orbituries

Former Prime Minister of India, Inder Kumar Gujral, the head of unsteady coalition government in 1990s, died at the age of 92 following brief illness on 30 November 2012. He served as the 12th Prime Minister of India from April 1997 to March 1998 in second United Front government following the resignation of HD Devegodda. Gujral was a Rajya Sabha Member twice from 1964 to 1976 and a member of the Lok Sabha from 1989 to 1991. He became a member of Rajya Sabha in 1992. He was re-elected to Lok Sabha from Jalandhar in Punjab as an independent with help from Akali Dal in 1998. It is important to note that he was the Rajya Sabha member during his tenure as the Indian Prime Minister. He had written Matters of Discretion in the form of Autobiography.

IK Gujral: Fact-sheet of his Life

• He was born on 4 December1919 in Jhelum (Pakistan's Punjab Province). He belonged to a family of freedom fighters.

• He began his political career with the Quit India movement in 1942.

• He became vice-president of the New Delhi Municipal Committee in 1958. He formally joined Congress(INC) party.

• He elected for Rajya Sabha in April 1964 on Congress ticket.

• He was the information and broadcasting minister of India when Emergency was imposed on 25 June 1975.

• He was appointed as the ambassador  of India to Russia afterwards.

• He left Congress and joined Janata Dal in late 1980s.

• He became external affairs minister when national front government came to power in 1989 with VP Singh as the Prime Minister.

• During his tenure as external affairs minister Iraq invaded Kuwait, resulting into first Gulf war.

• He retired from active politics in 1999.
• His wife, Sheila was a poet and author. She died in 2011. His brother Satish Gujral is a prominent painter. Ik Gujral's son Naresh Gujral is a Rajya Sabha MP and an Akali Dal leader.

IK Gujral's Major Contribution to Indian Politics

• During his tenure as the Prime Minister, IK Gujral resisted signing CTBT(Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty) paving the way for next government conducting the Pokhran nuclear tests.

• He provided a five-point roadmap to build trust between India and its neighbouring countries known as Gujral Doctrine.

What is Gujral Doctrine

The five principles of Gujral doctrine are:

1. With neighbors like Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka, India does not ask for reciprocity, but gives and accommodates what it can in good faith and trust.
2. No South Asian country should allow its territory to be used against the interest of another country of the region.
3. No country should interfere in the internal affairs of another.
4. All South Asian countries must respect each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty.
5. They should settle all their disputes through peaceful bilateral negotiations.

Major Controversies during IK Gujral's Government

• Its recommendation for President's rule in Uttar Pradesh in 1997, which was refused by the then President KR Narayanan and was sent back to the government for reconsideration.
• Jain commission report on Raiv Gandhi assassination was released.

D.Sitaram, who recently died was a well-known ___________?
[A]Journalist
[B]Member of Parliament
[C]High court judge
[D]Historian
Journalist
He was the former bureau chief of United News of India (UNI).

Veteran BJP Leader Kailashpati Misra Died at the age of 90 in Bihar

Veteran BJP leader, former governor of Gujarat and Rajasthan and former finance minister of Bihar, Kailashpati Mishra, passed away in State of Bihar on 3 November 2012.

Kailashpati Misra, was of 90 years of age and was suffering from prolonged illness.

Kailashpati Misra who was born at Dudharchak village in Buxar district in 1923 served as governor of Gujarat from 7 May 2003 to 7 July 2004 and for a brief period of Rajasthan too during the same duration.

He was a bachelor and popularly known as the "Bhishmapitamah" of State BJP.

Kailashpati Misra had taken part in the Quit India Movement at very early age when he was in school only. Later in young age he joined RSS in 1945 and became state organisation secretary of Jan Sangh in 1959.

Kailashpati Misra  was the first state BJP president in 1980. He then went to become Rajya Sabha MP from 1984 to 1990 and was BJP’s national vice-president from 1995 to 2004.




Han Suyin, who recently passed was a well-known ______________?
[A]Writer
[B]Economist
[C]Human rights activist
[D]Politician
Writer
Han Suyin (95), a Chinese-Belgian British writer who emerged as among the most
powerful voices serving as a bridge between China and the West in the 20th century
and later became an ambassador for China-India relations after her marriage to an
Indian colonel, died in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Pioneer of Pocket Cartoons in India Cartoonist, T. Samuel Died

Veteran Cartoonist and the pioneer of pocket cartoons in India, T Samuel died on 2 October 2012 at the age of 86. Samuel is now survived by his wife, two daughters and a son. 

