008, after which the US turned to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) wants to grant New Delhi an exemption for the start of civil nuclear trade.

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Then, on September 6, 2008, the NSG granted India the waiver allowing it access to civilian nuclear technology and nuclear fuel from other countries.

Manmohan Singh on his “biggest regret” as prime minister

When asked about the “biggest regret” of his 10-year tenure, Manmohan Singh said he would have liked to have done “a lot more” in the health sector.

“I’m sorry. I haven’t thought about this matter. But definitely I would like to do a lot more in the area of ​​health care, children’s health care and women’s health care. The National Rural Health Mission we launched has achieved impressive results, but much more needs to be done,” he said.

Those from Dr. Singh-led government launched the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) in April 2005 to improve access to affordable and quality healthcare for people in rural areas, particularly the poor, women and children.

“History will be kinder to me”

In this press conference, Manmohan Singh was questioned by NDTV’s Sunil Prabhu about allegations that he had failed to check corruption during his tenure.

In response, Dr. Singh said with a smile: “I honestly believe that history will be kinder to me than the contemporary media or even the opposition parties in Parliament.”

“I cannot reveal all the things that take place in the cabinet system of the government. I think, taking into account the circumstances and constraints of a coalition state, I did the best I could do under the circumstances,” he added.

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At the time, the United Progressive Alliance-II government was suffering from allegations of corruption in several of its ministries, a key reason for the Congress’s defeat in the 2014 general elections and the rise of the Narendra Modi-led BJP to power.

“I never felt like I was resigning”

At the press conference, Manmohan Singh was asked if he had ever felt like he was “stepping down” during his 10-year tenure.

“I never felt like I had to step down. I enjoyed my work. I have tried to do my job with all honesty, with all sense of integrity, without consideration, fear or favour,” he had said.

The Congress leader was also asked if scandals like Commonwealth and 2G had cost his government “a lot of money”.

“When you look back, do you feel like there is something you should have done differently, and what would that be?” said Dr. Singh asked.

He said he was “a little sad” because he was the one who insisted spectrum allocation should be “transparent, fair and equitable.”

“I was the one who insisted that coal blocks should be allocated on the basis of auctions. These facts are forgotten. The opposition has a vested interest. Sometimes the media plays into her hands, and that’s why I have every reason to believe that when the history of this time is written, we will emerge unscathed. That doesn’t mean there weren’t irregularities. But the magnitude of the problems have been overstated by the media and sometimes the CAG by other entities,” he said.