About T. Samuel

Samuel started his journey as a professional cartoonist before Independence from Lahore with a Military Gazette.  After partition he came to Delhi as a refugee and joined Shankar’s weekly, where he contributed the Kalu and Meena, the silent strip cartoon and some more related to social life. As a staff cartoonist, he served Delhi edition of Times of India, where he became famous as the creator of the pocket cartoon named Babuji. 

After serving Times of India for a certain period of time, he joined Indian Express as a cartoonist and carried on with his featured cartoon Babuji and Garib, the next strip cartoon series. He was back with Times of India and served it and its Hindi daily Nav Bharat Times till 1985, the year of his retirement.

Dinesh Thakur, the veteran actor-director died

Surendranatha Thilakan, the Malayalam film actor and winner of National Award died.in  2009, he was awarded with Padma Shri.

S.K. Khaitan passes away

November 9th, 2012

Shree Krishna Khaitan, chairman of Khaitan group of companies, passed away. In 1975, S.K. Khaitan incorporated the Khaitan group of companies which is one of the leading fan manufacturers in the country with interests in home appliances and lightings business.

The Shiv Sena Supremo Balasaheb Keshav Thackeray died on 17 November 2012 at the age of 86.
he was a cartoonist by profession with an English daily newspaper in Mumbai, named the Free Press Journal. His cartoons were also published in the Times of India. He resigned from the Free Press Journal in 1960 and founded his own political weekly, named Marmik. He also founded Samana, the Marathi language newspaper and the Dophar ka Samna a Hindi newspaper. 

Chinese-British Writer Han Suyin died at the age of 95 in Lausanne

Chinese-British writer and physician Elizabeth Comber, who was known by her pen name Han Suyin, died at the age of 95 on 2 November 2012 at her home in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Han Suyin, was a Chinese-Belgian British writer.  She emerged as among the most powerful voices that served as a bridge between China and the West in the 20th century. She later became an ambassador for China-India relations after her marriage to an Indian colonel, Vincent Ratnaswamy.

She was best known for generating controversy with her hagiographic view of China’s Cultural Revolution.

Above all these she is remembered for her best-selling semi-autobiographical novel that inspired the Hollywood melodrama Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing. It was made into a Hollywood hit in the 1950s, and had won three Oscars.

Han Suyin, on behalf of the Chinese Writers Association, had worked to set up the National Rainbow Award for Best Literary Translation, which is now known by Best Translation Award under the prestigious Lu Xun Literary Award.

She published almost two dozen novels, non-fiction books and memoirs with countless essays for mainstream newspapers and magazines that were often set against the background of historical and generational disruption in Asia.

Former Union Minister of India and ex-Defence Minister K.C. Pant Died

K.C. Pant, the ex-Defence Minister of India and former Planning Commission Deputy Chairman died on 15 November 2012. The 81 years old is now survived by his wife Ila Pant, who was a former Member of Parliament and two sons.

About K.C. Pant

Krishna Chandra Pant was the son of the Bharat Ratna and former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Govind Ballabh Pant. Being a Member of Parliament for about 26 years, K.C. Pant held different key positions of Government of India like Finance Ministry, Defence Ministry, Atomic Energy and Science and Technology, Steel Ministry, Home Ministry and many more. Pant served Indian National Congress till 1998 and after that joined Bhartiya Janta Party.

K.C. Pant for the first time was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1962 and then he was elected in 1967, 1971, and 1989. In 1978 he was elected as a member of Rajya Sabha and served it as its leader from 1979 to 1980.

K. S. Sudarshan, who recently died (15th September 2012), was related to which among the following organizations-------Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh




Veteran Malayalam Actor Jose Prakash died
Veteran Malayalam Actor Jose Prakash (86) passed away. Entering the world of Malayalam films in 1953 as
a singer-actor in the movie Seriyo Thetto, Jose Prakash has acted in over 300 films.He is best remembered
for the villain characters he portrayed. His films include Lisa, CID Nazir, Eetta, Olavum Theeravum,
Manushya Mrigam and Mamankam among others.




Eminent Kuchipudi dance guru Vempati Chinna Satyam
passes away
 Vempati Chinna Satyam (82), an acclaimed Kuchipudi Dance Guru passed away.
 He was decorated with Padma Bhushan by the Government of India in the year 1998.









Eminent Assamese Poet Hiren Bhattacharyya passes away
The most celebrated Assamese Poet Hiren Bhattacharyya, who was famous as Hiru-da, passed away.
Current Affairs Published on www.gktoday.in from January 1, 2012 to
September 10, 2012
Hiren Bhattacharya was also called as Prem aru Rodalir Kobi(Poet of Love and Sunshine) in the Assamese literature.
He was born in Jorhat district in Assam in 1932
He wrote poems on various shades of emotions such as love, patriotism, rebellion, loneliness and humanity
He also wrote several poems for the children. Lora Dhemali (1991) and Akon Dhemali (1991) were two of his most
famous collections of children writing.
Some of his renowned poetry works:
· Xugondhi Pokhilaa
· Roudro Kamona
· Bibhinno Dinor Kobita
· Kobitar Rod
· Mor Desh aru Mor
· Premor Kobita
Awards Received:
· Bishnu Rava Bota
· Rajaji Puroskar awarded by Bharatiya Bidya Bhawan,
· Soviet Desh Neheru Bota
· Sahitya Akademi Award
· Asom Upotyoka Sahitya Bota (Assam Valley Literary Award)











Country pays tribute to Babu Jagjivan Ram
Rich tributes to the former Deputy Prime Minister of India and one of the
founding fathers of the Indian Constitution, Babu Jagjivan Ram on his
25th death anniversary
Popularly known as Babuji
A man of diverse talents Babuji ascended from a modest beginning to
become a cabinet minister and later the Deputy Prime Minister of the country
During his tenure as Agriculture Minister, the country saw the Green
Revolution
He had an uninterrupted parliamentary career of half a century, which
is a world record



Joy Mukherjee (24 February 1939 – 9 March 2012) anIndian film actor and director passed away. The
chocolate boy of the 1960s, who is best remembered as a romantic lead in films like Love in Shimla, Ek
Current Affairs Published on www.gktoday.in from January 1, 2012 to
September 10, 2012
Musafir Ek Hasina, Love in Tokyo and Shagird, passed away on March 9, 2012. Joy Mukherjee was the son of Sashadhar
Mukherjee and Sati Devi. His father was a successful producer and a co-founder of Filmalaya Studios. His uncles were
director Subodh Mukherjee, Ashok Kumar and Kishore Kumar. Joy debuted opposite Sadhana in the film Love in Simla
(1960) directed by R.K. Nayyar. After Love in Simla, he paired with Asha Parekh for several hits like Phir Wohi Dil Laya
Hoon, Love in Tokyo and Ziddi. By the late 1960s acting roles began drying up, so he began directing and producing.
His brother Deb was also a film actor in the 1970s. His Another brother Shomo was married to actress Tanuja and is the
father of Kajol and Tanisha.






Historian Eric Hobsbawm passed away
2012-10-04 18:10:22 Puneet
Eric Hobsbawm(95), one of the most famous historians of
Britain passed away.
Eric Hobsbawm
Born : Eric John Ernest Hobsbawm, June 9, 1917
British Marxist historian of the rise of industrial capitalism, socialism, and
nationalism.
Extensive work on many subjects. As he was a Marxist historiographer he
focused on analysis of the "dual revolution" (the political French Revolution
and the British industrial revolution).
Coined the term "long nineteenth century", which began with the French
Revolution in 1789 and ended with the beginning of The Great War in 1914.
Became a member of Communist Party in England in 1936 and stayed with it
long after Soviet military force crushed the Hungarian uprising in 1956 and the
liberal reforms of the Prague Spring in 1968, although he publicly opposed
both interventions.
Appointed a lecturer at Birkbeck College in London.
1998: Conferred with Companion of Honour, placing him in the ranks of
luminaries Stephen Hawking.
Some of his eminent work:
The Age of Revolution (1962)
The Age of Capital (1975)
The Age of Empire (1987)
Age of Extremes (1914 to 1991)
How to Change the World









Marathi poet Prof. Manik Godghate alias ‘Grace’ passes away
Eminent Marathi poet Prof. Manik Godghate (74) alias ‘Grace’ passed away. He was known for his trend
setting poetry which depicted pathos in human life with a mystical element. He wrote with pen name
“Grace” and he won many awards for his literature that also included collections of free flowing
individualistic articles. Recently he was conferred with with the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award for his
book ‘Varyane halte raan’.

Chaturanan Mishra (Communist leader) passes away
Chaturanan Mishra: Former Union minister and veteran Communist leader
Mishra held many positions in the CPI (Communist Party of India) and All
India Trade Union Congress (AITUC)
As a Freedom Fighter, he participated in the Quit India movement
3 time member of Bihar Legislative Assembly from 1969 to 1980
Elected to the Rajya Sabha in 1984 and 1990
Elected to the Lok Sabha in 1996 from Madhubani constituency
Cabinet minister for Agriculture in the United Front Government led by H D
Devegowda and I K Gujaral in 1996